SERAP IN THE NEWS

A civil society group, Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has sent letters to all the 18 presidential candidates urging them to “make ending economic and social rights violations and high level corruption and the impunity of perpetrators central to their electoral platforms ahead of the April 2011 general elections”.

The open letters dated 18 February 2011 and signed by SERAP executive director Adetokunbo Mumuni, urged candidates to “outline specific policies on guaranteeing full respect for economic, social and cultural rights and entrenching transparency, accountability and the rule of law in Nigeria.”

The group said that, “We are shocked by the lack of emphasis placed on the issues of human rights especially economic, social and cultural rights and corruption so far in the campaign for the April presidential elections. Human rights violations and corruption are at the heart of the country’s political and social problems and Nigerians have the right to know, in specific terms, what the candidates will do about the problems.”

“General statements of what the candidates will do are simply not enough. The candidates should look Nigerians in the eye and tell them how they will, in concrete terms, end: the unacceptable lack of legal recognition of economic, social and cultural rights, and the government’s failure to implement ECOWAS Court right to education judgment; the use of the death penalty; high level corruption; and the impunity of perpetrators during their first 100 days in office,” the group said.

The group explained that the initiative became necessary to “give the citizens the opportunity to assess the candidates and to know what they stand for in terms of human rights and anti-corruption reforms. It is also to provide opportunity to candidates to sell themselves to the citizens.”

“Elections provide an opportunity for consolidating democracy and social justice in a country such as Nigeria that is characterised by insufficient attention to human rights protection, poverty, underdevelopment, inequality, corruption; insecurity and marginalization.

Will the candidates tell Nigerians their specific plans to address these problems? The media and the public in general should put pressure on the candidates to talk about stands they would take to address these longstanding problems,” the group said.

The group therefore urged all the presidential candidates to:

* Publicly support the inclusion in a new Constitution of legally enforceable economic, social and cultural rights such as environmental rights; the right to housing, to health care, to food, to water and to social security; the right of every child to basic nutrition, shelter, basic health care services and social services; language and cultural rights; the rights of prisoners and persons deprived of their liberty to conditions of detention that are consistent with human dignity.

* Publicly commit to ensuring the full and effective implementation of the ECOWAS Court right to education judgment. In December 2010, the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice ordered the government to provide as of right, free and compulsory education to every Nigerian child; ruled that the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) failed to discharge its legal responsibility to monitor how states are spending their resources; and asked the government to allocate funds to cover the shortfall to ensure that disadvantaged children do not suffer because of the theft of #3.5 billion from the UBEC fund. Unfortunately, the government has completely ignored the judgment. Will the candidates tell Nigerians what they plan to do to fully implement the judgment?

* Publicly commit to ending impunity for human rights violations.  The government has failed and/or neglected to ensure justice for victims of human rights violations including in Jos, which the International Criminal Court is currently investigating. How will the candidates end impunity for human rights violations and abuses, and ensure cooperation with the ongoing investigation by the ICC?

*Publicly commit to adopting official moratorium on the death penalty. The government shockingly announced recently that it would execute death row prisoners in order to ease prison congestion. But many of the death row prisoners may be innocent, as Nigeria’s justice system is riddled with flaws and is unable to guarantee fair trials.

Also, panels set up by the Obasanjo government recommended a moratorium on executions; both the United Nations and the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights sitting have called for a moratorium on the death penalty; and the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs stated in February 2009 before the UN that Nigeria has a “self-imposed moratorium.” How will the candidates implement the commitments?

* Publicly commit to establish a national judicial commission of enquiry to investigate the amount of monies that have been stolen by governments or their agents since the return of democracy in 1999, and to recommend mechanisms to locate and recover such funds wherever they may be found. All presidential candidates should tell Nigerians what they will do to achieve this.

The group said it sent letters to: President Goodluck Jonathan (Peoples Democratic Party); Muhammadu Buhari (Congress for Progressive Change); Nuhu Ribadu (Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN); Pat Utomi (Social Democratic Mega Party); Dele Momodu (National Conscience Party); Ibrahim Shekarau (All Nigeria Peoples Party); Akpona Solomon (National Majority Democratic Party); Chris Nwaokobia (Liberal Democratic Party);  Chris Okotie (Fresh Democratic Party); Ebiti Ndok (United National Party for Development); President.

Others are: Iheanyichukwu Nnaji (Better Nigeria Progressive Party); John Dara (National Transformation Party); Mahmud Waziri  (People for Democratic Change) Nwadike Chikezie (Peoples Mandate Party) Peter Nwangwu (African Democratic Congress); Rasheed Shitta-Bey (Mega Progressive Peoples Party) Yahaya Ndu (African Renaissance Party); and Ambrose Awuru (Hope Democratic Party).