The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, on Wednesday opposed the proposed Human Rights Defenders Protection Bill, setting the stage for sharp disagreements with civil society organisations at a public hearing in Abuja.
Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, conveyed the position of the ministry at the hearing organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Human Rights at the National Assembly Complex.
The session considered three legislative proposals: the Human Rights Defenders Protection Bill; a bill seeking to repeal the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Act; and an amendment to the National Human Rights Commission Act, 2010, aimed at paving the way for a new NHRC Bill, 2025.
The proposed NHRC bill seeks to strengthen the commission’s administration, enhance its investigative powers and provide a more sustainable funding framework for human rights activities in line with the Paris Principles.
Represented by the Chief of State Counsel, Mr. Reuben Imarha, the minister argued that Nigeria already has sufficient legal frameworks for the protection of human rights and warned against creating overlapping mandates.
According to him, enacting another law on the same subject would lead to duplication of functions among government agencies and create institutional conflicts.
While acknowledging gaps in enforcement, Fagbemi urged lawmakers to strengthen implementation mechanisms within existing structures rather than introduce fresh legislation.
“The ministry is against the Human Rights Defenders Protection Bills,” he said, calling on the House to drop the proposal.
On the bill seeking to repeal the NHRC Act and enact a new one, the minister expressed support but raised concerns over specific provisions.
He cited Clause 5(2b), which proposes making it mandatory for business owners to obtain an annual human rights compliance certificate, warning that such a requirement could undermine the Federal Government’s ease-of-doing-business policy.
Fagbemi also faulted Clause 15, which empowers the commission to borrow funds to pursue human rights cases, insisting that any borrowing should be subject to the approval of the ministry or the National Assembly to prevent abuse.
He further raised objections to Clause 16(2b), which proposes that multinationals and businesses in the financial and oil sectors contribute 0.3 per cent of their annual profits to the commission to fund human rights litigation. He described the provision as a quasi-tax and recommended that it be harmonised with ongoing federal tax reforms.
READ ALSO: IGP warns officers against human right violation
Civil society organisations, however, backed the Human Rights Defenders Protection Bill.
Programme Director of Development Dynamics, Mr. Jude Ohanele, described the bill as a landmark initiative reflecting Nigeria’s commitment to democracy and constitutional governance, and urged lawmakers to expedite its passage.
In his presentation, the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Tony Ojukwu, argued that businesses must be compelled to mainstream human rights protection in their operations.
He lamented that the Human Rights Fund established in 2010 had yet to receive funding, noting that the proposed legislation seeks to leverage resources from tax reforms to support the prosecution of human rights cases.
Also speaking, the Executive Director of the Policy and Legal Advocacy Centre, Mr. Clement Nwankwo, commended the commission’s efforts in protecting fundamental rights but urged it to intensify action, particularly in defending vulnerable groups.
The hearing is expected to guide the committee’s report to the House as lawmakers weigh concerns about regulatory overlap against calls for stronger legal safeguards for human rights defenders.