Douglas Chinwuba, a man apprehended in Nigeria by the State Security Service (SSS) in 2016 over his financial ties to the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, Douglas Chinwuba, has succeeded in having his asylum application reviewed after previous denials.
In 2017, the government of Canada rejected Chinwuba’s application for refugee protection on the grounds that his claim of persecution by Nigeria’s SSS, lacked credibility.
Unfazed Chinwuba attempted to reverse the ruling when he approached a federal court in Ottawa, Ontario to seek a judicial review of the denial. As of that time, female Justice Macdonald upheld the decision that earlier denied his request for asylum.
Chinwuba however persisted and later applied twice for permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate [H&C] grounds with additional reasons of the Birth Interests of his Children (BIOC) and his establishment in Canada but both requests were denied in January 2022.
Chinwuba through his lawyer, Ariel Hollander, for Lewis & Associates, later sought a review of the last decision that was deemed “unreasonable” in light of his contribution as a personal support worker in healthcare to Canada during the third wave of COVID-19 pandemic.
Hollander argued that his client risked his life working during the pandemic which claimed other lives and cited the “pathway policy,” a recently launched immigration policy that was launched recently which compensates refugee claimants who worked actively during the COVID-19 pandemic with permanent residence as long as they meet the eligibility criteria.
He made it known that Chinwuba worked over 1000 hours “to support individuals with disabilities in group homes.”
“The applicant provided a letter of employment, dated September 28, 2021, from Dorvict Home and Health Care Services confirming that the applicant actively worked throughout the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Justice Favel wrote in the judgment that invalidated Mr Chinwuba’s permanent residency denial delivered on May 12.
In his ruling, Favel said the previous judgment that failed to consider Chinwuba’s employment history, specifically his duties during the pandemic was erroneous and unreasonable.
Favel stated: “The officer erred in concluding that the applicant’s employment history was insufficient to warrant an exemption on H&C (humanitarian and compassionate) grounds.
“The officer ignored the fact that the applicant risked his own health to provide direct patient care during the COVID-19 pandemic. Doing so renders the decision unreasonable.”
Accordingly, “the application for judicial review is allowed,” Justice Favel stated.
The success of Chinwuba’s rejection appeal might create the way for his successful permanent residency grant on H&C grounds.
