Commonwealth leaders rejected a suggestion by President Mandela of South Africa yesterday that a special team be sent to Nigeria in a bid to improve its human rights record.
A day earlier, the leaders had extended Nigeria's suspension from the 54-nation group and threatened it with expulsion unless the military government of Gen Sani Abacha stuck to its latest timetable for the long-promised restoration of democracy.
Mr Mandela urged an informal meeting of leaders in the university town of St Andrews to find more ways of pressuring Nigeria to release some of its most eminent political prisoners.
"One of the proposals was that another team of ministers should go out to Nigeria and see what could be done but I don't think that idea really took off," a British official said.
The decision to suspend Nigeria and threaten it with a series of tough sanctions was contained in a report by a special Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) which visited Nigeria last year.
Some African leaders have seemed keen to explore ways of engaging Nigeria in further dialogue but the official made it clear the meeting had decided not to make any changes to the report.
"They are content with what they've done so far. There was no decision on any further action," the official said.
Officials and diplomats said Mr Mandela was deeply worried by what he saw as Nigeria's total intransigence over the release of political prisoners.
Mr Mandela is said to be particularly worried about Gen Olusegun Obasanjo, a former military ruler who handed the reigns of power to a civilian government in 1978, and Chief Mashood Abiola, presumed winner of presidential elections in June 1993.
Gen Obasanjo was jailed in 1995 for allegedly trying to mount a coup while Chief Abiola was imprisoned in 1994 for proclaiming himself president after the elections were annulled.
Nigerian dissidents and human rights activists want the Commonwealth to expel Nigeria, which was suspended in late 1995 after executing the author, Ken SaroWiwa, and eight other minority rights activists.
The British Foreign Secretary, Mr Robin Cook, earlier denied the Commonwealth had given in to Nigeria by deciding not to impose immediate tough sanctions.
Nigeria "is to all intents and purposes outside the Commonwealth and it will stay there until we have a democratic government to deal with," Mr Cook said.
"It undervalues the report of that ministerial action group to suggest that in any way they condone [Nigeria's behaviour] or do not propose robust action," Mr Cook told the BBC.
The Commonwealth secretarygeneral, Chief Emeka Anyoku, told the BBC that the group had made quite clear to Nigeria than unless it lived up to its promise to transfer power by October 1st next year, expulsion or an oil embargo would follow.
Another official at the summit in Scotland said he believed the leaders had effectively turned down applications to join from Yemen and Rwanda because they did not meet Commonwealth criteria for membership.
Palestinian authorities have also expressed an interest in joining but will have to wait until they gain full independence before they can apply.