This report is written according to the EASO COI Report Methodology (2012).1 The report is based on carefully selected information sources. More information about the reference period for this report can be found in the methodology section of the Introduction.
General introduction on Nigeria
Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa, with an estimated population of 193 million people (2016 data).6 The country has a population growth rate of 2.61. The main group in the Niger Delta are the Ijaw, although there are several other smaller ethnic groups.11 See the map above with the six main ethnic groups and zones.
Constitution and state structure
Sources of Nigerian law
- English common law
- Islamic law
- Customary law
Ethnic customary law is the indigenous law applicable to members of different ethnic groups. Each ethnic group in Nigeria has its own variety of customary laws that reflect its culture, customs, values and customs.
Legislative reform
However, higher courts are also permitted to observe and enforce compliance with common law rules through their enabling laws. Most of the cases heard by the traditional courts, especially in South West Nigeria, concern the dissolution of traditional marriages.35.
Nigeria Police Force
General
- Command (Authority) structure
- Administrative structure
- Organisational structure
The duties, powers, organization and operation of the NPF are governed by the Police Act 1967. 56 Nigeria, Nigerian Police Force, Structure of the Nigeria Police Force, n.d., url; Nigeria, Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, n.d., url.
Police capacity
- Crime (general statistics)
A 2014 study on the performance of the NPF in crime prevention and control points out that criticism of the Nigerian police generally centers on "the quality of police personnel, their ineffectiveness and inefficiency in the performance of their duties, particularly in terms of preventing and control crime, shortage of manpower, poor police attitude and citizen response to lack of essential police equipment and facilities and constant conflicts and tensions between police and citizens', another major point of criticism being widespread organized corruption (see below).73 Due to generally poor police performance and their lack of presence 'criminal groups fear not arrest or prosecution for their crimes'.76 In some cases the police have even been found to be helping criminals.77 Added to this is the fact that 'local police and neighborhood associations, including vigilante groups, generally do not deter or disrupt crimes and rarely apprehend or detain suspects.'78 Some citizens therefore seem to welcome the development of the private security sector in the country, although at the same time they stress the need for its supervision by the police/government to prevent abuse of power.79 As a result of vigilante justice, the perpetrators are often beaten or burned to death by mobs before the police arrive.80.
Police integrity
- Corruption
- Abuse of power, ill treatment and use of excessive force
- Oversight and legal safeguards against abuse
As a result, public perception of the police is poor.96 According to a July 2017 study by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), local police officers in Nigeria are the most bribed government officials in the country. , as well as one of the most bribed. The PSC's responsibility is to prevent and investigate police abuses, but it suffers from inadequate resources and a lack of independence. Complaints about police misconduct can be reported to the National Human Rights Council's Public Complaint Rapid Response Unit, which says it is available 24/7 through telephone and electronic channels.115.
Nigerian Armed Forces
General
The Naval Command is the administrative body of the Nigerian Navy and is commanded by the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS). The Air Force Command is commanded by the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) and has ten staff departments: Medical Service, Accounting. It is also useful to note the existence of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), a paramilitary institution established in 1967 by the Federal Government.
Capacity
While the Nigerian government has repeatedly claimed in recent years to have technically defeated Boko Haram, the military has been criticized for failing to end insurgency-related violence.145 See also EASO COI report Nigeria, Security situation, November 2018, section 3.1, and EASO COI Nigeria Report, Targeting Individuals, November 2018, section 2.1.
Integrity
According to Global Security, “Ikeja Cantonment Command (Lagos) and 3rd Armored Division (Jos) are key positions assigned to loyal officers due to their importance in the event of a national emergency, especially regime instability (Ikeja can be controlled by Lagos, and the Armored Division has tanks that are relatively close to Abuja).'157. The Nigerian army has been accused of human rights violations several times in the past.158 A particular incident was the way it acted against followers of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria (IMN), a Shiite Muslim minority in the predominantly Sunni north of Nigeria. An official investigation into the Nigerian Army's response to the aforementioned clashes between December 12 and 14, 2015, found that the military's response was "disproportionate."
Department of Public Prosecution
General
Capacity
At the state level, the Lagos State DPP (referred to as the Directorate of Public Prosecutions) has State Attorneys assigned to prosecute in seven courts in the Criminal Division of the Lagos State High Court (3 in Lagos and 4 in Ikeja) and in the Magistrates' Courts in the state. The directorate has five advisers assigned to the environmental remediation and anti-indiscipline unit and special misdemeanor courts established by the enforcement and compliance unit of the Ministry of the Environment to try various environmental and some other offences.176 In addition to the advisers (Project Officials), The Lagos State DPP contains a Legal Advisory Unit, a Disputes Unit, a Task Force and other officers with special duties.177.
Integrity
Courts
Federal courts
- General
- Capacity
- Integrity
The Court of Appeal consists of the President and the judges of the Court of Appeal. 188 Nigeria, Federal High Court, The Judiciary in Nigeria, n.d., url; Nigeria, Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, n.d., url. The appointments of Supreme Court Justices and the heads of the Federal Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court must be confirmed by the Senate.
State courts
- General
- Capacity
- Integrity
Judges who preside over a federal court are removed by the president acting in an address supported by a two-thirds majority of the Senate. Other judges of the federal court are also dismissed by the president, but with the recommendation of the KJC. 215. As with federal court judges, the training of state court judges is primarily provided by NJI (see sections 6.1 and 6.1.2).
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
General
A written request should be addressed to the Executive Secretary of the NHRC and sent to any of the 24 NHRC offices located across the country (see list below). An e-complaint can be forwarded either by email or submitted electronically online through the NHRC website. Complaints of police misconduct can be reported to NHRC's Public Complaints Rapid Response Unit, which is available 24/7 through telephone and electronic channels.244.
Capacity
Offices in the remaining 12 states are to be established over time.241 The NHRC's 2018 budget proposal indicates the need to construct seven new state offices suitable for its operations.242 A complaint to the NHRC can be lodged by 'any and all people in Nigeria whose human rights have been violated, or by their agents.” A claim can be submitted in writing, electronically or orally. It notes: 'The capacity and resources required to monitor, investigate and provide redress to victims of this volume of complaints, in a timely and effective manner, can only be imagined.'245. According to its annual report, the NHRC investigated and closed 576,742 complaints in 2017 out of a total of 1,081,126 admissible complaints received within that year, while it was unable to close 504,384 complaints by the end of the year.
Integrity
As can be seen from the table below, the most complaints in 2017 related to women's/gender rights, children's rights, civil and political rights, and economic, social and cultural rights. Throughout 2017, it was unclear whether the NHCR was allowed to monitor interrogations of terror suspects detained by the military.254 In July 2018, the NHRC stated that it would investigate “all genuine cases of harsh [sic] practices” – meaning fraudulent activities in the provision of food and other assistance to IDPs – in Nigerian IDP camps.255. 253 Nigerian Tribune, NHRC to conduct national audit of detention centres, 21 June 2018, url; Vanguard, NHRC begins audit of police detention cells in Nigeria, June 14, 2018, url.
Public Complaints Commission – The Nigerian Ombudsman
General
Commissioners are appointed by the National Assembly for an initial term of three years and are eligible for re-appointment for another three-year term. At the same time, the National Assembly can remove a commissioner from office at any time. All commissioners are responsible to the National Assembly and the Chief Commissioner coordinates the work of all other commissioners. 266.
Capacity
While in office, commissioners are not permitted to hold any other office, whether in the public sphere or elsewhere.
Integrity
The structure of the PCC includes a Public Investigations Division and a Private Investigations Division, which, however, operate as one department. The companies in question were Ore-Ayo Global Services Limited and Yabri Njem Enterprises, which were contracted to assess investigative cases at a cost of 12 million Naira and 10 million Naira respectively. Failing to justify its expenditure, the PCC was eventually ordered to refund the 22 million Naira and also remove officers who allegedly "played a role in a certain foreign training exercise in which bogus amounts were claimed as expenses."276 .
National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP)
General
- Appointment of the governing board
- Structure and staff
The zonal commands are in Lagos, Benin, Enugu, Uyo, Sokoto, Kano, Maiduguri, Osogbo and Makurdi and the agency also has a liaison office in Port Hartcourt.286 The Lagos command covers Lagos, Ogun and Oyo states287; Benin Command covers Edo and Delta states288; Enugu Command covers Abia, Anambra, Ebony, Imo and Enugu states289; Uyo Command covers Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River and Rivers states290; Sokoto Command covers Sokoto, Kebbi and Zamfara states291; Kano Command covers Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Jigawa and Bauchi states292; Maiduguri Command covers Adamawa, Borno, Gombe, Taraba and Yobe states293; Osogbo Command covers Osun, Ondo and Ekiti states294; while the Makurdi command covers Benue, Kogi, Nassarawa, Plateau, Taraba and Kwara states.295. Of the NAPTIP departments, the Counseling and Rehabilitation Department and the Investigations and Monitoring Department are undoubtedly the most relevant in terms of protection. The counseling and rehabilitation department cooperates with competent ministries, agencies, non-governmental organizations and development partners.
Capacity
According to NAPTIP's July 2018 statement, at least 41 people have been convicted of various forms of human trafficking across the country in the past year, and 359 people have been convicted in NAPTIP's 15 years of operation. Despite 'thousands of arrests' over the past 15 years, many investigations and prosecutions are still ongoing. 313 NAPTIP also indicated that it has rescued about 5,000 victims of human trafficking since its inception, with about 500 in 2018 alone in the Benin Zonal Command covering Edo and Delta states.
Integrity
Most of the cases received related to foreign travel for the promotion of prostitution (217), employment of child labor (161) and procurement of persons for sexual exploitation (120).309 According to the US DoS, in the period from April 2017 to March 2018, NAPTIP received 662 cases for investigation, completed 116 investigations, prosecuted at least 43 suspects in 43 cases and convicted 26 traffickers, compared to 654 cases for investigation, 24 prosecutions and 23 convictions in the previous 12 months. The total number of cases received since the agency's establishment311 to the end of 2017 reached 5,496. According to the US DoS 2018 Trade Report, a foreign government reported to NAPTIP a Nigerian diplomat who tried to secure a visa for their domestic employee by publishing himself as a family member—.
Bibliography
Nigeria, NAPTIP (National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and Related Matters), 2017 Data Analysis Conclusion, June 2018 https://www.naptip.gov.ng/wp-. Nigeria, NAPTIP (National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons and Related Matters), Six (6) NAPTIP Officers sacked for corruption, unprofessional conduct, 21 September 2018, https://www.naptip.gov.ng /?p =1809, accessed September 30, 2018. Nigerian Tribune, NHRC to conduct nationwide audit of detention centers, June 21, 2018 https://www.tribuneonlineng.com/151614/, accessed September 29, 2018.
Terms of Reference
Appointment of the Board of Directors (including the Chairman of the Board) Structure and Personnel – Federal and State Level.
