Date Published: 08/05/09

HURIWA charges Onovo on human rights

HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS’ ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA, HURIWA, has yesterday expressed satisfaction with the confirmation by the Federal Government of the appointment of the new Inspector General of Police Ogbonnaya Onovo and charged the police boss to train police operatives on respect for human rights of citizens. The Rights Group also called for immediate clean up and upgrading of police operational offices across the Country.

The Human Rights Writers’ Association of Nigeria, a development focused and democracy inclined non-governmental organization said it was delighted that in confirming the appointment of Ogbonnaya Onovo, President Umaru Musa Yar’adua in consultation with the Nigerian Police Council actually considered merit, competence and seniority of knowledge and experience just as it asserted that Nigerians are looking up to the new Inspector General of police to create a people’s friendly police force.

In a statement endorsed by the National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko, HURIWA also challenged the new Inspector General of Police to tackle the growing despicable practice of extra-legal executions of suspects in police custody just as it called for the creation of an anti-torture unit in the police force in order to promote respect for the human rights and freedoms.

Urging the newly confirmed Inspector General of police to restore the people’s confidence in the police as a way of building formidable crime intelligence gathering mechanism, the rights group also called for the upgrading of facilities and appointment of competent and internationally reputable intellectuals at the various police training schools as a way of boosting human capital development and capacity building of the police operatives. The Rights group canvassed the restoration of discipline among the ranks and file of the Nigeria Police.

HURIWA said: “The newly appointed and confirmed inspector General of police must train the men and operatives of the Nigerian police to understand and appreciate the urgent need to uphold and respect Chapter four of the 1999 Constitution which are the core human rights provisions in Nigerian Supreme law. The operatives of the Nigerian police must be made to internalize and externalize the international law embodied in the code of conduct for law Enforcement officials, Article 2, United Nations General Assembly 1979 which provides that” in the performance of their duty, law enforcement officials shall respect and protect human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons”.