Ahead of the 2027 general elections, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has urged political actors to exercise restraint and operate within the provisions of electoral laws and human rights standards.
The Executive Secretary of the Commission, Dr. Tony Ojukwu, SAN, gave the warning on Tuesday in Abuja during the presentation of the October 2026 human rights situation dashboard and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the NHRC Nigeria and its Indian counterpart.
The MoU was signed by Ojukwu and the leader of the Indian delegation, Justice Rama Subramanian, to strengthen institutional cooperation, access to justice, and the rule of law.
The NHRC boss also called for the prosecution of individuals who incited hateful and divisive speeches.
He disclosed that the Commission recorded 384,196 human rights complaints across its 38 locations nationwide in October 2026.
Ojukwu said the monthly dashboard remained a critical accountability and transparency tool for monitoring human rights developments, identifying emerging patterns of violations and drawing the attention of relevant authorities to issues requiring urgent intervention.
According to the NHRC boss, “Our responsibility is not simply to document these complaints, but to ensure that the information gathered informs appropriate interventions, effective remedies and stronger protection for all Nigerians”.
He expressed concern over the persistent insecurity across the country, including killings, armed attacks and abductions affecting farming communities, travellers, students, traditional leaders and security personnel.
He called on security agencies to intensify efforts to protect vulnerable communities, rescue abducted persons and ensure that perpetrators were brought to justice in accordance with the law.
Ojukwu expressed concern over alleged violations by public authorities and security personnel, as well as threats to freedom of expression and civic space.
While presenting the details of the dashboard, the Senior Human Rights Adviser to the Commission, Hillary Ogbona, explained that the dashboard comprised two major data streams: complaints received through the Commission’s offices across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, and information gathered through the National Human Rights Observatory.
He said the Observatory captured human rights incidents beyond those formally reported to the Commission, ensuring that violations affecting individuals and communities were documented even when victims could not directly access its offices.
According to him, the Commission completed 1,455 investigations, conducted 108 visits to places of detention, including police stations, correctional centres and other detention facilities, and issued summonses to law enforcement personnel to respond to allegations of human rights violations.