The National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, has expressed concern after available data indicated that deaths from road accidents surpassed killings by gunmen across Nigeria in September 2024.
Data from the September 2024 Human Rights Dashboard, unveiled by the NHRC on Tuesday, October 8, 2024, in Abuja, disclosed that road accidents claimed 191 lives in September 2024, whole 141 persons died in attacks by gunmen, including bandits, terrorists, kidnappers and other criminals, during the month.
In addition to the 191 persons that died in road accidents in September, 69 others sustained varying degrees of injuries.
Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Dr Tony Ojukwu, in an address at the unveiling of the September 2024 Human Rights Dashboard, noted that loss of lives in road accidents undermines the enjoyment of human rights for many families.
“A major issue we are highlighting today is the tragic loss of lives due to road accidents, which severely undermines the enjoyment of human rights for many families.
“According to the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), approximately 1,471 individuals have been killed from road crashes in the first quarter of 2024 alone.
“It is crucial for the government and the Federal Road Safety Corps, to take immediate and sustainable measures to address this crisis and ensure the safety and welfare of all motorists in Nigeria,” Ojukwu said.
The Human Rights Dashboard indicated that 305,300 complaints of human rights violations were reported to the NHRC in September 2024.
The Commission expressed concern that the number of complaints of rights violations in the country has continued to witness an astronomical rise.
An analysis of the September 2024 human rights dashboard showed that the North-West led in number of human rights violation cases, followed by the North-Central.
Violation of freedom of religion was the highest number of complaints received in the month, according to the dashboard
