By Leonard Okachie
(NAN)The Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), Dr Tony Ojukwu, SAN, has called on Abia lawmakers to mainstream human rights into lawmaking.
He said the legislature must ensure every Bill protected the dignity, rights, freedoms and aspirations of every citizen in the state.
Ojukwu, stated this in an address read on his behalf by Mrs Uche Nwokocha, Abia Coordinator of NHRC at one-day training for Abia legislators, held in Umuahia .
He said that the NHRC was established by the 2010 Amendment Act to promote, protect and enforce human rights in Nigeria.
Ojukwu added that the commission was empowered to review proposed legislation to ensure consistency with the constitution and Nigeria’s international obligations.
He stated that the training marked the beginning of stronger institutional collaboration to embed human rights in every stage of lawmaking.
Ojukwu said the quality of democracy was reflected not in the number of laws but in their inclusiveness and rights compliance.
He said every legislation should either expand rights and opportunities or unintentionally restrict them if not properly scrutinised.
He observed that bills were often considered under time constraints, with limited evidence and insufficient human rights analysis.
The NHRC boss added that public hearings sometimes became procedural formalities instead of genuine opportunities for public participation.
He warned that without input from citizens and civil society, laws might not reflect societal realities or protect constitutional rights.
Ojukwu said one practical way to improve legislative quality was the institutionalisation of Human Rights Impact Assessment (HRIA)
He urged lawmakers to mainstream rights from policy formulation to post-legislative review to ensure laws serve all members equitably.
Ojukwu encouraged participants to engage experts, challenge assumptions and explore ways of institutionalising HRIA in legislative procedures and Standing Orders.
He reaffirmed NHRC’s commitment to work with the National and State Assemblies to strengthen rights-based governance in Nigeria.
Also, the NHRC State Coordinator, Nwokocha identified the major gap as the failure to mainstream human rights in lawmaking processes in Abia and other states.
She said lawmakers often focused on objectives without assessing how laws would impact the general public, especially vulnerable people.
She cited examples such as the Administration of Criminal Justice Act as rights-compliant, unlike some cybersecurity laws that appeared punitive.
Nwokocha said laws should be assessed for impact on freedom of expression, privacy, liberty, fair hearing, dignity, equality and access to justice.
She warned that laws with negative human rights impact would be seen as oppressive and would be resisted by the people.
She said the essence of the training was to ensure that no one was left behind in the legislative process.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that lectures were delivered on international frameworks and systemic barriers to mainstreaming HRIA in Nigeria’s legislative process among others.
(NAN)
