Group wants stronger value for citizen rights in Nigerian Constitution
Published: 30/Jan/2013
Source: Premium Times (Abuja)
The National Human Right Commission, NHRC, leads the Open Society Initiative for West Africa, OSIWA, and PREMIUM TIMES to debate the status of residency rights in Nigeria The National Human Right Commission (NHRC), along with the Open Society Initiative for West Africa [OSIWA], and PREMIUM TIMES are pushing for a national consensus to trash the constitutional provision and political practices that define Nigerians first by states of origin than as citizens.
The group now plans to back their concerns with a national dialogue on citizenship and inclusion, arguing that to treat individuals primarily by their religion, state, or ethnic identity rather than their citizenship is “socially retrogressive”.
Towards this end, a six-man panel of constitutional experts drawn from the academia, civil society, faith and gender communities, and the legal industry are to lead the national dialogue in February, at the agency’s auditorium in Abuja.
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