These
are rights naturally accruable to every person by virtue of his/her
existence as a human being. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria, under Chapter IV enumerates the following as fundamental human
rights:-
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Right to life
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Right to dignity of human person
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Right to personal liberty
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Right to fair hearing
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Right to private and family life
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Right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion
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Right to freedom of expression and the press
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Right to peaceful assembly and association
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Right to freedom of movement
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Right to freedom from discrimination on the grounds of ethnic group,
place of origin, circumstance of birth, sex, religion or political
opinion.
-
Right to compensation for property compulsorily acquired
The above rights are classified under Chapter IV of the Constitution as
Fundamental Rights. However, there are other rights under Fundamental
Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy provided under
Chapter II of the Constitution. These include the right to:
-
Free and compulsory education
-
Adequate health care, gainful employment
-
Shelter, food etc
The former are justiceable rights, i.e. citizens could go to court to
enforce them if denied. The latter rights are however non-justiceable,
i.e. these set of rights are not enforceable in the court. They are
aspirations attainable if and when the State has the resources. However,
the Commission believes the two sets of rights are both fundamental and
complementary. This is because; the right to life, for instance, is
meaningless without gainful employment or food to sustain life in the
first place. The Commission has made a strong case for the upgrading of
Economic, Social and Cultural rights to fundamental rights. Human Rights
are interdependent, interrelated, indivisible and universal.
