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| Time for Moribund Southwest Rights CSOs to leave the stage and become full-fledged politicians for defending human rights abusers in Nigeria |
(Intersociety/SBCHROs, Onitsha Nigeria, 23rd December
2016)-The death of Rights CSOs and their human rights advocacy
activities in the Southwest Nigeria became noticeable prior to the 2015 General
Elections. It became full-fledged from June 2015 to date following the
emergence of the Administration of Retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari.
Indisputably, Lagos and its surrounding
States/environs served as Nigeria’s epicentre of independence,
democracy and human rights struggles; reaching its peak from 1984 to
mid 1999 during the military’s inglorious epoch. The Lagos School of Human Rights and
Democracy Free Speeches and Struggles contributed immensely and
pricelessly to the country’s advancements in democracy, human rights and press
freedoms with one of the arrowheads of the country’s dark eras being the
current President of Nigeria, Retired Major General Muhammadu Buhari.
Sadly, the same Lagos
School of Human Rights, Democracy and Press Freedoms and Struggles has
been conquered, annexed and transformed into the country’s current epicentre
of miseries, despotism and democratic barbarism; with same the
Lagos School leading the way as its arch promoter, defender and
advocate. What breeds and saddens our heart most is not the collective decision
of the
Rights CSOs of Lagos extraction to collapse and nail the
internationally best practices of human rights advocacy activities; but their
refusal to leave the stage and retire into permanence of politicking.
Attempts by the referenced to
probate
and reprobate or eat their cake and have it, have
resulted in brutal corruption and bastardization of core human rights,
democracy and justice values in Nigeria, to the extent that heinous rights
abusers are now labelled “international human rights defenders”; with their
image laundered nationally, regionally and internationally on daily basis under
what look like executive scripted and oiled circumstances.
The tragedy that befell these
dead rights CSOs started way back in Lagos in the late 2000s through what some
informed sources labelled “Alausa Virus”, using the instrumentality of Lagos-CSO
Liaison; a sort of egoistic and materialistic partnership; which
subsequently collapsed the then mainstream Rights CSOs of Lagos extraction into
“an alliance of ACN and Rights CSOs”. It was from this that “grassroots rights
activism was abandoned” and “executive/laptop rights activism” created and
promoted; given birth to “CSO-INEC Engagement”; “APC-CSO Opposition
Consortium”; “APC-CSO Anti Corruption Consortium”, “CSO-Legislative
Engagement”; “CSO Election Situation Room”; to mention but few.
While it is the
constitutional right of any citizen or CSO to leave the human rights advocacy
stage and become a full-fledged politician or political party; it is morally
abominable for such a group or citizen to be utterly paradoxical or maintain
two contradictions at the same time. That is to say that a promoter of human rights
abuse/abusers can never be a defender of human rights at the same time; neither
can a human parts dealer be admitted into a rights community as a human rights
defender. In Mathematics, one minus one will always give a negative
result.
It is therefore shocking,
alarming and deafening that arch human rights abuser with gross moral minus, in
the person of Mr Ibrahim Magu of the Nigeria Police Force; who is,
unconstitutionally, the Acting Chairman of Nigeria’s Economic and Financial
Crimes Commission (EFCC); is being labelled internationally as “a human rights
defender”, by some say; rights group, named “Socio-Economic Rights and
Accountability Project”.
The image laundering letter
of “SERAP” to the United Nations Special Rapportueur on the Situation of Human
Rights Defenders, dated 16th of December 2016; is also considered a
grave insult on the person and integrity of the Special Rapportueur, Mr. Michel
Forst; as well as collective image of the United Nations. The letter is
dangerously misleading, cancerous, politically and ill motivated and scripted.
The letter also clearly
amounts to meddlesomeness in the constitutional duties of the Senate of the
Federal Republic of Nigeria; to investigate, clear or reject any executive
nominee for the occupation of any of the Federal Executive bodies established
under Section 153 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999;
as amended in 2011. The questions as: are
there no limits to renewal by the President, of executive appointments into
constitutionally established federal executive bodies under acting capacity and
when was Ibrahim Magu appointed as acting Chairman of EFCC; do not border the
authorities of “SERAP”. What despicably matters to them is
Mr Ibrahim Magu’s leprous baptism as “international human rights defender”;
against all odds and his motley of rights abuses including long detention of
suspects without trial and late night invasion and violent arrest of the
suspects in their sleep.
For the avoidance of doubt,
we again invite all Nigerians and members of the international community to
read and analyse the authoritative statement reproduced below, dated 1st
of July 2016. It was exclusively published by the News Express Online Media;
owned by Mr. Isaac Umunna who is also the chief media aide to late Prof Dora
Akunyili and her family till date. Prof Dora Akunyili was a former NAFDAC DG
and Minister of Communications. The authoritative statement has not been
credibly refuted by Federal Government and the authorities of EFCC till date.
The rejection by the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, of Police
Officer Ibrahim Magu as the substantive Chairman of EFCC was substantially based
on dubious circumstances surrounding his multimillion naira rent payment to
Akunyili family for their House, located
at No. 8B, Rudolf Close, Off Katsina Ala Crescent, Maitama District in FCT,
Abuja, Nigeria.
Acting Chairman of the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Ibrahim Magu, has rented a
mansion in the elitist Maitama District of the Federal capital territory (FTC)
Abuja, News Express can
report this morning. The storey building located at No. 8B, Rudolf Close, off
Katsina Ala Crescent, in the highbrow Maitama District, was the abode of a
former federal minister who died sometime in May 2014. An impeccable source
said: The property was rented to the Acting EFCC Chairman for N40, 000,000 at
N20, 000,000 per annum.
Furthermore, the Federal
Capital Development Authority (FCDA) curiously awarded a contract to Africa
Energy, a company owned by Rtd Air Comm. Umar Muhammad, to furnish the
residence at the cost N43,000,000, in a Government where the President is known
to have frowned at and rebuked his ministers for requesting N20,000,000 each to
secure accommodation and furnish them. It is shocking that the man spearheading
the anti-corruption crusade of the government will be involved in such a
venture. More surprising is the involvement of FCDA in renting a house for EFCC
and under what arrangement. News Express made
efforts to get the reaction of Magu and EFCC but the commission’s spokesmen
Osita Nwajah and Wilson Uwujaren did not respond to text messages sent to them
seeking their reaction to the story.
Today, through the magic of
“APC-CSO Partnership”, sacred cows in the so called “fight against corruption”
abound. To be “Mr or Mrs Clean” under Buhari Administration, you must belong or
join the federally ruling party and its “APC-CSO Consortium”. It is also an
incontestable fact that the present Buhari Administration and its “APC-CSO
Consortium” parades the highest number of doyens of corruption both in its
government and in the moribund Southwest CSOs’ circles. The rate of aiding and
abetting corruption and abuse of office under the Buhari Administration has
gone viral as well.
We therefore condemn in its
totality the letter of “SERAP” and its contents. It is our express call and
advice to the United Nations particularly its Special Rapportueur on the
Situation of Human Rights Defenders, Mr. Michel Forst, to tear the letter into
pieces and delete its delivery and documentation from its records. Such embarrassing
letters should at all times be declared dead on arrival!
We consider Police Officer
Ibrahim Magu as is a serial human rights abuser and constitutional violator. As
a serving member of the Nigeria Police Force alone; noted globally for its butchery
and notorious corruption records; Mr Magu can never be a human rights defender
on account of same; not to talk of his gross rights and constitutional abuses
as “acting head” of EFCC.
It is our strong advice to
the moribund Rights CSOs and activists of Southwest or Lagos extraction to
courageously leave the stage and form a political party so as to become
full-fledged politicians. We invite new breed rights activists and democracy
promoters to join us in the Southeast Nigeria which is now the epicentre of
human rights and pro democracy struggles in Nigeria.
The international community
is called upon to take advocacy and diplomatic notice of the rise of defenders
and promoters of human rights abusers and despotism in Nigeria, majorly
concentrated in the Southwest Region; who still go about parading themselves as
“human rights groups and activists”.
Signed:
For: International Society for Civil Liberties & the Rule of Law
(Intersociety)
Emeka Umeagbalasi, Board Chairman
Mobile Line: +2348174090052
Email: info@intersociety-ng.org
Website: www.intersociety-ng.org
Signed:
For: Southeast Based Coalition of Human Rights Organizations (SBCHROs)
1.
Comrade
Aloysius Attah (+2348035090548)
For: Civil Liberties Organization,
Southeast Zone
2.
Comrade
Peter Onyegiri (+2347036892777)
For: Centre for Human Rights & Peace
Advocacy
3.
Comrade
Samuel Njoku (+2348039444628)
For: Human Rights Organization of Nigeria
4.
Engineer
Rufus Duru (+2348037513519)
For: Global Rights & Development
International
5.
Comrade
Chike Umeh ( +2348064869601)
For: Society Advocacy Watch Project
6.
Obianuju
Joy Igboeli, Esq. (+2348034186332)
For: Anambra Human Rights Forum
7.
Comrade
Alex Olisa(+2348034090410)
For: Southeast Good Governance Forum
8.
Jerry
Chukwuokoro, PhD (+2348035372962)
For: International Solidarity for Peace
& Human Rights Initiative
9.
Mr.
Tochukwu Ezeoke (+447748612933)
For: Igbo Ekunie Initiative (Pan Igbo
Rights Advocacy Group)
10.
Comrade
Vincent Ezekwume (+2348171793911)
For: Civil Liberties Organization, Anambra
State Branch
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