{"id":15104,"date":"2026-11-11T14:46:59","date_gmt":"2026-11-11T14:46:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/11\/11\/2027-polls-eu-flays-rising-violence-hate-speech-pledges-support-for-nhrc\/"},"modified":"2026-11-11T14:46:59","modified_gmt":"2026-11-11T14:46:59","slug":"2027-polls-eu-flays-rising-violence-hate-speech-pledges-support-for-nhrc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/2026\/11\/11\/2027-polls-eu-flays-rising-violence-hate-speech-pledges-support-for-nhrc\/","title":{"rendered":"2027 Polls: EU flays rising violence, hate speech, pledges support for NHRC"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"2027<\/p>\n

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri<\/p>\n

ABUJA \u2013 The European Union (EU) on Wednesday expressed concern over reports of election-related violence, hate speech and political intimidation ahead of the 2027 general elections.<\/p>\n

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Speaking at the opening session of the 2026 Civil Society and Human Rights Defenders Forum on the State of Human Rights, held in Abuja, the EU Ambassador and Head of Delegation to Nigeria and ECOWAS, H.E. Gautier Mignot, maintained that such incidents undermine democratic gains and discourage citizens from participating fully in the electoral process.<\/p>\n

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He described open forums, free media, peaceful assembly and civil society organisations as essential to elections, noting that they promote transparency and enable citizens to share facts, debate and scrutinise candidates for elective office without fear of censorship or retaliation.<\/p>\n

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\u201cFree civic and political spaces also help hold leaders and institutions accountable by enabling CSOs and active citizens to monitor election administration, track campaign promises and challenge government policies.<\/p>\n

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\u201cBy enabling free association and assembly, robust civic and political spaces prevent authorities from backsliding or from manipulating rules.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is vital to ensure credibility and public confidence in an election.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe absence or weakening of these safeguards will directly undermine citizens\u2019 rights to participate meaningfully in elections. This is why the European Union, together with its member states, is committed to ensuring the sustenance of free civic and political spaces in Nigeria,\u201d the EU leader added.<\/p>\n

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He further pledged the EU\u2019s commitment to support key institutions like the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and CSOs to synergise efforts towards strengthening democracy and good governance in the country.<\/p>\n

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\u201cOur objective is not to interfere in the elections but to support legitimate Nigerian stakeholders to fully play their roles in order to contribute to a free, fair, credible electoral process.<\/p>\n

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\u201cStakeholders, the public sector, civil society, political parties, the media, all have a very important role to play,\u201d Mignot stated.<\/p>\n

The event, which was organised by the NHRC, was themed \u201cProtecting Human Rights in Civic and Political Spaces in the 2027 Elections.\u201d<\/p>\n

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In his address, the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Dr. Tony Ojukwu, SAN, said the forum was convened because democracy does not survive on election day alone.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIt survives in the space between elections: in the freedom of citizens to speak without fear, to assemble without permits, to associate without obstruction, and to choose their leaders without intimidation.<\/p>\n

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\u201cSection 14 of our Constitution declares that sovereignty belongs to the people of Nigeria; Sections 39 and 40 guarantee expression, association and assembly; and Article 13 of the African Charter, which Nigeria has domesticated, makes the right to participation directly enforceable.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe right to participate in the conduct of public affairs, including through free and genuine elections under Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), is the heartbeat of every freedom we defend.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWhen that right is suppressed, democracy does not merely stumble; it begins to die, quietly, through apathy, fear and distrust,\u201d the NHRC boss stated.<\/p>\n

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He decried that, with the elections drawing near, journalists and human rights defenders continue to operate in challenging environments marked by harassment, arbitrary arrests and the misapplication of laws, including provisions of the Cybercrimes Act.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are concerned by political and voter intimidation, by political exclusion through prohibitive nomination fees that bar women, youth and persons with disabilities from candidature, by the persistence of hate speech and incitement, and by regulatory uncertainties around digital platforms.<\/p>\n

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\u201cAnd we are concerned, above all, by impunity, evidenced by the absence of accountability for electoral crimes.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs I said recently when I received the UNOWAS delegation led by Special Representative Leonardo Santos Sim\u00e3o: as long as people can commit these election-related offences and go scot-free, then anybody can try anything they like.<\/p>\n

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\u201cThese are warning lights, not yet verdicts. The window to correct course is now, and that is precisely why this Forum meets today,\u201d Ojukwu, SAN, added.<\/p>\n

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In his goodwill message, the National Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC), Dr. Yusuf Dantalle, said the experience of recent off-cycle elections, particularly the campaign period preceding the recent governorship election in Osun State, underscored the urgent need to address election-related violence and protect citizens throughout the electoral cycle.<\/p>\n

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The IPAC leader, in his speech, which was read by Mr. Chinedu Obi, said: \u201cDemocracy is not defined by election day alone; it must be reflected in the entire process, from political campaigns and voter mobilisation to voting, collation and declaration of results.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we approach 2027, political competition must not become warfare. Political opponents are not enemies, and electoral victory must never be pursued at the expense of human lives, public peace and national unity.<\/p>\n

\u201cIPAC therefore calls on political parties, candidates and their supporters to embrace issue-based campaigns, political tolerance and responsible communication.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe must collectively reject electoral violence, hate speech, voter suppression, political intimidation and every conduct capable of undermining credible elections,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

The post 2027 Polls: EU flays rising violence, hate speech, pledges support for NHRC<\/a> appeared first on Vanguard News<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Source: <\/p>\n

Vanguard News<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri ABUJA \u2013 The European Union (EU) on Wednesday expressed concern over reports of election-related violence, hate speech and political intimidation ahead of the 2027 general elections. Speaking… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15105,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15104","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15104","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15104"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15104\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15104"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15104"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globalnigerianews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15104"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}