Chairman, NHRC, Prof. Chidi-Ansalem Odinkalu
The National Human Rights Commission said during the week that 58 persons have died in election violence across the country between December 3, 2014 and January 31.
This was contained in the commission’s 80-page pre-election report and advisory on violence in Nigeria’s 2015 general elections, which was presented on Friday.
The Chairman, Governing Council of the commission, Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, while highlighting the content of the report, noted that the 58 deaths had resulted from 49 election related violence across 22 states in the country.
Executive Secretary of the commission, Prof. Bem Angwe, said the report, which is also an advisory to the government and key political actors, was part of the responsibilities of the NHRC in protecting the rights of Nigerians.
With 11 incidents resulting in 22 deaths, Lagos topped the list of states with the most devastating record of election-related violence within the period surveyed.
Kaduna State recorded three incidents resulting in nine deaths. Gombe State recorded three incidents resulting in five deaths; Taraba State, one incident, four deaths; Ogun State, two incidents, four deaths; Bayelsa State, one incident, three deaths; Akwa Ibom State, two incidents, three deaths; and Kano State, two incidents, two deaths.
The report indicated that the South-West recorded the highest number of 28 deaths resulting from election-related violence within the same period, followed by North-West, with 11 deaths; North-East, nine deaths; South-South, eight deaths; and South-East, two deaths.
But the report said thousands were injured across all the six geo-political zones within the period.
Odinkalu also said the commission was working on a plan to get President Goodluck Jonathan, who is the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, and the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Maj-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, to address Nigerians on the need for them to eschew violence in the forthcoming polls.
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