Oputa Panel also known as the Human Rights Violations Investigations Commission was formed on June 14, 1999 by President Olusegun Obasanjo as a Truth Commission to heal the wounds of the past and move beyond them through reconciliation based on knowledge of the truth. It was mandated to establish the causes, nature and extent of human rights violations between January 15, 1966 and May 28, 1999. The commission received over 10,000 petitions and heard about 340 cases. The commission heard cases related to an alleged military coup that implicated former president Olusegun Obasanjo and Shehu Musa Yar'Adua, communal conflicts within the Ife and Modakeke communities, warring communities in Ogoniland and the murder of Dele Giwa, a journalist. However, although some alleged perpetrators of human rights violations testified to the commission, none accepted blame for any of their actions. and the Nigerian government has not officially made public the recommendations of the commission.
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The commission
The commission was created through a presidential statutory instrument in 1999 after a period of military rule in Nigeria; it was empowered to hold hearings and listen to petitions but lacked the power to compensate victims or punish perpetrators of human right abuses. It was loosely modeled on the South African Truth Commission and it covered all periods of military rule in Nigeria starting from 1966. A former Supreme Court justice, Chukwudifu Oputa, was named the head of the panel.
The panel received over 10,000 petitions concerning murders, embezzlement and the hanging of the Ogoni activist, Ken Saro-Wiwa, and a civil servant's claim of wrongful dismissal. It conducted both public and special hearings on petitions from citizens and human rights groups. However, many Nigerian citizens who had been subpoenaed failed to appear before the panel; those that did appear before the commission included Hamza al-Mustapha, ex-chief security officer to Abacha and Ishaya Bamaiyi. Military chiefs who appeared where unrepentant about their actions in office and denied knowing anything about torture or illegal detentions.
Outcome
The findings of the commission and its report have not been officially made public and implementation of any of the suggestions of the report has not been carried out.