NHRC Cautions Against Celebration as Rights Complaints Drop 15%

By Omoyeni Ojeifo

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has warned that Nigeria still faces a significant human rights burden, with 297,943 complaints recorded in August despite a 15 per cent drop from the 354,997 cases recorded in July.

PersecondNews correspondent reports that the Commission made this known in Abuja on Monday, while presenting its National Human Rights Observatory dashboard for August 2026, which tracks human rights violations reported across the country.

Presenting the report, Hilary Ogbonna, Senior Human Rights Adviser, NHRC, noted that the complaints reflected a wide range of rights violations, with children, women and vulnerable groups among those affected.

“Although this is a reduction in the number of complaints that we received, we are not rejoicing because 297,943 people still reported to us in the month of August, and that is still a very significant number,” Ogbonna noted.

According to him, the complaints covered different aspects of everyday life, reflecting disputes and violations affecting children, women and other members of the public.

“Conflicts about children who have lost their parents, children who have been abandoned, conflicts about rape, about domestic and sexual violence, conflicts about discrimination, about freedom of religion and freedom of movement continue to feature,” he explained.

On the regional distribution, Ogbonna, noted that the North-Central zone recorded the highest share of complaints, accounting for 41 per cent of the national total, with Benue, Plateau and Niger among states experiencing significant violence.

“The North-Central continues to lead in terms of the number of complaints, and apart from having the highest number of offices for the Commission, it is home to Benue, Plateau and Niger states, which are almost becoming the epicentre of the violence we are witnessing,” he observed.

He further highlighted that complaints recorded in the most affected locations, alongside those received at the Commission’s Abuja offices, accounted for more than 70 per cent of the August total.

“The entire 10 states account for over 70 per cent of the total complaints we received in August 2026, and then you see the rest of the country managing 27 per cent and we continue to hope that those numbers will continue to decrease,” Ogbonna noted.

Beyond complaints, the Observatory recorded killings across the country during August, with the North-Central and North-West accounting for most of the incidents.

“In terms of the total number of killings in Nigeria, our observatory recorded 387. Most of these killings happened in the North-Central and in the North-West,” Ogbonna said.

The NHRC also recorded deaths from accidents during the month, with the Commission describing many of the incidents as avoidable.

“We recorded 103 deaths by accident. Some of these accidents are highly avoidable, but at the end of it all, these are Nigerians who were not facing any violence, and it is still a violation of the right to life,” he maintained.

On women and children, the Observatory recorded 41 cases of sexual violence and 19 rape cases, while child abandonment remained among the violations monitored during the month.

“In Edo State alone, we recorded six incidents of sexual violence against children, the oldest was 15 years old, who was raped by her own father, and we continue to see these violations of the rights of children.”

Ogbonna added that the Commission also reported two separate cases of newborn babies abandoned in Benue State, with one found in a forest and another in a hospital box.

On security and detention monitoring, the NHRC visited 103 detention locations across the country during the month, while 31 invitations or summons were issued to police personnel and five military formations were visited.

The Observatory also documented several kidnapping incidents, including the abduction of passengers along the Kotoko-Adoka Road and other attacks in Zamfara, Sokoto and Taraba.

PerSecondNews correspondent also reports that the report further highlighted concerns around media freedom, including an allegation that a Department of State Services officer assaulted a Bauchi Radio Corporation journalist three times during an official assignment.

Ogbonna also said the Commission’s monitoring is aimed at identifying patterns of rights violations, drawing attention to affected persons and ensuring that reported abuses receive appropriate attention.