The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Rights group

  • Rights group, observers insist Fayemi won Ekiti election

    Observers under the aegis of the Nigerian Human Rights Community, (NHRC) have insisted that the All Progressives Congress, (APC) gubernatorial candidate, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, won the Ekiti State gubernatorial election free and fair. At a press conference in Lagos over the weekend, the observers led by Taiwo Adeleye, where the group presented preliminary reports, it said the election was associated with hitches but not enough to invalidate the victory of APC at the poll.

    The NHRC regrets that the status of human rights work is being distorted by the Ekiti State Governor, Mr. Ayodele Fayose who it accused of raising a coterie of false and emergency human right groups and observers with preconceived aim of supporting Dr Olusola Eleka, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate. The group said there were obvious cases of political parties’ involvement on corruption but that it is mischievous to blame the outcome of the election on that note.

    It said that in Ekiti State, the ring leader of electoral manipulation is Mr. Ayodele Fayose. “Since 2014, Mr Fayose has been distributing cash-public funds-to individuals on the streets amongst who are voters. It has become a day-to-day function of the Ekiti state Governor and its officials to distribute cash to people on the streets. There is nothing behind this than a conscious attempt to buy votes. Most of these cases were reported in the mainstream and social media where Mr. Fayose was openly distributing cash to people on the streets.”

    The group added “In Ekiti, workers were paid N3,000 on the eve of the election as bribe so that they could vote for Dr Eleka. This is a well-known fact. He also paid N7,000 each to pensioner on the eve of the July 14 election. The cash paid was not listed as part of their legal entitlements but as inducements to ensure they voted for the PDP. There can be no clearer evidence of election malpractices that this. Under the Ekiti State governor, manipulation of elections through cash inducement is a directive principle of the state which has been entrenched in the state’s convention through the framework of stomach infrastructure.”

    The group said the turn out during the election was impressive. “Ekiti has 842,731 registered voters. This number shortly before the election increased to about 900,000. This is quite commendable considering the total population of the entire state which is 2.7million people. Out of the figures, 667,064 PVCs were collected while 246,270 PCVs were not collected. There are 177 wards in 131 towns and villages located in 16 local governments.

  • Rights group protests non-proscription of IMN to AGF

    Rights group protests non-proscription of IMN to AGF

    *IMN planning attack on innocent Nigerians

    More trouble seems to be brewing in the air for detained leader of the Zaria Iran affiliated sect, Mr. Ibrahim El-Zakzaky as a large number of protesters today besieged the office of the Attorney General of the Federation to demand for the proscription of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria [IMN] and subsequent designation as a terrorist organization.

    ASJA, during a protest march to the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, in Abuja warned that after the confrontation with the convoy of the Chief of Army Staff in December 2015, the IMN is already re-grouping to launch attacks on innocent Nigerians.

    Torkuma V Asogo, Executive Director of ASJA‎ who led the rally said, If our laws cannot fight terrorism, the guns may also not be enough to win the battle.

    According to the group, IMN have claimed severally that they do not respect Nigerian laws.

    “As recently as this week, Nigerians have become aware that IMN leader, Mr Ibraheem El-Zakzaky was caught with a large cache of arms ammunitions in the period leading up to his confrontation with the military and his subsequent arrest and detention.

    “On several occasions his members had contemplated storming the facility in which he is detained with the intention to attack the security operatives there and free him while hiding such heinous plots under the cover of protests.

    “IMN’s link to Iran, a major state sponsor of terrorism, is not in doubt. This to us calls for not just concern but underscores the need to be proactive especially in the light of a recent CIA report that clearly indicted Iran for sponsoring terrorism to destabilize other countries. “Other nations have taken steps to designate groups connected to Iran as terror organizations to ensure the safety of their citizens. Nigeria must be the only country that allows an Iranian sponsored terror group to go around attacking security agents and harassing citizens without consequences.

    This is simply unacceptable. Iran’s backing of IMN has emboldened it as a terror group. Its members have openly confronted the military, the police and even our defenseless population the last being the attack on the Police in Abuja. Before this, IMN has made life unbearable to the population of Nigerians living within its sphere of influence. It even went as far as declaring for itself a parallel government.

    “This rally to your office is for us to demand the proscription of IMN, which the Kaduna State Government outlawed and properly documented in its gazette a long time ago. Several other states have toed the same path but this kind of installment approach is not adequate to deal with the threat posed by IMN considering its international sponsorship as terror group.

    “We therefore decided it is time to make this demand because of the increasing threats of IMN militants. We consequently demand that the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation properly designate IMN as a terrorist organization since its menace is growing every day and without any check from the Federal Government its criminal acts of terror will spread to other parts of the country”.

    The Executive Director also said, “The laws are unequivocal in the procedures for declaring a group as a terror organization. This has been tested sufficiently tested with the designation of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) as a terrorist group in the South East, immediately curtailed the terrorist activities of the group.

  • Rights group seeks pardon for Beko’s son

    A human rights group, the Beko Rights Klub, has called for the release and reinstatement of Brig-Gen Enitan Ransome-Kuti and other soldiers accused of mutiny.

    Led by its convener, Comrade Debo Adeniran, the group marched on the Lagos State House of Assembly yesterday as part of activities to mark the 10th anniversary of the demise of rights activist Dr Beko Ransome-Kuti.

    The group insisted that recent revelations in the country attested to the fact that Gen Ransome-Kuti was not guilty of any act of mutiny.

    It petitioned the House of Assembly to do all within its power to get the National Assembly to compel the Federal Government to ensure the prompt release and reinstatement of the general and others.

    “The Beko Rights Klub is utilising this occasion of the commemoration of Beko’s passage to call on the Federal Government to grant Gen Ransome-Kuti, son of our late hero, Beko Ransome-Kuti, national pardon.

    He remains in prison till date, even though history has absolved him,” said Adeniran.

    Adeniran, who is also the chairman, Coalition Against Corrupt Leaders (CACOL), insisted that rather than blame the Gen Ransome-Kuti, he should be held shoulders high, bearing in mind that his innocence had been proven by the ongoing arms scandal.

    “We are strongly convinced that the revelations reeled out from the arms procurement scandal confirm his innocence and patriotism. In fact, we believe, with those expositions, the soldiers’ actions are justifiable and reasonable,” he added.

    The Majority Leader, Sanai Agunbiade, said the lawmakers shared the same optimism with the group, especially the quest to have a country where justice, fairness and obedience to the rule of law prevail.

    He added that the House would do the needful in ensuring that the right thing was done.

  • Rights group urges Akwa Ibom A-G

    Activists have urged Akwa Ibom State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Uwemedimo Nwoko to ensure that citizens’ rights are protected.

    They urged the government to pay deserving attention to “series of human rights concerns in the state which require urgent attention.”

    Nwoko, who was also into rights activism before his appointment by former Governor Godswill Akpabio four months to the administration’s expiration, was retained by Governor Emmanuel Udom.

    Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) state chairman Clifford Thomas said Nwoko’s “has contributed to the promotion of human rights and the legal profession in Akwa Ibom and Nigeria” and should keep the flag flying.

    “Nwoko’s appointment is not only a recognition of excellence in the performance of duty, but a conscious involvement of the human rights community in the observance, preservation and protection of the rights of persons living in Akwa Ibom.

    “It is a call to duty for the community to help the government in identifying areas of concern, and create good entry points into getting government at the state and local government levels to help promote chapters II and IV of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and other conventions,” the group said.

     

  • Boko Haram: Rights group protests engagement of ‘civilian JTF’ in Borno

    Boko Haram: Rights group protests engagement of ‘civilian JTF’ in Borno

    The Human Rights Monitor (HRM) has asked the Joint Task Force in the Northeast to disarm the volunteers assisting the military to arrest fleeing Boko Haram members.

    The volunteers, who are called “civilian JTF”, have been combing Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

    The rights group, in a statement by its Executive Director, Mr Festus Okoye, warned security agencies against abdicating their responsibility to a band of youth.

    The statement said: “The Joint Task Force providing security in the North east and Northwest geopolitical Zones of Nigeria have apparently handed over part of their responsibilities to those they now refer to as “civilian JTF”.

    “The sad fact is that the Joint Task Force does not know the background of some of these youths. The JTF does not know the communities where some of them reside and their political and religious affiliation. The Joint Task Force has no data of their previous and current activities.

    “Arming and encouraging youths from diverse backgrounds to take up arms and weapons in an unregulated manner to block roads, make arrests, beat up suspects, kill those “found guilty” and burn their houses and chase them out of town is dangerous to the rule of law and the current efforts aimed at tackling security challenges in Nigeria.

    “Ordinarily, the Nigerian Police Force is constitutionally and legally empowered to maintain law and order and protect lives and properties of the people. The military are only called in to assist civil authorities when civilian authorities are overwhelmed by the magnitude of the challenges. “

    The group expressed fears that some of these gangs may bond together and threaten security and welfare of the citizens.

    The statement added: “While it is important for civilians to assist security agencies with useful information that may lead to the arrest of those who break the law and threaten the security of the citizens, it is equally dangerous to arm them and allow them to take over the streets in a manner that breeds fear and anxiety on the citizens.

    “The truth of the matter is that this version of civilian JTF roaming round the street of Borno and Yobe States are not people previously known to security agencies as law abiding citizens.

    “The fear is that some of these gangs roaming the streets as civilian JTF may bond together and become a formidable force for purposes that may be inimical to the security and welfare of the citizens. The experience of the Niger Delta militants and the present insurgents that have become difficult to uproot is enough precedent for the Nigerian people to learn from.

    “We are of the opinion that the Commander of the Joint Task Force must disarm this civilian JTF as their continued operation under official cover gives the impression that the security agencies have abandoned their responsibilities to an unregulated army of untrained persons with no visible means of livelihood and no permanent abode.

    “The civilian JTF is not trained in the art of handling weapons and law enforcement and have no idea of rules of engagement in the fight against insurgents and should not be allowed and or used to violate the fundamental rights of the people.

    “Arming the so-called civilian JTF in an unregulated manner may assist them bond together and they may later become a problem and a challenge to the society since they are armed and dangerous.

    “Civilians should be encouraged to be vigilant and supply honest information to the security agencies but should not be allowed to carry arms and terrorise persons.

    “The security agencies must continue their efforts at protecting the lives and the properties of law abiding citizens in a manner consistent with Nigeria’s regional and international human rights obligations.”