AN APPRAISAL OF LEGAL AND INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR THE IMPLEMENTATION OF INTERNATIONAL BILL OF RIGHTS IN NIGERIA

Abstract

An appraisal of legal and institutional framework for the implementation of International Bill of Rights in Nigeria whichis the crux of this discourse is one of the principles of human rights law that seeks to examine the level of human rightscompliance in Nigeria. It was found that Nigeria separated the provisions of International Covenant on Civil andPolitical Rights (ICCPR) 1966 which are made justiciable in Chapter IV of the Constitution from the Provisions ofInternational Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural (ICESCR) right 1966 which are rendered non-justiciable byvirtue of Section 6 (6) (c) of the same Constitution. It was also discovered that Nigerian Judiciary has been dogged inensuring that citizens who are victims of human rights abuses obtain justice within the shortest possible time. It wasequally revealed inter alia that Nigeria is still practicing capital punishment and no Nigerian can lodge his human rightabuses at an international level. Accordingly, it is recommended that Nigeria should make the provisions of ChapterII justiciable as its counterpart of Chapter IV in line with the dictates of the indivisibility characteristic of human rights.It is further recommended that Nigeria should ratify the Two Optional Protocols of the ICCPR so that Nigerians canbring up their complaints of human rights infraction at an international tribunal or court as well as abolish deathpenalty.