Guardian Nigeria
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has received 25,319 cases of human rights violations in Bauchi State. Coordinator of NHRC in the state, Mrs Yatchi Dala, revealed this yesterday while presenting a paper at a workshop organised by the National Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Bauchi chapter, on the role of journalists in human rights protection.
She said that journalists, being at the forefront of human rights protection, have more roles to play in the enlightenment of the public on their constitutional rights and the need to speak up when trampled upon. Dala said media sensitisation of the rights of the people resulted in a surge in reported cases of human rights abuses.
“I can tell you that between January 1 and May 21, 2024, we have received 25,319 cases of human rights violations. They cut across civil and political rights, rape and issues of economic, social and cultural rights violations, as well as labour-related matters – lack of payment of compensation and entitlement. Also, there are issues of people using their position for land grabbing from the downtrodden. These are issues that dominated the cases,” she said.
She said the commission’s partnership with the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), particularly NAWOJ, had been fruitful in advocacy aspects. “We came to Bauchi in 2019. Journalists have been our strong partners; they have been disseminating our messages far and near. We could not have reached all the corners of the state. You can see the number of cases. People are so aware.”
