BY AHMED AKANBI
The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, has called for a unified national response system to tackle digital rights violations, warning that fragmented institutional action is leaving victims without justice.
Executive Secretary of the Commission, Chief Tony Ojukwu, made the call in Abuja at a multi-stakeholder convening on ‘Building a coordinated response system for digital rights violations.’
He said Nigeria’s digital space has become central to civic engagement and fundamental freedoms, but gaps persist in reporting, referral pathways, preservation of digital evidence and management of high-risk cases.
Ojukwu stressed that constitutional protections for dignity, privacy, freedom of expression and association apply both online and offline, adding that cybercrime and national security interventions must follow due process and human rights standards.
He said the need for coordination is more urgent ahead of the 2027 general elections, when digital platforms will shape political discourse, civic participation and information sharing.
To address the gaps, he called for strengthened complaint intake, referrals, emergency escalation, victim protection, secure information sharing and policy reforms.
Ojukwu disclosed that integration of the Ripoti platform is being proposed to link reports of digital rights violations to remedies, with data protection and privacy safeguards.
Earlier, Country Director of Accountability Lab Nigeria, Mr Odeh Friday, said the problem is not lack of reporting channels but what happens after reports are made.
Citing cases of abusive loan apps, non-consensual sharing of images, online harassment and threats to journalists, he said victims are often left without clear pathways to help or justice.
He said the convening seeks to develop a Coordinated Response Framework that defines institutional roles, referral and escalation mechanisms, standardised documentation, focal persons and a six-to-12-month action plan to ensure victims get swift, safe access to justice.