By George Mgbeleke

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) welcomes the historic passage by the Senate of the Constitution Alteration Bill on State Police and acknowledges it as a major milestone in the nation’s long and difficult search for a more effective security architecture. HURIWA however for the umpteenth time, has proposed that government should allow adult citizens of Nigeria with zero-crime record to bear sophisticated, military grade weapons for self-defence just as it says Liberal gun ownership would effectively curb terrorism.

For nearly two decades, HURIWA has consistently championed the establishment of state police and the decentralisation of Nigeria’s policing system. Long before it became fashionable for politicians and public office holders to embrace the idea, HURIWA had repeatedly argued that a nation of over 200 million people, with vast geographical territory, complex ethnic configurations, diverse security threats and thousands of communities spread across difficult terrains, cannot effectively be policed from a single command structure headquartered in Abuja.

For years, HURIWA warned that the over-centralisation of policing would inevitably produce intelligence failures, delayed responses to emergencies, weak community engagement and a dangerous disconnect between security agencies and the populations they are expected to protect. Sadly, events over the years have vindicated these concerns.
From the Boko Haram insurgency that devastated communities across the North-East, to the scourge of banditry in the North-West, the recurring massacres in farming communities in the North-Central, the epidemic of kidnappings on highways and in homes across the federation, attacks on schools, religious institutions and traditional communities, to violent criminality in urban and rural centres alike, Nigerians have witnessed the painful consequences of a security structure that is overstretched, under-resourced and often disconnected from local realities.

However, HURIWA wishes to state unequivocally that while state police is necessary, it is not a magic wand. It is not a silver bullet. It is not, by itself, the definitive answer to the grave security emergency confronting Nigeria.
The danger before the nation is that the political class may celebrate the passage of the State Police Bill as though the mere creation of new policing institutions will automatically defeat terrorists, bandits, kidnappers, mass murderers and organised criminal networks. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
The Nigerian security crisis is deeper and more complex than the question of policing structures alone.

For years, HURIWA has consistently raised alarm over the apparent resilience and sophistication of terrorist and criminal networks operating within Nigeria. The association has repeatedly questioned how violent non-state actors continue to obtain intelligence, evade security operations, acquire weapons, coordinate attacks and sustain their operations despite enormous security expenditures by successive governments.
The time has come for Nigeria to confront uncomfortable truths.
No meaningful security reform can succeed without a determined effort to identify, expose and prosecute collaborators, sponsors, informants and criminal enablers who provide support to terrorists, kidnappers, bandits and other violent groups. Security institutions must undergo continuous internal accountability mechanisms to ensure that criminal infiltration, corruption and compromise do not undermine the nation’s collective security efforts.

Equally important is the urgent need to modernise intelligence gathering, forensic investigations, surveillance capabilities, border management systems and inter-agency cooperation. In far too many cases, security responses remain reactive rather than preventive. Communities are attacked, citizens are killed, homes are burnt and property is destroyed before security agencies arrive at the scene.
This cycle must end.

HURIWA also believes that discussions around security must go beyond armed responses. The Federal Government and sub-national governments must address the underlying social and economic conditions that continue to fuel insecurity. Mass youth unemployment, widespread poverty, illiteracy, institutional injustice, rural neglect and governance failures have created fertile conditions for criminal recruitment and social instability.
A nation cannot successfully fight insecurity while simultaneously neglecting the welfare and aspirations of millions of young people.
The association further reiterates its longstanding position that the constitutional guarantee of the right to life imposes a sacred obligation on government to provide effective protection for all citizens irrespective of their location, social status, religion or ethnicity.
The painful reality today is that millions of Nigerians living in rural communities remain effectively abandoned. Farmers are unable to cultivate their lands without fear. Villagers sleep with one eye open. Travellers embark on journeys uncertain whether they will arrive alive. Parents send their children to school with anxiety. Communities continue to establish informal self-help arrangements because they lack confidence that help will arrive when danger strikes.
This situation is unacceptable in any democratic society.
HURIWA therefore calls for a comprehensive national security reform agenda that must include the effective implementation of state police, strengthened community policing initiatives, enhanced intelligence capabilities, improved welfare and training for security personnel, technological modernisation of law enforcement institutions, stronger border security measures, judicial reforms that guarantee swift prosecution of violent offenders, and the establishment of complementary security mechanisms capable of supporting existing agencies.
The association recalls that over the years it has repeatedly advocated the establishment of a National Guard structure that can provide additional layers of security support during emergencies and periods of heightened threats. Such a mechanism, if properly designed and professionally managed, could strengthen national resilience against terrorism, organised criminality and large-scale security disruptions.
HURIWA also urges lawmakers, governors, civil society organisations, traditional rulers, professional associations and security experts to ensure that the emerging state police framework incorporates robust safeguards against abuse. Nigerians must never replace one form of security failure with another.
State police must not become instruments of political intimidation, partisan vendetta, ethnic persecution or religious discrimination. Recruitment processes must be transparent. Oversight institutions must be independent. Accountability mechanisms must be strong. Human rights protections must be non-negotiable.
The ultimate objective of any security architecture is not the accumulation of power by government institutions but the protection of human lives and the preservation of human dignity.
As the constitutional amendment process continues through the House of Representatives and the State Houses of Assembly, HURIWA calls on all stakeholders to approach the issue with patriotism, sincerity and an unwavering commitment to the security of the Nigerian people.
Nigeria stands at a critical crossroads.
The creation of state police offers an opportunity to correct a longstanding structural weakness in our security framework. Yet history will judge this generation of leaders not by the passage of legislation alone but by whether they succeed in making Nigeria safer for ordinary citizens.
The mothers whose children have been abducted, the farmers driven from their lands, the communities destroyed by terrorists, the travellers kidnapped on highways, the worshippers attacked in their places of devotion and the countless victims of violent criminality across Nigeria deserve more than political declarations.
They deserve security.
They deserve justice.
They deserve a country where life is valued and protected.
The passage of the State Police Bill is a significant beginning. The hard work of securing Nigeria has only just begun.
Signed

By George Mgbeleke

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has expressed profound shock and disappointment over the recent remarks by the Special Adviser to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, claiming that he does not see the level of hunger Nigerians complain about.
HURIWA describes the statement as one of the most disturbing examples of official detachment from the daily realities confronting ordinary Nigerians. The assertion is not supported by empirical evidence, scientific data or credible national and international assessments. Rather, it appears to be based on personal impressions that cannot substitute for verifiable facts.
In a statement signed by its National Coordinator,Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, HURIWA said, “For a senior presidential spokesman to dismiss widespread complaints of hunger because he observed people engaging in commercial activities or because he travelled on newly constructed roads is both logically flawed and insensitive to the suffering of millions of citizens struggling to survive the worst cost-of-living crisis in decades.
Nigerians cannot eat roads.
They cannot feed their families with official optimism.
They cannot survive on government public relations narratives while food prices continue to soar beyond the reach of ordinary households.
Mr. Onanuga’s comments stand in direct contradiction to the findings of respected international agencies. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) recently classified Nigeria among 13 global hunger hotspots where acute food insecurity is projected to worsen significantly between June and November 2026.
Even more alarming is the WFP’s warning that approximately 34.8 million Nigerians could face crisis-level or worse food insecurity between July and September 2026. The same report highlights the plight of over 3.6 million internally displaced persons across the North-east, North-west and North-central regions.
These are not opposition figures speaking.
These are not social media commentators.
These are globally respected humanitarian institutions whose assessments are based on rigorous field research, data collection and internationally recognised methodologies.
HURIWA therefore finds it deeply troubling that a senior government official would seek to downplay a crisis that international organisations, development partners, humanitarian agencies and millions of affected Nigerians acknowledge as real and worsening.
The association challenges Mr. Onanuga to leave the comfort of official residences, convoys and carefully managed environments and undertake a genuine fact-finding tour across Nigeria.
Let him travel through communities in Kaduna, Zamfara, Sokoto, Katsina, Niger, Plateau, Benue and Borno States.
Let him engage market women whose capital has been wiped out by inflation.
Let him speak with pensioners choosing between food and medication.
Let him meet displaced families living in camps.
Let him interact with unemployed youths, struggling civil servants, transport workers, artisans and farmers battling insecurity and rising production costs.
Let him visit hospitals where malnutrition cases are increasing and communities where families routinely skip meals because they cannot afford basic food items.
Only then can he begin to appreciate the depth of the economic distress facing millions of Nigerians.
HURIWA is not suggesting that government has done nothing. We acknowledge ongoing infrastructure projects and social intervention initiatives. However, isolated development projects cannot be used to invalidate overwhelming evidence pointing to widespread hardship and food insecurity.
The true measure of economic success is not the number of roads commissioned but whether citizens can afford three meals a day, whether parents can provide for their children, whether workers earn enough to live with dignity and whether vulnerable populations are protected from hunger and deprivation.
A government that wishes to solve a problem must first acknowledge its existence.
Denying or minimising the suffering of citizens does not make that suffering disappear.
The association therefore urges the Presidency to embrace facts over public relations, evidence over assumptions and empathy over dismissiveness. Nigeria’s hunger crisis requires urgent, honest and coordinated action, not rhetorical attempts to explain away the lived experiences of millions of struggling citizens.
History has shown that governments are strongest not when they deny uncomfortable realities, but when they confront them with courage, sincerity and practical solutions.
Signed
Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko National Coordinator Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA)

By George Mgbeleke

he Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to commit himself and his administration to conducting a free, fair, credible, transparent, and violence-free general election in 2027, describing such a legacy as the surest pathway to securing a place among the world’s most respected democratic leaders.

HURIWA’s position follows allegations reportedly made by the presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), who claimed that during a Ramadan fast-breaking dinner attended by opposition leaders and President Tinubu, the opposition requested assurances that the 2027 elections would be conducted transparently and fairly.

According to the SDP candidate’s account, the President allegedly responded that he could not guarantee a free and fair election, arguing that when he was in the opposition, he also faced political intimidation and electoral disadvantages from those who controlled federal power, and that today’s opposition politicians should expect similar challenges.

While HURIWA notes that the allegation remains the account of the SDP presidential candidate, Prince Adewole Adebayo, the association believes that President Tinubu now has a historic opportunity to demonstrate statesmanship by rising above the imperfections of the past and strengthening Nigeria’s democratic foundations.

The association stated that Nigerians expect the President to publicly and unequivocally assure citizens that the 2027 general elections will be conducted in strict accordance with democratic principles, constitutional provisions, and international best practices.

HURIWA specifically urged the Federal Government, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security agencies, and all relevant institutions to take decisive steps to:

* Guarantee free, fair, credible, transparent, and peaceful elections in 2027;
* Criminalise and vigorously prosecute vote-buying and vote-selling;
* Eliminate political thuggery and election-related violence;
* Prevent intimidation of opposition parties and their supporters;
* Ensure equal opportunities for all political parties and candidates;
* Strengthen the independence and integrity of electoral institutions; and
* Protect the sanctity of the ballot and the sovereign will of the Nigerian people.

According to HURIWA, if President Tinubu successfully oversees a genuinely free and fair electoral process in 2027, he would earn a distinguished place in Nigeria’s democratic history and gain international recognition as a statesman who prioritized national interest above partisan considerations.

The association stated that such a legacy would place him in the company of globally admired leaders who strengthened democratic institutions and promoted national cohesion, including Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore and Abraham Lincoln of the United States. HURIWA further noted that within Africa, former President Goodluck Jonathan continues to receive widespread commendation for respecting democratic principles and facilitating a peaceful transfer of power after the 2015 presidential election.

Meanwhile, HURIWA announced that it is set to hold the 18th Edition of its National Human Rights Lecture, which will focus on the urgent need to strengthen Nigeria’s electoral system ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The theme of the lecture is:

“Achieving Free and Fair Elections in 2027.”

The lecture will be delivered by renowned public affairs analyst and scholar, **Professor Okey Ikechukwu**, who will examine pathways for enhancing electoral integrity, democratic accountability, citizen participation, and institutional reforms necessary for credible elections.

The event is scheduled to hold on:

Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2026

HURIWA called on political leaders, civil society organisations, electoral stakeholders, academics, students, diplomats, faith-based groups, and members of the public to participate in the lecture and contribute to national conversations aimed at safeguarding Nigeria’s democracy.

The association reiterated that democracy can only thrive where elections reflect the genuine will of the people and where political competition is conducted peacefully, transparently, and in accordance with the rule of law.