FACILITATION OF EFFECTIVE SRHR MOVEMENT IN NIGERIA BEGINS.

Lawyers Alert on the 14^th and 15^th of May 2018 organised a meeting with Lawyers representing the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria towards the start of a project where the lawyers will act as the hub for start of a SRHR movement n Nigeria. The Lawyers under the aegis of Coalition of Lawyers for Human Rights, COLaHR, will partner with small and medium size CSOs at community levels towards massive organisational capacity building, legal literacy, free legal representation and strategic litigation.

Some pictures at the meeting

Key agreements and next points from the meeting includes but is not limited to:

• Capacity assessment for COLaHR and other small & medium size CSOs in the zones for the purpose of a capacity building plan.
• Monitoring and documentation of SRHR violations in Nigeria across the six zones.
• Free legal representation to victims of SRHR violations
• Capacity building for COLaHR and small & medium CSOs to commence.
• Road map for public impact litigation agreed.

 

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LAWYERS ALERT RELEASES REPORT ON MILITARY INVASION OF NAKA, BENUE STATE, NIGERIA.

Following the invasion and razing down of the Naka, a town in Benue state by the Nigeria military on the 19^th day of April, 2018, Lawyers Alert has released a report detailing the violations that ensued thereof. In the 2 hours of this operation, more than 250 houses and other property worth millions of naira including foodstuffs and other household items had been destroyed. This is sadly within the context of herdsmen killings within the same community.

The invasion is said to be in reprisal for the alleged killing of a soldier by some residents of the town.

Lawyers Alert within the report recommended the immediate release of the arrested suspects from military detention facilities and handing over of same to the Nigeria Police Force for necessary investigation and possible trial in a civil court; setting up of a judicial commission of Inquiry with the aim of identifying all those culpable in these acts and bringing them to trial; the compensation and rehabilitation of the victims of this invasion amongst several other recommendations.

The report is available at:

http://lawyersalertng.org/activities/Nigeria%20Military%20Invasion%20of%20Naka%20%20Town%20in%20Benue%20State.pdf

 

 

LAWYERS ALERT RELEASES DATA ON HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS WITH REGARD TO HOMOSEXUALS IN NIGERIA

The report is a compendium of reported violations of sexual minorities in Nigeria between April 2017 to March 2018, with particular focus on Men who have sex with men (MSM). The data used in this report is drawn from inputs made into the online rights violation documentation tool developed by Lawyers Alert (http://colahr.org/lawyersalert/index.php ). The findings in this report cuts across the six geopolitical zones in Nigeria.

Key findings from the Data evidences that Men who have sex with men, MSM, suffer the highest form of violations amongst key population groups in Nigeria. Violations against MSM by State and Non-State Actors concentrated to an all high of 76% as against other groups. Reasons for this are principally embedded in the prevailing laws (especially the Same Sex Marriage (Prohibition) Law 2013

It is also instructive to note that 95% of reported violations/cases were resolved at police stations, with less than 5% going to trial, and even at that, prosecution is not diligent. This appears to validate the often held claim that arrests are basically to harass, intimidate and extort victims with no will for proper prosecution.  It should be added that approximately 75% of victims were supported with free legal representation either by Lawyers Alert or other organizations in Nigeria.

This report builds on our earlier report  that grouped sexual minorities into one group, http://lawyersalertng.org/resources/LAWYERS%20ALERT%20FINDINGS%20ON%20SRHR%20%20%20%20VIOLATIONS%20IN%20NIGERIA.pdf

With support from the Rapid Response Fund, Lawyers Alert customised the online tool to specifically speak to MSM, as against other key populations and other varying sexual orientations. The online tool automatically analyses data along age, location, types, trends etc.

Interventions for MSM actions and possible law reforms cannot be better informed than when situated against the data evidenced in this report.  The documented  violations were verified and  legal assistance proffered. With Nigeria committed to ending HIV, especially against the background of dwindling external funding, such data are very critical for targeted interventions given limited resources.

Lawyers Alert is indebted to several persons and organizations, who referred cases to us, assisted us technically and/or financially in the course of developing and putting up the online tool. We acknowledge the Rapid Response Fund for partnering with us this on work

The full report can be viewed at http://lawyersalertng.org/resources/Data%20on%20MSM%20Rights%20Violations%20in%20%20Nigeria.pdf

 

 

 

Increase State Resource Allocation on HIV efforts: Lawyers Alert Tells the National Assembly at the Public Hearing on 2018 Federal Budget

The Nigeria Budget Proposals, or better properly called “The 2018 Appropriation Bill”  which encapsulates what and how the federal government will spend Nigeria resources is undergoing debate at the National Parliament.  A public Hearing  held by the Joint Committees of Appropriation  of the Senate and the House of Representatives  for Citizen groups  to make inputs  in helping  parliamentarians make proper resource allocations.

Lawyers Alert made  its presentation seeking  increased HIV funding in Nigeria given especially, the dwindling funding from the International community at the Hearing.  Our inputs follows a year of monitoring violations and related actions in this field in Nigeria, and offering free legal services to victims.

Our Ellen Onugha, Legal Officer, made the presentation of behalf of Lawyers Alert

Find Below full text of Lawyers Alert presentation.

RESPONSIVE BUDGETING: HIV AND AIDS INTERVENTIONS IN NIGERIA:  BEING A PRESENTATION OF LAWYERS ALERT NIGERIA, AT A PUBLIC HEARING OF THE 2019 BUDGET BY THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

PRESENTED THIS 28^TH MARCH 2018

Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa with an estimated 175 million inhabitants. Research in 2013 showed that HIV constitutes a major public health concern in Nigeria and that the country has the second largest burden of HIV in Africa with an estimated 3.4 million people living with the virus in 2013.

Global Fund, an international financing organization that aims to attract and disburse additional resources to prevent and treat HIV and AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, had invested a total of 24 grants in Nigeria since 2003, as part of efforts aimed at tackling the HIV threat. Indeed, as at June 2015, a total of 1.43 billion dollars had been disbursed for HIV programs.  Despite these investments however, in Nigeria, Global Fund faced a number of challenges leading to the sub-optimal grant performance shown below:

• Poor quality health services including treatment disruptions
• Inadequate monitoring and evaluation including poor data quality
• Low financial absorption
• Fraud, corruption or misuse of funds
• Poor financial efficiency and reporting
• Inadequate principal recipient governance and oversight.

Owing to these challenges, Global Fund reduced its funding to Nigeria, thereby making the management of HIV programs, ordinarily capital intensive, even more problematic.

In 2014, the federal allocation to health constituted just 6% of the national budget and was predicated to decline in the future. It has. Currently, state level allocations for health tend to be at an average of 3%. As at 2014, HIV intervention was underfunded by 4 billion dollars. This means there are presently minimal financial resources to make investments in health to significantly alter the course of HIV in Nigeria.

As a result of this paucity in funding the following results have been recorded:

• Approximately 160,000 (one hundred & sixty thousand) people died from HIV and AIDS related illnesses in Nigeria in 2016.
• About 220,000 (two hundred and twenty) new infections were recorded.
• Out of 3,200,000 (three million, two hundred thousand) people living with HIV in 2016, ONLY 30% have access to antiretroviral therapy.
• Only 21% of the estimated 270,000 (two hundred and seventy thousand children, ages 0-14 years) in Nigeria living with HIV have access to antiretroviral treatment.
• Children, especially females, dropping out of school to cater to the needs of infected parents who are sick.

Simply put, the number of people living with HIV and those affected by it, is now disproportionate compared to the funds budgeted for treatment. This is a tide which must be stemmed and quickly too.

Note that an estimated 1.8 million children have been orphaned by AIDS, thereby taking a huge toll on their health, safety and wellbeing. In many instances, elderly grandparents, many of whom tend to be struggling with physical infirmities and financial challenges of their own, have to bear the responsibility for these children.

Incidentally, the National Strategic Framework, 2017-2021, aims (amongst others) at ending AIDS by achieving zero new infections and zero AIDS related deaths. This goal can only be described as utopian at the moment owing to the meager funds allocated to curbing the scourge.

2021 is just 3 years away. What successes have been recorded in tackling HIV? Do we have a tragic case here of “one step forward, two steps backwards”?

The adage “Health is wealth”, has never been more apt than it is now. Our biggest resource in Nigeria at the moment does not lie in the ground in the form of black gold, NO. It lies on the surface of the earth in the form living breathing beings, you and I, who form the bulk of the wealth of this great land. It lies in our human capital. Safeguarding the health of all Nigerians, especially from problems such as HIV, is therefore a task that the Federal Government must embark upon with all sense of urgency.

Of what use would any other achievements be if we were all too sick to benefit from them? If health, and by association, HIV and AIDS programs, are not adequately funded and managed with a view to prioritizing the well-being of citizens, all other budgets would amount to nothing because there might actually be no Nigerians left to enjoy them.

It is therefore imperative that this National Assembly pay heed to the neglect in this sector and take steps to redress the shortfall in funding. This is critical given that international support has drastically dropped as cited above. Failure to do this by the National Assembly could translate to an inability to meet the goal of the National Strategic Framework within the proposed time frame of 2017-2021.

Lawyers Alert therefore, seeks a proved and specific funding, beyond the health sector, for HIV and AIDS interventions by provision of adequate anti-retroviral therapy to enhance access for persons living with HIV. In addition, we seek adequate provision of commodities and services to promote absolutely free testing including the provision of effective mother to child transmission Medicare.

The National Assembly is so urged.

Thank you.

 

Benue As a Metaphor for Official Mischief

by Lazarus Mom 

A chick that will grow into a cock can be spotted the day it is hatched. So goes a popular saying.  Put in another way, an efficient and effective management of a situation by a good and responsible Public Officer can be perceived by his first action.  No high ranking Security Officer has manifested this maxim more than Mr. Ibrahim Idris, the Inspector General of the Nigerian Police.

Since the attack on Logo and Guma Local Government Areas of Benue State by the Killer herdsmen on New Year day, Benue has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. On that fateful morning, the terrorist herdsmen mauled down 73 souls mostly Women and Children. From then on, no day passes by without reports of pockets of attacks every here and there by the terrorists in Benue. As at the time of writing this report, 24 souls killed by the almighty and Untouchable Herdsmen are awaiting mass burial by the Benue State Government. The mass burial of the victims was postponed due to the President visit to the State.

The situation in Benue has exposed the ineptitude, rascality and crass carelessness of the Security Agencies especially the Police Force personified by its Inspector General, Mr. Ibrahim Idris. His poor handling of the Benue crises and his seeming complicity was noticed from the very beginning of this cycle of violence. For example, less than 24 hours after the carnage, Mr. Idris waved away the public concerns and labeled an orchestrated genocide as “A communal Clash”. This reaction was greeted by a huge public outcry all over Nigeria. He was forced to retrace his comments and reluctantly apologize to the Government and People of Benue State. As the highest ranking Police Officer in Nigeria, and supposedly grounded in Security situation management, that statement was a huge miscalculation that borders very close to mischief. That statement gave an impression of a hurried statement based on terse situational report of which no good and responsible Senior Public Officer will make. He was forced to eat the humble pie and apologize albeit needless.

From that moment on, a seeming face off ensued between the Benue State Government and the Inspector General.  On the 9^th of January 2018,  a statement was credited to the  Police High Command accusing the Benue State of owning and arming a militia group.  The Benue State Government vehemently denied this accusation. The Police based its “findings” from the confessions of some hoodlums arrested in Arufu with arms and ammunition claiming to be working for the Benue State Government. In a matter of such weighty and grievous concern, one would have thought that the Nigerian Police should have been careful and cautious in making such sweeping statements especially in these perilous periods. Unfortunately, it did not. This statement further eroded the slim confidence the Government and People of Benue State had in the Police. The bad blood continued.

In February, 2018, appearing before the Senate to give the situational report on the Benue killings especially on the likely remote and proximate causes with a view towards peace, the Inspector General told the upper chamber that the passage of the Anti Grazing law in Benue was the cause of the crises. He recommended that the implementation of the law be suspended until peace returns to the State. This position irked the Government and People of Benue State and rightly too.

The wanton  attacks and killings in Benue  State by the marauding herdsmen has been going  on for years now with little or no constructive effort made to stop the constant cycle of violence. In 2014 for example, herdsmen overran Gwer West, Guma, Makurdi, Tarka, and Agatu local governments killing hundreds and destroying invaluable property and farmlands with careless abandon. The Anti grazing law was not yet in place then.  The IG’ claim that the passage of the law is the cause of the present crises, is not very convincing and correct. Plateau, Adamawa, Nassarawa and some States in North Central Nigeria are under attack by the herdsmen and they certainly don’t have the Anti Open Grazing Law in place.

The face off and war of words between the Police and the Government of Benue State culminated in a live TV program on Channels TV on the 6^th of February 2018. On that show, the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Benue State Mr. Terve Akase had a hot altercation with the Force Public Relations officer Mr. Jimoh Moshood  over the call for the resignation of the Inspector General of the Police due to his poor management of the crises. The argument got to a point that the host had to threaten to send them off the program if they fail to live up to the ethics and decorum of the show.

What angered the Press Secretary was that Mr. Jimoh maintained the narrative that enough security measures had been put in place by the Police that the Governor Dr. Samuel Ortom was a drowning Governor who could not control his State. This episode like the many others sparked an outcry. How could a very senior Police Officer call a sitting Governor a drowning Man on National TV?  The bizarre and irrational action by Mr. Jimoh on National TV received nether rebuttal or reprimand from his boss the Inspector General. What that meant is that Mr. Jimoh was speaking the mind of his boss.  This position falls far short of responsible Policing and effective crises management. It sends wrong signals to the minds of the people especially the warring parties.

Common sense dictates that, the Security agencies especially the Police should not be seen as taking sides in a conflict situation. This was the impression left on the minds of the Benue by the actions and inactions of the Police especially the Inspector General.

The straw that broke the camel’s back was the visit of the President to the State on Monday, the 12^th day of March, 2018. During the interactive session with the Benue people especially elders, community leaders, faith based and other interest groups, the President was shocked to learn that the Inspector General of Police stayed less than 24 hours in Benue during the heat of the crises. The perplexed President revealed that he specifically instructed Mr. Ibrahim Idris to remain in Benue until peace and calm returned.

Need one say more?

This blatant disregard to a Presidential Order could only mean rascality or mischief at the expense of the lives and properties of the Citizens. The cumulative action of the IG in the Benue crises clearly shows how Senior Public Officers in Nigeria abdicate their roles and responsibilities regardless of the consequences. The media reported that the Inspector General left Benue in a hurry for his birthday party in Abuja and never returned. Whether he left for a birthday party or not, the truth is he left his duty post as instructed by the President

The case of the Inspector General of Police is only a tip of the iceberg. If the President had not revealed to Nigerians the true case scenario, no one would have known the Inspector General of Police abdicated his duties in Benue. What this scenario has depicted is that, there are many Senior Public
Officers in Nigeria who flounder Presidential directives with the damming consequences as the Benue situation. Such officers can be found in Health care delivery sector, Education, Agriculture etc. it is perhaps the reason Nigeria has remained stagnant.

What this revelation has further depicted is the level of ignorance the President lives in. it is bewildering to know that the President issues a directive in January and only gets to know about its non-compliance in March. One begins to wonder how many Presidential directives have been disregarded without the President’s knowledge. This is worrisome.

For peace to return to Benue and Nigeria to move forward, senior public officers including the Inspector General of Police must be above board in the discharge of their tasks and responsibilities.

In another light, we salute the courage and resilience of the Benue People especially the Executive Governor for standing firm in their resolve even in the face of grand scale opposition including hostilities. In his welcome address to the President, the Governor highlighted the position of Benue People. He told the President “that between 2013-2017, Forty-Seven attacks were recorded, over 1,878 men, women and children have been slaughtered in cold blood across 14 Local Government Areas of the State, 750 were seriously wounded while 200 were missing. Over 99,427 households have been affected. Furthermore, the State has lost an average of 47% of Internally Generated Revenues due to attacks by armed herdsmen in the State. He said this was the logic behind the Open grazing Prohibition Law 2017 which represents the wishes of the People of Benue State.

The Governor went ahead to challenge the President by asking for the arrest of the leadership of  Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore who on 30th May, 2017,  in a ‘World Press Conference’ held in Abuja, opposed the Ranching Law. They called on Fulani herders in all of West Africa to come into Benue to help them reclaim their land. In the same vein, Miyetti Allah Cattle Herders Association in their Press Conference declared that more blood will flow in Benue if the Ranching Law is not rescinded. True to their threats, the attacks have been carried out and are still on going.

This is the situation in Benue. If all hands were on deck, a lot would have been avoided. If the Inspector General had not flagrantly disobeyed the directives of the President, the violence would not have probably degenerated to such a magnitude. The killings in Gboko, Okpokwu, the uprising in Makurdi etc all would have been avoided if the Inspector General of Police had stayed back in Benue as directed. His presence would have sent a very strong message to both sides of the warring parties that this is no joke. It would also have kept every single Police Personnel on his or her feet to be alert to their duties. Regrettably Mr. Idris failed to do such and his subordinates followed suit, giving way to rancour and mayhem to reign supreme in Benue State.

Given the above therefore, Lawyers Alert recommends the following:

• That the current Inspector General of Police, Mr. Ibrahim Idris be removed with immediate effect for flagrantly disobeying a Presidential order which is unbecoming of a Senior Public Officer of his calibre.
• That an apology be issued from Mr. Ibrahim Idris to the Government and People of Benue State over his failures and its attendant consequences,
• The relocation of a new Inspector General of Police to the State to see to it that Peace returns to Benue,
• That the Presidency should strengthen its monitoring systems to check the actions or inactions of Senior Public Officers towards their functions especially directives from the President.

As stated earlier above, the actions of Mr. Idris is an indictment on Public officers in Nigeria.  Many of them have abdicated or are still abdicating their duties to the detriment of the growth and development of Nigeria. Until and unless Senior Public Officers begin to see that the Citizens are the raizon de tre they are appointed, Nigeria will keep moving in cycles.

Lazarus Mom is a Director with Lawyers Alert

 

Women and the Benue Killings

By Jerome Mary Uneje

The sound of the whistle pierces through the quiet dark night in the neighbourhood of Ityo Gbenda, a suburb of Anyiin, the headquarters of Logo Local Government Area of Benue State. Everybody is alarmed and tense. A few brave men dare the consequences and rush in the direction of the sound, machetes and spears in hand. The loud sound of the whistle at this time of the night could mean a warning or worse still, an attack within seconds; the few brave men have raced to the home of Pa Agbidye or what remains of it.

To their surprise, it is Orlaade, his rascal drunk of a son, who has had an overdose of ogogoro and is playing pranks. They are livid. How could one be so irresponsible as to alarm the community this way when they were barely returning home since January when the marauding herdsmen attacked the community in the dead of night killing scores and burning homes including the Orlaade’s father’s? One by one they leave, hissing only after abusing the fellow who is neither concerned nor remorseful.

Such has been the fate of the People of Logo, Guma and some other parts of Benue since the January attacks by the killer herdsmen. Though some level of peace is gradually returning, fear and an uneasy calm hang thickly in the air. The January attacks have taken a toll on the State on a multi-sector level ranging from the Government to individual persons.

At the State level, the attacks and killings have caused a lot of economic hardship and sprain on finances. For example, over 5 Internally Displaced Persons Camps have been set up by Government to cater for over 45,000 persons displaced in both Guma and Logo local governments. Through the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), the Government has channelled a lot of financial resources into purchasing relief materials and other necessities for Displaced Persons across the 5 camps. These monies were never budgeted for neither had plans been made in advance for their expenditure. What this implies is that, monies meant for other projects like Health Care, Agriculture and other core areas of social life may have been channelled into addressing this unexpected and unfortunate situation. This will no doubt affect the finances and economic position of the State.

Furthermore, the killings have led to a sharp decline in the aggregate food production in the state. Benue is known as the food basket of the Nation due to the high level of agricultural production the citizens engage in. With over 75% of its Citizens engaged full time in the Agro Industry, the State derives most of its Internally Generated Revenue from farms produce. Guma and Logo are particularly known for their high-level food production especially rice and yam. With both local governments currently displaced, their quota of food production and potential revenues could be lost never to be recovered. This has the potential of leading to famine, malnutrition, loss of income and other domino effects that could be inimical in the long term to general food security in the country.

At the community level, local Citizens no longer sleep with their eyes closed. Daily, the peoples of both Guma and Logo live in perpetual fear for their lives and property. Though operation “Cat Race” has been established by the Nigerian Army, fear still permeates the atmosphere. This state of perpetual fear creates an environment of insecurity, uneasy calm and tension leading to a potentially disastrous situation especially when fed by the ever-spinning rumour mill.

Though a degree of Peace has returned, the trauma of the death of loved ones and destruction of properties still affects the people. Burned houses, granaries, orchards and farmlands are physical reminders of the assault the people suffered on New Year morning of 2018. These sad reminders only make a bad situation worse. Other properties destroyed included shops and business centres. Certainly, feelings of bitterness would be assuaged if perpetrators were at least caught and punished for the irreparable losses especially human lives.

It is a global fact that in any violent conflict, women are usually the worst hit. This attack is no exception. Going by the report of the Benue State Emergency Management Agency, of the over 45,000 people in the 5 camps, approximately 65% or 29, 250 are women.

A major challenge being faced by these women is the loss of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services especially for Pregnant Women. Most of them have lost follow up on Antenatal/ PMTCT services. This loss of follow-up on basic Sexual and Reproductive Health Services posses a significant danger for both mothers and unborn children. Other such services these women have lost access to include Family Planning and HIV and AIDS. The displacement has led them to an inability to continue follow up on their medication and cocktails. As a result, some of them are already taking ill and in danger of imminent death.

The dearth of Sexual and Reproductive Health Services in these camps also affects young girls and women who are sexually active.  The camps provide little or no form of Sexual and Reproductive Health services to this group yet they face a situation where most of them are exposed to sexual demands from males longing to take advantage of their predicament. Already vulnerable, many succumb to these demands even without protection at the risk of unintended pregnancies and or infections. Were adequate Sexual and Reproductive Health Services provided in these camps, or these women and girls not displaced from their homes, the above situation might not arise.

Another effect of the displacement on the Benue woman is the loss of livelihood. Over 75% of women in Benue are farmers or petty traders living in rural areas. With this displacement, the women in both Guma and Logo have fled their homes leaving their means of livelihood.

With the increased pressure on their declining finances, some of these women are resorting to unbecoming methods and means of survival even sex for money in spite of the inherent dangers. Worse still is the fact that they will have little or nothing to fall back on when they return home from these camps.

Yet another effect of this displacement on the Benue Woman is the sharp increase in violations on women’s rights especially Gender Based Violence including battery, rape, assault, intimidation etc. Most of the displaced women within and/or outside these camps have faced one form of violence or the other. Though no specific statistics exist to confirm the number of displaced women violated, our survey has shown that many of the displaced women have experienced one form of violation or the other since the attacks occurred. Gender Based Violence is therefore another effect of the displacement on the Benue woman.

Full scale hostilities have subsided. Peace has since returned to the displaced communities. Pockets of violent attacks are reported here and there but the effects are still there. In order to ameliorate the effects of this conflict on the State and its Citizens, the following is recommended:

• The Federal Government and the International Development Agencies should increase their aid to the State in providing assistance to the displaced people and in rebuilding homes and properties destroyed by the marauding herdsmen.
• Deliberate efforts should be made by both the Federal Ministry of Agriculture in tandem with the State Institutions to assist farmers with improved seeds, seedlings and other farming inputs with a view towards boosting aggregate farm produce in Benue State to stave off famine and food shortage.
• The operation Cat Race and other Security Operatives should intensify their patrols and surveillance in the war torn grassroot communities to establish their presence. This will reduce the level of anxiety and sleeplessness in the communities.
• On the mass destruction of properties in the affected communities, we strongly recommend the compensation of the affected people of their losses in monetary terms,
• We also recommend that Sexual and Reproductive Health services be provided in camps and in the conflict zones including the provision of Ante-natal/PMTCT to pregnant Mothers.
• Lastly, we recommend the monitoring and documentation of the violations of Rights of the displaced women with a view towards investigating the violations and bringing the perpetrators to justice.

As they leave, the leader of the security contingent takes a last, piteous look at Orlaade. He ponders how such a childish act could have rattled an entire community, a situation which would never have arisen prior. He sighs. Such has been the effect of the killings in Anyiin and indeed the entire Benue State.

Jerome Mary Uneje is with Lawyers Alert

 

 

HUMAN RIGHTS, SECURITY AND THE BUHARI ADMINISTRATION

By Rommy Mom Esq, President, Lawyers Alert

INTRODUCTION

Institutionalized Government historically evolved from persons within a geographic entity abdicating their rights and putting same in a system that would collectively protect and provide for them under terms and conditions known as the State/Government. The situation in Nigeria is no different, where all our rights are placed within the protection of a Government that is supposed to provide, protect, and fulfil these rights, mostly referred to as Human and/or constitutional rights.

Rommy Mom Esq

Central to the issues of Human rights are the right to life. While other rights are no less important, they can only be enjoyed where the right to life is secured. Lately in Nigeria, the right to life has been precarious with regard to protection and provision.

The previous Government showed complete ineptitude in the protection of Nigerian lives with particular reference to Boko Haram. It can be argued that President Buhari rode to power largely on this plank, promising Nigerians  his administration  would protect this cardinal right i.e. right to life. Based on this premise, Nigerians voted him in. Lawyers Alert, like most Human Right Organizations at the time, identified President Buhari as the preferred candidate for Nigeria based on his plans and where the country was headed at the time.

Today, the question is, has President Muhammadu Buhari delivered on the mandate of securing lives and property? And also in the process of so doing, have good intentions and empathy been evidenced?

BOKO HARAM

With regard to Boko Haram, before Buhari came in to power, Kano, Kaduna, Gombe, Bauchi, Adamawa, Taraba, Plateau, Yobe, Borno and the Federal Capital Territory were massively compromised by attacks orchestrated by the terrorist group. Bombs went off regularly, adherents of the 2 main faiths, Islam and Christianity worshipped in fear and school children were either murdered or abducted in the face of Government helplessness. Never to be forgotten: the Buni Yadi massacre in Yobe state and the abduction of almost 300 girls from a secondary school in Chibok, Borno state.

To President Buhari’s credit, Boko Haram is now barely operational and even so only in Borno State where it originated. Equally in the South-West and South-East, unrest and insecurity, have been reasonably contained. In fact, a large number of the abducted girls have also been recovered, relatively safe and sound. These efforts must be acknowledged and commended.

HERDSMEN AND BENUE BASIN

Sadly and most disquieting however, in the Middle-Belt region and the Benue basin, gruesome carnage has held sway and is gradually gaining a frightening momentum courtesy of a band of brigands referred to as  herdsmen. Farmers, most of whom are located in rural areas and mostly subsistent farmers, are caught off guard, sometimes on their farms, other times in their communities and slaughtered by the dozen, ostensibly in   “land grab” pursuit for grazing. While these attacks did not begin with Buhari’s administration, the killings appear to have escalated dramatically under Buhari’s watch.

Rather than comprehensively addressing the issue and protecting citizens’ right to life, the Buhari administration is exhibiting the same helplessness Nigerians experienced with the Jonathan administration’s handling of the Boko Haram threat.

For instance, Jonathan chose not to visit Borno even as Boko Haram ruthlessly plundered its way across most parts of the north and gradually earned a reputation as the most vicious terror group in the world. By the same token, President Buhari is yet to visit especially Benue, the state most pillaged by herdsmen. In fact, a recent state visit that took him to neighboring Nasarawa state on the 6^th of February, 2018, somehow neglected to include a stopover in Benue as part of the itinerary.

RESPONSIBILITY

No pussy footing on this, the responsibility of protecting lives lies squarely with the Federal Government of Nigeria given that all the security agencies in this Country are Federal in nature and take orders from federal agencies/President and not the State Government. This leaves the State Governments very vulnerable as they have no power. Yet, the Federal Government is yet to make adequate security arrangements in the affected areas for the protection of lives and property, even while these so-called herdsmen have a field day in the massacre of Nigerian citizens in the most gruesome manner.

Some State Governors in a bid to address the situation have passed anti-open grazing law in their States. Others have called for ranching while, pleading with the Federal Government to protect their people.

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT RESPONSE

The Federal Government response, sadly, has been tepid, and even as we speak, entire communities in Benue are being decimated and the people displaced as a result.

• Federal security agencies have alleged that there are elements of Islamic fundamentalist / terrorists masquerading as herdsmen. If this is true, the Federal Government has not bothered to show some clarity in this regard in the spirit of accountability to the people. If the security agencies are accurate, then the Federal government is approaching the issue in the most casual manner given the lessons of Boko Haram.
• A second response from the Federal Government is for security agencies to ask State Government to suspend validly passed laws i.e. Anti-open grazing laws. This is not only shocking but rather absurd. That this suggestion would come from security agencies is a clear manifestation of their reluctance to call a spade a spade. In effect, the State Governments would have to suspend laws or their people would continuously be killed. This suggestion is shameful as these laws were actually passed to mitigate the situation. The problem, therefore, can’t possibly be the laws.
• Security agencies, especially the Police are becoming increasingly partisan, with the Police Public Relations Officer openly calling the Governor of Benue State a drowning man during a talk show on Channels. Lawyers Alert completely supports the Resolution of the House of Representatives calling on the Inspector General of Police to resign. Offices are not just meant to be occupied, but to be occupied for functionality. The functionality of the Inspector General’s office is in question and we call for his immediate resignation in line with the House of Representatives resolution.
• President Buhari’s non-responsiveness to the situation by staying largely quiet, refraining from making assurances to the people of Benue people in line with his mandate to protect them, is sad.

IMPLICATIONS

On the whole, the implications of what is happening in Benue is massive. The entire Benue valley/basin is now an unsecured environment wherein farmers can no longer go to their farms. IDP camps have become a regular feature even as Benue remains in the top 4 states with a high population of IDPs as reported by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre. According to the IDMC, Benue has approximately 85,393 (eighty five thousand, three hundred and ninety three) displaced persons and these are even figures from 2015.

For a Government that prides itself on the need to diversify our economy in favor of agriculture and food security, its response to the crisis exhibits either an abject lack of commitment to that pledge or dismal ignorance of the vital role Benue plays in the agriculture sector in Nigeria.

Another implication of what is happening in Benue is the apparent notion that herdsman are somehow above the law. Instead of arrest and prosecution, we have security agencies requesting that laws be suspended or repealed.

Equally irksome is the suggestion of establishing “cattle colonies”, mooted by the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh. With regard to this idea, Lawyers Alert posits that the issue of cattle ranches and colonies, be totally suspended in States like Benue, at least until the menace of herdsmen is traced to its roots and destroyed. Healing, rehabilitation and reconciliation should be the only priorities at this time.

Most importantly, there must be a holistic approach to the issue of marauding herdsmen and loss of lives in the Benue basin. A solution would have to be thought through with the active participation of communities and stakeholders.

Lawyers’ Alert therefore calls on President Muhammadu Buhari to visit Benue, commiserate with the people, and show the political will to resolve the lack of security in the Benue basin in much the same way the Boko Haram menace was tackled.

Benue certainly deserves that.