NHRC Received 170,000 Human Rights Violation Complaints Nationwide
The National Human Rights Commission has revealed that about 170,000 complaints of human rights violations were received across the country. Speaking at the presentation of the January 2025 Human Rights Situation Dashboard on Friday, the Executive Secretary of NHRC, Dr Tony Ojukwu, said that this was a decrease from the figure in December 2024, it was much higher than what was recorded in January 2024.
He said: This month (January), we received 169,850 complaints from our 38 offices, a stark reminder that human rights violations persist in diverse forms and at an alarming scale. Each complaint represents a person, a family, or a community seeking justice, accountability, and relief.
He explained that the 169,850 complaints represent an over 100% decrease from December 2024 and an over 1000% increase compared to January 2024.
He noted, “Our duty is to ensure that these voices are not just heard, but that tangible action follows. The complaints and our observatory show us that the human rights ecosystem continues to be challenging. In the North-East, we are seeing the resurgence of Boko Haram, and in the North West, banditry and insurgency continue to challenge our communities. Violence and criminalities in the South East are assuming alarming dimensions impacting human rights.
“While our efforts have led to significant interventions, the persistence of these violations raises critical questions: Are our systems strong enough to prevent recurring abuses? Are we bridging the gaps between violations and meaningful remedies? Are we holding perpetrators accountable while protecting survivors from further harm? What is our policy for the protection of
civilians and mitigation of harm during a conflict?”
Ojukwu added: “As we engage with this month’s trends, let us focus on strengthening preventive measures, closing protection gaps, and enhancing collaboration with state and non-state actors to reinforce human rights protections at every level. Our responsibility is not just to document human rights violations but to drive real, lasting change in governance, security, and social justice. We fervently hope this dashboard will ignite the required change to build the Nigeria of our dreams.
“Our dear partners, colleagues and gentlemen of the media, I will like to reiterate that 2025 is a milestone year for the National Human Rights Commission as it marks its 30th anniversary of its establishment, having been established in 1995. We have witnessed over the last three
decades, a human rights trajectory which indicates progress even though at a slow pace. But we must not give up as governments at national and state levels continue to adopt legal, policy and institutional frameworks to achieve human rights for all.”
He insisted that: “The revival of the local government National Human Rights Commission system through their new autonomy is a game changer. It is pertinent that the role of the ‘Office of the Citizen’ should not be jettisoned. For every successful society, the role of the civil society to hold government to account and the role of the media to ‘torchlight’ governance and shine light on our leaders can never be over-emphasised.”
