Public analyst sues National Human Rights Commission

Public policy analyst, Sesugh Akume, has sued the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) over its failure to address a matter reported to the commission since March 31, 2023.

Two others were also sued: the national human rights commission Executive Secretary, Anthony Okechukwu Ojukwu, SAN, and the chair of its governing board, Dr. Salamatu Hussaini Suleiman.

According to Akume, the suit numbered FHC/ABJ/CS/1135/2024 in the matter of Sesugh Akume v. National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and 2 Others was filed on August 8, 2024, while the NHRC and the other respondents reportedly received court processes on Wednesday, August 14, 2024.

Releasing a statement on Wednesday, Akume said, “On March 11, 2023, I was made aware of an attack on my community in Sankera (Benue), where it was widely reported in the media by Ayatutu Cultural and Social Development Initiative (AYACASODI), a socio-cultural pressure group, that on March 7, operatives of the joint military ‘Operation Whirl Stroke’ stationed in neighboring Taraba under the command of a certain Major Paul Duniya crossed over and attacked Jootar (close to Zaki-Biam) unprovoked, leading to the death of Mr. Iniongo Verve, the serious injury of Mr. Aondowase Abeda, and the forceful carting away of almost one hundred motorcycles.

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“This matter was reported to NHRC at their Abuja headquarters, NHRC being Nigeria’s alternate human rights court with the full power to investigate reports of human rights abuses and to make determinations which are binding with the full force of law and enforceable.

“Within three weeks of filing the complaint, preliminary investigations were carried out and concluded by the NHRC Benue office, which actually went to Jootar to interface with the victims and gather evidence, and reported back to their Abuja head office.

“The report of preliminary investigations had evidence from the mortuary and other proofs of the fatality; evidence of the serious injury; and details of the motorcycles forcefully taken away, with all required supporting documents, along with the names and telephone numbers of the victims who all committed to testifying in person whenever called upon.”

Although he said that after months of “diligent but fruitless follow-up at the Abuja head office,” NHRC wrote to him on November 7 that they had forwarded his complaint to the military to investigate itself as well as the victims and that their report, whenever it is submitted to NHRC, will be handed over to him whenever it is ready, but that he should note that these things take time.

Akume said he wrote back to the commission to make it clear that the position was not tenable. He urged the commission to “kindly do their work as mandated by the NHRC Act 1995 and possibly conclude it before the one-year anniversary of the sad event, in order to allow the people to gain closure and move on with their lives.”

He added that his appeals to the Executive Secretary and the chair of the governing board “fell on deaf ears.”

He said, “I further wrote to the chair of the Senate Committee on Justice, Human Rights, and Legal Matters, as well as the chair of the House of Representatives Committee on Human Rights, and by telephone as well, all to no avail.

“On March 8 this year, I got a call from one Captain Andrew John of the Joe Akaahan Cantonment, Makurdi, that they had received my complaint from NHRC and were to investigate it. He, among other things, asked me to help get the victims to be present at their barracks in Makurdi for ‘investigations,’ etc. I found this to be the height of insensitivity and even insolence, also being that this call came in a day after exactly one year of the said attack.

“Further correspondence with the NHRC regarding the abuse and trauma inflicted upon me by that call by the military, how I felt mocked, and how the victims were undermined, along with my pleas to use their good offices to conclude this matter, resulted in nothing. Therefore, we were left with no option but to seek redress in court.

“In this suit, we ask the court to answer whether or not it is the duty of the military to conduct investigations on behalf of NHRC; or whether a reported offender can lawfully investigate itself and the victims (in an offense committed by the offender)? Whether or not it is the job of NHRC to hand over to me a report compiled by a third party (in this case, the military) or to actually carry out the investigation itself, conclude the matter, and make a determination?”

“We ask the court to order NHRC to conclude the matter and make a determination within two weeks of the judgement (among other things in our complaint, we want NHRC to cause the families of the deceased and the seriously injured to be apologised to and compensated by the military, and all the motorcycles taken away to be returned or replaced); to order NHRC to pay damages for the trauma, stress, insult, and injury they subjected me to; and to pay for the costs of the lawsuit,” he said.

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He noted that an important concern before the court is the general perception of laziness and abdication of duty by NHRC “whereby they have low public trust such that victims of human rights abuses rather go to social media influencers and other such activists—who have zero budget from the government—to resolve their issues and not NHRC with billions of naira allotted to it every year and with hundreds (or even thousands) of paid staff, office facilities…”

The matter is before Justice P. O. Lifu of the Federal High Court, Abuja (Court 10). It will commence on September 12, 2024.