UK-Based Lawyer @chymaker Begins Process to Renounce Nigerian Citizenship, Vows Court Action If Application Is Rejected*

A UK-based legal practitioner who goes by @chymaker on X has announced plans to formally renounce his Nigerian citizenship in 2026. 4352

According to the lawyer, he made a “conscious decision” not to renew his Nigerian passport after the last one expired in 2020. He now intends to take formal steps to “dissociate from Nigeria”. 4352

In a viral post, @chymaker stated that if his application to renounce is not approved by the Nigerian government, he will approach the court to obtain an injunction to mandate the federal government to approve it. 4352

His reasons

The lawyer said his parents are Nigerian, but he was not born in Nigeria and should not “suffer for something he had no hand in”. He added that once his application is approved, he would only apply for a visa to visit Nigeria “if he feels like it”. He also said, “One question that I will not fail to ask God was how he thought it was fair to let me be associated with Nigeria”. 4352

How Nigerian citizenship renunciation works

Under Section 29 of the 1999 Constitution, any Nigerian of full age who wishes to renounce citizenship must make a declaration in the prescribed manner. The President is then required to register the declaration, and “upon such registration, the person who made the declaration shall cease to be a citizen of Nigeria”. ddc7

The Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has directed the Nigeria Immigration Service to withdraw and deactivate passports of persons whose renunciation requests have been formally approved by the President. The government says once citizenship is relinquished, individuals lose the legal right to hold any Nigerian sovereign document, including passports. 2dccddc7

The President may also withhold registration of a declaration if it is made during a war Nigeria is involved in, or “if in his opinion, it is otherwise contrary to public policy”. b79b

Context

Renunciation of Nigerian citizenship has been in the spotlight recently amid wider reforms on identity management and border control. Other public figures have also faced questions over citizenship, including debates around dual citizenship and transmission of Nigerian citizenship to children born abroad.

As of now, @chymaker says he will formally apply to renounce in the new year. 4352