Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has
sent an urgent appeal to three UN Special Rapporteurs urging them
to “put meaningful pressure on the leadership of the National
Assembly in Nigeria particularly the Speaker of the House of
Representatives Mr Yakubu Dogara to immediately withdraw the
repressive bill to establish a commission that would monitor,
supervise, de-register, and pre-approve all activities by civil
society, labour, community based organizations, and the media, in
the country.”
The urgent appeal dated 28 July 2017 was sent to Ms Annalisa
Ciampi, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful
assembly and of association; Mr Michel Forst, Special Rapporteur on
the situation of human rights defenders; and Mr. David Kaye,
Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to
freedom of opinion and expression.
SERAP also urged the Special Rapporteurs to “prevail on the
Acting President Professor Yemi Osinbajo to decline to sign the
bill into law; and on the House of Representatives and the Senate
to exercise their legislative powers for good governance, and
ensure a safe and enabling environment for civil society
organizations both in practice and rhetoric, in line with the 1999
Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) and the government’s
international human rights obligations and commitments.”
The organization said, “the sole objective of the House of
Representatives is to weaken and delegitimize the work of
independent and credible civil society. If adopted, the bill which
is copied from repressive countries like Somalia, Ethiopia and
Uganda, would have a chilling effect not only on expressions of
peaceful dissent by the citizens but also on the legitimate work of
NGOs and individual human rights defenders and activists
scrutinizing corruption in the National Assembly and exposing human
rights violations by the government.”
The urgent appeal signed by SERAP executive director Adetokunbo
Mumuni read in part: “the bill (sponsored by Umar Buba Jibril
Deputy Leader, PDP: Kogi State), if passed by the House of
Representatives and the Senate of Nigeria and signed into law by
Acting President Professor Yemi Osinbajo, would severely curtail
the rights of all Nigerians to freedom of expression and freedom of
peaceful assembly and association in the country.”
“SERAP is seriously concerned that the bill is by far the most
dangerous piece of legislation in the country in terms of its reach
and devastating consequences not only for the work of civil society
but also the effective enjoyment of constitutionally and
internationally recognized human rights of the citizens. The bill
will devastate the country’s civil society for generations to come
and turn it into a government puppet.”
“The bill is a further path of closing civic space in the
country, something witnessed only under military regimes, and has
no place in a democratic Nigeria. The bill is entirely unnecessary,
as the work of civil society is already sufficiently regulated
under existing legislation, including the Companies and Allied
Matters Act, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act,
the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences
Commission (ICPC) Act and other similar legislation.”
“SERAP is also concerned that the proposed bill is coming at a
time the members of the Senate and House of Representatives are
proposing amnesty and immunity for themselves against prosecution
for corruption and other economic crimes; and the government is
proposing a social media policy to restrict and undermine citizens’
access to the social media ahead of the general elections in
2019.”
“By including civil society in general, the bill will also
undermine both section 22 of the 1999 Nigerian constitution and
article 13 of the UN Convention against Corruption, both of which
have given the media a critical role to ensure that the government,
at all levels, is accountable to the citizenry.”
“The bill would subject Nigerians and civil society to extensive
government control and interference that it would negate the very
essence of the constitutionally and internationally recognized
rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.
The bill also raises serious concerns about the commitment of
Nigerian lawmakers and the government to good governance and basic
freedoms in a democratic society.”
“SERAP fears that the overbearing bill would inhibit and
obstruct the ability of Nigerians to work collectively through
local and international organizations on any human rights,
transparency and accountability research or advocacy that may be
deemed contrary to “the national interest” of Nigeria, or not
“consistent with the programmes of government.”
“The provisions of the bill are also not subject to any judicial
oversight. SERAP believes that independent groups and activists
should have space to carry out their human rights and
anticorruption work without fear of reprisals, such as losing their
registration or being sent prison.”
“Apart from the Nigerian Constitution, article 22 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and article 10
of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to which
Nigeria is a state party guarantee the rights to freedom of
expression, association and peaceful assembly. The African
Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has made clear that the
charter does not allow governments to “enact provisions which would
limit the exercise of this freedom.” The African Commission has
consistently criticised restriction on the work of civil
society.”
“SERAP is concerned that by proposing this bill, Nigeria’s
parliament is trying to immune itself from public criticism and
scrutiny. If this bill is passed into law, good governance, the
rule of law and respect for human rights of Nigerians would become
a farce in the country. By gagging civil society from criticising
the National Assembly and the government, the bill will undercut
the rule of law, shrink civic space, and expose vulnerable
Nigerians to greater level of injustice and repression.”
“Civil society groups have play a key role in holding government
and parliaments accountable but without a strong civil society in
Nigeria, the problem of high-level official corruption and other
cases of violations of human rights would go unaddressed, and
perpetrators would continue to enjoy impunity.”
SERAP therefore urged the Special Rapporteurs to: publicly
condemn the bill and hold that it is inconsistent and incompatible
with Nigeria’s international obligations to respect, protect,
promote and fulfil the citizens’ rights to freedom of expression,
association and peaceful assembly and ask the authorities should
use and rely on existing legislation which already regulate the
work of these groups; and to urge the House of Representatives and
Senate not criminalize Nigerians simply for exercising their rights
to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly
It would be recalled that the House of Representatives debated
the bill known as ‘An Act to provide for the establishment of
Regulatory Commission for the Supervision, Coordination and
Monitoring of NGOs, CSOs and Communities Based Organizations in
Nigeria’. The bill will establish a commission responsible only to
the president and the senate. Under section 7, the commission will
monitor and supervise these groups supposedly to “ensure that they
accomplish their missions according to law” and under section 26,
strictly “in line with the programmes of government.”
Section 8 of the bill even goes further by empowering the
commission to coordinate the work of all national and international
NGOs in the country. All groups must register with the commission
and submit their annual reports for discussion and governmental
approval. The commission may take any punitive action against civil
society and “do all such things incidental to its functions” under
the Act. Section 10 establishes ‘a documentation center’ to which
all civil society groups must submit the list of their activities
and other information that may be required or prescribed. Section
11 then requires submission of all proposed activities by civil
society for approval.
Section 12 requires registration of all civil society organizations
on the payment of unspecified fees and other fees as the commission
may require or prescribe. But registration may be turned down, as
stated under section 13. Registration is valid for only 24 months
and renewable, subject to conditions as may be prescribed.
Registration may also be denied if the activities of civil society
groups are not in line with “national interest”. Operations of the
groups will be terminated without any such registration. Under
section 19, workers of the groups must apply for work permits. The
groups can only appeal to “a minister” if they are dissatisfied
with the application of any of the provisions of the Act, as
provided for under section 19.
The bill in section 24 criminalizes behaviour that is inherently
legitimate by prescribing severe criminal penalties, including
fines of N500,000 or 18 months imprisonment or both, for operating
without registration under the bill. Under section 26, any such
person will be banned for 10 years from doing any civil society
work. The combined effect of sections 25 and 26 is that no civil
society group will be able to carry out any activity without first
seeking and obtaining a ministerial approval.
Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has
sent an urgent appeal to three UN Special Rapporteurs urging them
to “put meaningful pressure on the leadership of the National
Assembly in Nigeria particularly the Speaker of the House of
Representatives Mr Yakubu Dogara to immediately withdraw the
repressive bill to establish a commission that would monitor,
supervise, de-register, and pre-approve all activities by civil
society, labour, community based organizations, and the media, in
the country.”
The urgent appeal dated 28 July 2017 was sent to Ms Annalisa
Ciampi, Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful
assembly and of association; Mr Michel Forst, Special Rapporteur on
the situation of human rights defenders; and Mr. David Kaye,
Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to
freedom of opinion and expression.
SERAP also urged the Special Rapporteurs to “prevail on the
Acting President Professor Yemi Osinbajo to decline to sign the
bill into law; and on the House of Representatives and the Senate
to exercise their legislative powers for good governance, and
ensure a safe and enabling environment for civil society
organizations both in practice and rhetoric, in line with the 1999
Constitution of Nigeria (as amended) and the government’s
international human rights obligations and commitments.”
The organization said, “the sole objective of the House of
Representatives is to weaken and delegitimize the work of
independent and credible civil society. If adopted, the bill which
is copied from repressive countries like Somalia, Ethiopia and
Uganda, would have a chilling effect not only on expressions of
peaceful dissent by the citizens but also on the legitimate work of
NGOs and individual human rights defenders and activists
scrutinizing corruption in the National Assembly and exposing human
rights violations by the government.”
The urgent appeal signed by SERAP executive director Adetokunbo
Mumuni read in part: “the bill (sponsored by Umar Buba Jibril
Deputy Leader, PDP: Kogi State), if passed by the House of
Representatives and the Senate of Nigeria and signed into law by
Acting President Professor Yemi Osinbajo, would severely curtail
the rights of all Nigerians to freedom of expression and freedom of
peaceful assembly and association in the country.”
“SERAP is seriously concerned that the bill is by far the most
dangerous piece of legislation in the country in terms of its reach
and devastating consequences not only for the work of civil society
but also the effective enjoyment of constitutionally and
internationally recognized human rights of the citizens. The bill
will devastate the country’s civil society for generations to come
and turn it into a government puppet.”
“The bill is a further path of closing civic space in the
country, something witnessed only under military regimes, and has
no place in a democratic Nigeria. The bill is entirely unnecessary,
as the work of civil society is already sufficiently regulated
under existing legislation, including the Companies and Allied
Matters Act, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act,
the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences
Commission (ICPC) Act and other similar legislation.”
“SERAP is also concerned that the proposed bill is coming at a
time the members of the Senate and House of Representatives are
proposing amnesty and immunity for themselves against prosecution
for corruption and other economic crimes; and the government is
proposing a social media policy to restrict and undermine citizens’
access to the social media ahead of the general elections in
2019.”
“By including civil society in general, the bill will also
undermine both section 22 of the 1999 Nigerian constitution and
article 13 of the UN Convention against Corruption, both of which
have given the media a critical role to ensure that the government,
at all levels, is accountable to the citizenry.”
“The bill would subject Nigerians and civil society to extensive
government control and interference that it would negate the very
essence of the constitutionally and internationally recognized
rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.
The bill also raises serious concerns about the commitment of
Nigerian lawmakers and the government to good governance and basic
freedoms in a democratic society.”
“SERAP fears that the overbearing bill would inhibit and
obstruct the ability of Nigerians to work collectively through
local and international organizations on any human rights,
transparency and accountability research or advocacy that may be
deemed contrary to “the national interest” of Nigeria, or not
“consistent with the programmes of government.”
“The provisions of the bill are also not subject to any judicial
oversight. SERAP believes that independent groups and activists
should have space to carry out their human rights and
anticorruption work without fear of reprisals, such as losing their
registration or being sent prison.”
“Apart from the Nigerian Constitution, article 22 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and article 10
of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights to which
Nigeria is a state party guarantee the rights to freedom of
expression, association and peaceful assembly. The African
Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has made clear that the
charter does not allow governments to “enact provisions which would
limit the exercise of this freedom.” The African Commission has
consistently criticised restriction on the work of civil
society.”
“SERAP is concerned that by proposing this bill, Nigeria’s
parliament is trying to immune itself from public criticism and
scrutiny. If this bill is passed into law, good governance, the
rule of law and respect for human rights of Nigerians would become
a farce in the country. By gagging civil society from criticising
the National Assembly and the government, the bill will undercut
the rule of law, shrink civic space, and expose vulnerable
Nigerians to greater level of injustice and repression.”
“Civil society groups have play a key role in holding government
and parliaments accountable but without a strong civil society in
Nigeria, the problem of high-level official corruption and other
cases of violations of human rights would go unaddressed, and
perpetrators would continue to enjoy impunity.”
SERAP therefore urged the Special Rapporteurs to: publicly
condemn the bill and hold that it is inconsistent and incompatible
with Nigeria’s international obligations to respect, protect,
promote and fulfil the citizens’ rights to freedom of expression,
association and peaceful assembly and ask the authorities should
use and rely on existing legislation which already regulate the
work of these groups; and to urge the House of Representatives and
Senate not criminalize Nigerians simply for exercising their rights
to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly
It would be recalled that the House of Representatives debated
the bill known as ‘An Act to provide for the establishment of
Regulatory Commission for the Supervision, Coordination and
Monitoring of NGOs, CSOs and Communities Based Organizations in
Nigeria’. The bill will establish a commission responsible only to
the president and the senate. Under section 7, the commission will
monitor and supervise these groups supposedly to “ensure that they
accomplish their missions according to law” and under section 26,
strictly “in line with the programmes of government.”
Section 8 of the bill even goes further by empowering the
commission to coordinate the work of all national and international
NGOs in the country. All groups must register with the commission
and submit their annual reports for discussion and governmental
approval. The commission may take any punitive action against civil
society and “do all such things incidental to its functions” under
the Act. Section 10 establishes ‘a documentation center’ to which
all civil society groups must submit the list of their activities
and other information that may be required or prescribed. Section
11 then requires submission of all proposed activities by civil
society for approval.
Section 12 requires registration of all civil society organizations
on the payment of unspecified fees and other fees as the commission
may require or prescribe. But registration may be turned down, as
stated under section 13. Registration is valid for only 24 months
and renewable, subject to conditions as may be prescribed.
Registration may also be denied if the activities of civil society
groups are not in line with “national interest”. Operations of the
groups will be terminated without any such registration. Under
section 19, workers of the groups must apply for work permits. The
groups can only appeal to “a minister” if they are dissatisfied
with the application of any of the provisions of the Act, as
provided for under section 19.
The bill in section 24 criminalizes behaviour that is inherently
legitimate by prescribing severe criminal penalties, including
fines of N500,000 or 18 months imprisonment or both, for operating
without registration under the bill. Under section 26, any such
person will be banned for 10 years from doing any civil society
work. The combined effect of sections 25 and 26 is that no civil
society group will be able to carry out any activity without first
seeking and obtaining a ministerial approval.