NGO unveils application to tackle rights abuse
Launch
By Akeem Abas
Ibadan, Aug. 10, 2019 (NAN) An NGO, GAVEL, has unveiled a user-friendly application known as ‘Podus’ to connect victims of fundamental rights abuse to lawyers in Nigeria.
Mr Nelson Olanipekun, the Team Leader of GAVEL, disclosed this in Ibadan on Saturday on the sidelines of a workshop.
The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that the workshop organised by GAVEL was to educate the public on the use of Podus to pave way for enforcement of the rights of detainees.
It was also to educate the public on enforcement of the provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law(ACJL) and Luanda guidelines.
“Podus is to connect victims of human rights abuse with legal and human rights support across Nigeria. It is user-friendly and allows victims to interact with our lawyers.
“It also supports Police Duty Solicitor Scheme which has a mandate of ensuring presence of lawyers during statement taking from victims at police stations and ease access of lawyers to detention centres,” he said.
Olanipekun, however, said the application would not replace victim’s needs to hire lawyers, but promote human rights.
According to him, statistics revealed that 25 million legal issues were created in 2018 that needed legal redress while there is no user-friendly technology to bridge the gap between victims and lawyers.
“An average young Nigerian spends close to five hours daily on social media. So, podus is here to bridge that gap and provide the atmosphere for interaction between victims and lawyers through technology, ” he said.
He said that GAVEL had been behind most of the impactful initiatives in Nigeria in terms of human rights promotion, adding that their lawyers in 19 states had been representing victims of such abuses.
“In certain cases, we have filed fundamental rights applications for victims to seek redress in court.
” On monthly basis, we attend to over 60 cases from our desk support platform and social media.
“Majority of these cases have been resolved. We have been able to also get victim’s money back for them in cases of extortion and filed cases for those brutalised,” he said.
Olanipekun, however, called on the judiciary to take its place as the last hope of the common man and rise to the defence of democracy as well as rule of law in the country.
He lamented the increasing rate of human rights abuse by state and non state actors, saying only the judiciary could nip the act in the bud and give hope to the common man.
“Once the judiciary, which is the last line for the common man breaks down, such could allow citizens take to the streets in agitation thereby taking laws into their hands,” he said.
Olanipekun said that GAVEL was in discussion with several government institutions, National Human Rights Commission and Police Accountability Mechanism to checkmate the excesses of human rights violation.(NAN)
TAA/CHOM/OJO
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(Edited by Chioma Ugboma/Mufutau Ojo)