A former Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Mary Odili (rtd) lauded the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), saying that over the years it has proved to be an outstanding institution in the promotion, protection of human rights in Nigeria.
The eminent Jurist who stated this in her remarks at the inauguration of the editorial board of the NHRC Journal expressed enthusiasm to chair the board of “This well esteemed journal”.
According to Justice Odili, “When the letter came from the Commission, requesting that I chair the editorial board, I did not hesitate to accept the offer as I felt highly honoured.
“I am sure I speak for other members of the board when I say that the National Human Rights Commission has over the years proved to be an outstanding institution in the promotion and protection of human rights in Nigeria and so partnering with them in this regard is a great privilege.”
Speaking on the usefulness of the Journal, she said it became important to constantly update citizens knowledge on human rights issues, especially in a world where countries are judged by the level of compliance with human rights norms and standards.
She congratulated all chapter contributors, “especially as I have been told of the rigorous checks that these articles had to go through to ensure that they meet the standards of the Journal”.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary of the Commission, Chief Tony Ojukwu OFR, SAN in his welcome recalled that the maiden edition of the Journal was published in 2011 and since then, there have been six volumes, with the last one published in 2017. “We are now presenting a mega edition of 2018 – 2022 of the National Human Rights Commission Journal (NHRCJ), being volume 8 of the publication”, he added.
According to Ojukwu, the NHRCJ is a collection of scholarly full-length articles on contemporary issues on human rights, and like all publications of the Commission, is circulated free of charge to the public, both in hard copy and e-copy.
Determined to improve on the quality of the Journal, the Chief Human Rights Officer in Nigeria, noted, the Commission carefully selected eminent persons to serve in the editorial board and also went ahead to register with the African Journal Online (AJOL), which is presently the world largest and preeminent platform of African-published peer-review scholarly journals.
While inaugurating the editorial board, he thanked the former Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Odili and other Members of the board for accepting to bring their knowledge and wealth of experience to bear in the Commission’s Journal.
Members of the editorial board are Hon. Justice Mary Odili, CFR (Retired Justice of the Supreme Court- Chairperson), Professor Obiora Okafor (Professor of Law and Partner of the Commission), Professor Abubakar Muazu (Professor of Mass Communication and former Member, National Human Rights Commission Governing Board), Professor Deji Adekunle (Professor of Law and former Director General, Nigerian Institute of Advanced Legal Studies), and Professor Jemila Nasir (Professor of Law, University of Jos). They will serve in an advisory capacity.
Other Members of the Board who will serve as Issue editors are Mrs. Ifeoma Nwakama, mni (Director, Human Rights Institute, National Human Rights Commission), Professor Emily Alemika (Professor of Law, on sabbatical leave at the Human Rights Institute), Professor Uchenna Emelonye (Professor of Law and Visiting Professor at the Human Rights Institute).
The Editor-in-Chief is Chief Tony Ojukwu, OFR, SAN (Executive Secretary, National Human Rights Commission).
