The International Human Rights Day Conference marking it’s 76th Anniversary, organized by the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Lagos Branch with it’s theme “Human Rights in Crisis: Addressing the Challenges Facing Nigeria, was held in the Dining Hall of the Nigerian Law School, Ozunba Mbadiwe Avenue, Victoria Island, Lagos on Tuesday 10th December, 2024.
Last year’s editing was well attended by renowned speakers, especially Dele Farotimi, Chidi Odinkalu and Emeka Ngige, SAN. It was then expected that this year’s edition would be loaded; And it did not disappoint.

Korrect News Associate Editor, Ferdinand Mmadike, reports that the key note speaker was Professor Ademola Popoola, the renowned Professor, who is popularly called ” the Pope”. A Professor of International and Comparative Public Law at the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), where he previously served as the Dean of The Faculty of Law.

Other speakers were: Professor Chioma Kanu Agomo, Dean of Law Anchor University, Ayobo, Lagos; Senator Shehu Sani, human rights activist, author and former Senator representing Kaduna Central in the Nigerian National Assembly; Professor Oyelowo Oyewo, SAN, Former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Oyo State (2019-2023), a renowned legal expert with a specialization in constitutional and administrative Law, governance and Development Law; Ahmed Raji, SAN, a certified capital market solicitor and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators(Uk); Chinonye Edmund Obiagwu, SAN, an expert in human rights and criminal law, lead Counsel at the Legal Defense and Assistance Project (LEDAP) abd ; Ebun Olu-Adegboruwa, SAN, human rights activist and advocate for social justice.

In his thought provoking speech, Professor Ademola Popoola said that human rights violations occur worldwide and findings concludes that violations are perpetrated more outside war situations. He then asserted that more efforts should be on curbing human rights violations that happen in homes, offices, corporations, government, etc. The general consensus was that human rights is not guaranteed just because of the form of government, but should be fought for. Also, he went further to say that corruption was seen as a clog in the fight for human rights in Nigeria.

Professor Oyelowo Oyewo said that “we don’t have human rights but fundamental rights”. He also affirmed that human rights is not even guaranteed just because we think they should be given on a platter. He then advocated the “teaching of human rights as a compulsory course in Nigerian Universities”.

Chinonye Obiagwu however says that there has been progress in the fight for human rights, he however agreed that though there are various legislations, no one has been prosecuted. He talked about the 2021 Anti-torture law, and the 2011 Violence Against persons provision Act and the National Human Rights Commission Act. He says that the End SARS protest has shown that Nigerians are coming to terms with the reality thst they need to fight for their rights. Also, to him, corruption is a major issue in the fight for human rights.

For Professor Agomo, “when we continue to do the same thing over and over again, we are like the mad person” According to her, the fight for human rights should start from the home. She posits that “when you abuse human rights from the domestic front, and you come out in public and be pontificating, what they see is what you do. So we need to change the way we think to realize that it is a communal and community effort”

While for Ahmed Raji SAN, ” The greatest challenge facing us today in Nigeria is hunger. Acute hunger”. He goes further to say that the middle class has virtually disappeared and that “poverty has taken a front row in our national life to the extent that the middle class is almost gone” He says that with” acute poverty, most Nigerians will neither recognize their human rights nor the means to enforce the rights. “The rights remain on paper and for economic debates like this”.

Mr Ezekiel Nnadi, who represented Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa listed the following as solutions to fighting human rights violations; need for massive human rights reforms, especially by lawyers, creation of a court with human rights jurisdiction, amongst others.
While Shehu Sani, after reminiscing on his struggles for human rights in Nigeria, and how he was eventually incarcerated for four years, advised citizens to stand up and fight for their inalienable rights instead of waiting for it to be handed to then by their rulers.
Some law students from Caleb University, Covenant University, and Lagos State University (LASU) were also invited to the event.
Highlights of the event was the giving of awards to the speakers, and five other distinguished lawyers. And they were: Olawale Fapohunda Esq, Kayode Onosehi. Esq, Frank Ezekwueche Esq, Oyinkan Badejo-Okusanya, and Lateef Omoyemi Akangbe, SAN, FCIArb.
Then the Ayanjo Dance Troupe entertained the guests.