The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Jungle justice

  • Jungle justice and Nigeria’s hypocritical justice

    SIR: The other day my heart melted from the sight of a brutal jungle justice meted out on a young lady. The lady, alleged to have stolen a mobile phone, was heavily punished by some sadists that triumphantly inserted a raw pepper into her genitals.

    We can write a bigger book than Obasanjo’s My Watch of instances of jungle justices in Nigeria. It is so common and many people have died innocently in the hands of irrational mobs. Once the chant “thief”, “ole” “barawo” is made, just know someone is few inches away to the grave. Angry mobs lynch with haste as soon as that trumpet is blown. Some victims get hacked immediately, others burnt on the spot. Not many escape stories have been told.

    It is purely inhumane. Despicable. Barbaric. Execrable. And above all, very unfortunate! It is the perfect example of hypocritical judgment by Nigerians. The fact that many people rush to take active part in lynching, and many derive joy watching helplessly only defines everything wrong with our moral judgment.

    I am yet to come across any section of the constitution that emphasizes jungle justice as a palatable pattern of judgment for Nigerians. I do know of the fact that nobody can be pronounced guilty of any crime until proven so by a court of competent jurisdiction. It is only right, moral and rational for suspects to be handed over to the police and other law enforcement agencies for proper investigation. Jungle justice has denied many the chances to be vindicated on sinister charges. This evil practice has got to stop before it consumes many more innocent victims.

    If jungle justice is actual justice, then it ought to apply in all related social vices. Sadly this is not the case in Nigeria. In this geographic space, some criminals are subjected to jungle justice while some are treated with a hero’s welcome. Same mob that deny some criminals a fair hearing celebrate other criminals with every pint of fanaticism. Criminals that steal an item with far lesser monetary value are burnt to death while those that steal billions are given chieftaincy titles and same lynch-hungry mobs pose as their entourage. Define hypocrisy please!

    Truth be told, jungle justice is a betrayal of illumination and moral values. It is not, and can never be in sync with civilization and righteousness. It is not at par with logic and rationality. It is at loggerheads with religious and moral underpinnings. It is only deserving of a spot in the cesspit. It must stop.

    Security agencies need to talk hard on jungle justice. Talking alone is in fact insufficient. They need to talk the talk or walk the talk, whichever, and stamp a deterrent on the minds of sadists who derive pleasure from such abysmal engagements. It’s about time this egregiously tragic tradition be thrown to the trash can.

     

    • Ibrahim Yahaya,

    Suleja, Niger State.

  • IGP vows to end scourge of jungle justice

    …Orders CP Delta to probe case

     

    The Inspector General of Police, IGP Mohammed Adamu, has expressed concerns over increasing acts of jungle justice and all manner of dehumanising treatment meted out to some Nigerians.

    The IGP who described the trend as worrisome highlighted the recent assault on one Odugu Blessing Dada ‘f’, 45yrs, of No. 77 Morka Street, Boji-boji Owa in Ika North East LGA of Delta State and other similar incidences before it, in Edo, Lagos, Abuja and Ebonyi States.

    The Police boss in a statement in Abuja on Monday by the Force Spokesman, ACP Frank Mba however stated that his regime has zero tolerance for human rights abuse especially gender based violence.

    He also assured that he will do everything humanly possible and within the ambit of the law to put an end to the scourge and effectively prosecute all offenders.

    The IGP while condoling with all victims of jungle justice and other forms of extra-judicial acts particularly Dada, her family and friends over the unwarranted assault on her by one Friday Ndudi Eluro also commended all Nigerians who have clearly identified with the victim and raised the red flag on impunity and all forms of inhuman treatment in the Country.

    Read Also: Police arrest 25 suspected cultists

    Adamu who expressed excitement that most of the alleged perpetrators of the crime have been apprehended, ordered the new Commissioner of Police, Delta State, CP Adeleke Yinka to ensure that the case be expeditiously and thoroughly investigated and all indicted suspects charged to court.

    The IGP urged all Nigerians to steer-clear of human rights violations and all manner of impunity and jungle justice and to report all incidence to the nearest relevant authority.

    He also noted that henceforth, violators of the rights of human persons will be dealt-with in accordance with the law.

     

     

  • 33 held over jungle justice

    •Six unruly policemen arrested 

    Thirty-three persons have been arrested over the cases of jungle justice recorded in some parts of Lagos last week, Police Chief Fatai Owoseni said yesterday.

    Besides, six policemen were arrested for alleged extortion of money, attempted murder and defilement. The policemen, Owoseni said, would be prosecuted.

    Briefing reporters on the command’s activities in the last three weeks, he warned residents against mob justice, saying security forces would not hesitate to arrest and prosecute those who want to turn the state into a Banana Republic.

    He said there was no justification for residents to punish any suspect without recourse to the law.

    He said: “On August 8, a distress call was received at Ijaiye Ojokoro Police Station that some people suspected to be ritualists/kidnappers were seen hiding in a canal at Obadeyi Bus Stop, along Lagos/Abeokuta Expressway.

    “The Divisional Police Officer (DPO) led a team of policemen to the spot and on getting there, they met a large violent crowd trying to lynch the so-called suspects. As the policemen were trying to rescue the alleged suspects, the crowd descended on them, beating and throwing stones at them. In the process, properties were vandalised and 33 suspects were picked up at the scene.

    “Police would see to complaints on non-responsiveness of emergency numbers. We would not fold our arms and watch Lagos turn to a lawless state. Every one arrested for jungle justice would be charged to court.”

    The command, Owoseni said, also arrested 24 armed robbery suspects and 15 cultists during the period under review, adding that 15 arms, 10 ammunition and 16 stolen vehicles were recovered.

    Sergeants Benjamin Oboh, Onyenedu Kennedy and Monday Ekhigato, he said, were arrested for alleged extortion of money and attempted murder. He berated residents who came to plead for their release.

    He said, Sergeant Sylvanus Emeche was arrested the alleged attempted murder of a woman, Mrs Oluchi Okafor, and her children on July 24, at Ajao Estate. He was said to have shot sporadically at them.

    Emeche, who was demobbed from the Police Mobile Force 20 and transferred to Kogi State about three months ago, refused to report there. He was arrested with two civilians.

    It was gathered that they had tried to forcibly remove the woman’s husband’s unregistered Honda Pilot Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) from their compound.

    Mrs. Okafor, it was gathered, challenged them and they opened fire on her FJ Cruiser SUV while she was driving to the police station to report them.

    The suspects, pursued her to the station, where the DPO, Ajao Estate, disarmed and arrested them.

    He said: “On July 17, three policemen identified as Sergeants Oboh and Kennedy attached to Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) Ipakodo and Sergeant Ekhigato attached to Bariga Division went to Ikeja under bridge with Toyota Camry registration number JN470 KJA in plain cloth while armed.

    He said: “One Adesina Kwam Adekunle was stopped by them on the suspicion that he was an internet fraudster and the policemen collected N65,000 from him. They also used his ATM card to collect another N40,000.

    “Also, on July 19, at the same point at Ikeja under bridge, the three policemen stopped one Ghenoba Godspower suspecting him to be an Internet fraudster.

    “He was also searched and N30,000 was collected from him. In the process the Commander, Rapid Response Squad (RRS), ACP Olatunji Disu arrived with his patrol van and arrested the policemen. All three of them were tried in an orderly room and recommended for dismissal.”

  • Police arrest 33 for jungle justice in Lagos

    Police arrest 33 for jungle justice in Lagos

    The Lagos State Police Command said on Monday 33 suspects have been arrested in connection with jungle justice.

    The state Police Commissioner, Fatai Owoseni, stated this while briefing journalists on the activities of the command in the last three weeks.

    Warning residents against mob justice, Owoseni said security forces would not hesitate to arrest, prosecute anyone who wants to turn the state into Banana Republic.

    According to him, there was no justification for residents to mete out any form of punishment on any suspect without recourse to the rule of law.

    He said: “On August 8, a distress call was received at Ijaiye Ojokoro Police Station that some people suspected to be ritualists/kidnappers were seen hiding in a canal at Obadeyi Bus Stop, along Lagos/Abeokuta Expressway.

    “The DPO led a team of policemen to the spot and on getting there, they met a large violent crowd trying to lynch the so called suspects. As the policemen were trying to rescue the alleged suspects, the crowd descended on them, beating and throwing stones at them. In the process, properties were vandalised and 33 suspects were picked up at the scene.

    “Police would see to complaints on non responsiveness of emergency numbers. We would not fold our arms and watch Lagos turn to a lawless state. Every one arrested for jungle justice would be charged to court.”

    He said the command also arrested 24 armed robbery suspects and 15 cultists within the period under review, adding that 15 arms, 10 ammunition and 16 stolen vehicles were recovered.

    Owoseni said six policemen were arrested for extortion, attempted murder and defilement, adding that they would be prosecuted.

    Those arrested for extortion and armed robbery are – Sergeants Benjamin Oboh, Onyenedu Kennedy and Monday Ekhigato.

    One Sergeant Sylvanus Emeche was nabbed for attempted murder after shooting a woman, Mrs. Oluchi Okafor and her children on July 24, at Ajao Estate.

     

  • Jungle justice at suspected ritualists‘ den in Lagos

    Jungle justice at suspected ritualists‘ den in Lagos

    Two persons were set ablaze yesterday when a suspected ritual kidnappers’ underground den was found in Ijaiye, Lagos State.

    Three persons were arrested.

    The den is inside a canal at Obadeyi/Ajala in Ijaiye on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway.

    The ritualists ran into troubl when a highway sweeper with the Lagos State Waste Management Agency (LAWMA) heard a woman calling for help from the canal.

    Two of the suspects caught inside the den were set ablaze by a mob; the others were taken to the Alakuko Police Station.

    They confessed that the den has been in operation for over four years.

    Some soldiers attached to the OPMESA, on a routine patrol of the area, rescued two victims.

    ‘’One of the suspects had boasted that there was nothing they could do to kill him. They were however stoned to death and subsequently set ablaze,’’ an eyewitness said.

    The incident created heavy traffic on the express as residents flocked out the scene.

    One of the recused suspects was said to have confessed that there are over 20 victims inside the canal.

    An eyewitness said: ‘’At about 8am, a LAWMA sweeper heard the cry of a woman from the underground canal which connected Obadeyi bus stop to Ajala/ Ijaiye,  and she alerted bystanders to the scene.

    “The soldiers and policemen searched parts of the underground den and after about four hours later, two persons found unconscious were rescued and taken to a hospital.’’

    It was gathered that the crowd later succeeded and set ablaze one of the suspects, but surprisingly to them, as fire was burning all over him, he appeared unhurt.

    Another eyewitness Adewole Adewale said: “When one of the den’s operators discovered that people were building up, he showed up and people interrogated him. It was when he doesn’t want to talk that they started beating and hitting him with objects. He swallowed a gourd and said if they like they should kill him; he would not talk. By then the Nigeria Police has come to intervene. They were four in number that were apprehended two were built alive, Army arrested one and Police also arrested another one. Four Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards were recovered from one of them. He confessed that 28 persons are working in the den.”

    The Commander of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS), Olatunji Disu, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, who arrived the scene around 3.40pm led his men to search the interiors of the canal.

    Disu, after a fruitless search told journalists that a team of police experts and sniffer dogs would be sent to sniff out suspects and victims inside the canal.

    ‘’Two suspects have been set ablaze and one other rescued by the police while three suspects have so far been arrested.

    ‘’I have just spoken with the Commissioner of Police and a team of experts and sniffer dogs are on their way to fish out those still hidden inside the canal.’’

    Ojokoro Local Council Development Area Chairman Hammed Tijani called calm, assuring that government is investigating the matter and whoever found culpable would be prosecuted.

    Tijani, who visited the scene, appealed to the crowd to go about their normal businesses and allow police to do their job.

    He urged them to cooperate with the police and other relevant agencies in apprehending other suspects.

    He urged them to always be watchful and report suspecting people and activities to concerned agencies.

    Wondering how such gory incident could be happening in such a busy and popular environment, Tijani implored the youth not take laws into their hands.

     

  • Jungle justice, crime against humanity

    SIR: Recently, newspapers reported that a fast rising comedian was killed by vigilante group in Ikorodu, Lagos State because he was suspected to be a member of the cult group that has been terrorizing the citizens of Ikorodu. A sad tale of how an innocent got murdered drew empathy from all and sundry but only for a short while, and life as they say continues. But life may never be the same for the family and friends of this comedian who like every other youth out there had his dreams murdered with him.

    Jungle justice has become prevalent in our country today. Suspected criminals suffer all sorts of gruesome acts from burning, to lynching and inhumane killing.

    Although there is no official statistics to prove this, the alarming rate of suspected criminals being lynched by angry mobs as reported by the media has revealed that a widespread epidemic is at hand.

    The law has made wide provisions to punish anyone that’s found criminally liable. Section 6 of the 1999 Constitution vests the judicial powers in our courts and as such if the court hasn’t pronounced anyone guilty, such person cannot be punished for any reason whatsoever.

    Sadly enough, people now deliver judgement and execute it on the street without any sort of trials, death penalties are now being dished and served on alleged citizens anyhow. These are deviant behaviours that are against the social contract we all signed for. Jungle justice as a matter of fact violates the two cardinal principles of natural justice: audi alterem paten & nemo judex in causa sua. The former implies that no one must be judged or condemned without fair hearing or trial, while the latter means that you cannot be a judge in your own cause.

    Generally speaking, mob justice is the trait of people with long deprivation of justice. Where jungle justice thrives, the possibilities of victimizing innocent people comes into play. As much as I have seen jungle justice meted out to criminals caught in the act, I have also read about innocent people being victims of jungle justice. Everyone deserves to be heard, in fact we all have the right to fair hearing, It is a principle of natural justice.

    The judiciary should rise up to the occasion and live up to its responsibility of creating a just society. There are ways defined by law on how a suspect should be treated. We must at all times explore the option of the rule of law in all circumstances because some victims may be innocent. We must insist therefore on the rule of law.  Let’s be law abiding and say a very resounding “NO” to jungle justice. It is a crime against humanity.

     

    • Fatima Shehu,

    University of Ilorin.

  • Jungle justice: Suspected car battery thief burnt alive in Calabar 

    A young man suspected to have stolen a car battery was burnt alive Monday along Yellow Duke Street in Calabar.

    A resident of the area who witnessed the incident said the ill-fated young man was suspected to have stolen a battery in one of the cars parked in the area and when an alarm was raised that he was a thief, a mob immediately gathered and beat him up thoroughly.

    “They beat him up until he could no longer move. After that they got some tires and put around his neck. He was still alive and crying. Petrol was brought and poured on him and fire set on him. He was burnt to ashes on the spot,” the eye witness said.

  • Day jungle justice came under attack in Senate

    Day jungle justice came under attack in Senate

    PERHAPS the police and other security agencies will act on the resolution of the Senate to deal decisively with the disturbing incidences of mob action.

     To say that mob action is gradually but steadily taking root in parts of the country may be to put it mildly. The list of those given the jungle justice treatment is endless.

     What is even more worrisome is the report that security agents, more often than not, look the other way in the face of mob action.

     The troubling phenomenon prompted the Senate on Tuesday to cry out loudly to anyone who cares to listen.

     The upper chamber particularly asked the police and other security agencies to wake up from their apparent slumber to save Nigerians from avoidable deaths.

     It expressed grave concern that mobs have arrogated to themselves the power to condemn others to death and execute judgement without recourse to the law courts in different parts of the country.

     The Senate, which unanimously resolved to “condemn in totality these abhorrent acts of barbarism,” feared that anarchy may envelope the country if the trend was not halted forthwith.

     It expressed worry about the growing trend, especially the case of a young man recently lynched in the Orile area of Lagos State for alleged stealing.

     The resolution followed a motion by Senator Gbenga Ashafa (Lagos East) and Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume (Borno South) on the need to “Condemn the rising cases of jungle justice in the country.”

    Senator Ashafa in his lead debate said he is “horrified that the rising barbaric acts are in most cases, perpetrated with a crowd of people watching unperturbed. He lamented that the dreadful trend is “most disheartening and frightening as each act dehumanizes us as a race.”

    He asked the Attorney General of the Federation, the State Attorney Generals and the Police to show greater sense of duty in diligent apprehension and prosecution of offenders.

     Senator Ndume who seconded the motion said, “The case of a seven year old in Orile Lagos has gone viral; that is why myself and the mover of the motion said we should ask the police to confirm or deny because sometimes social media messages can be faulty.“But we are all witnesses to a known fact in 2012; four students of the University of Port Harcourt who were gruesomely murdered and it went viral and it is a case we don’t even know where it stopped and similar cases like this continue and I want to even say that disorderliness and mob action in our society is moving very close to us.

    Senator Shehu Sani (Kaduna Central) in his contribution said, “It is quite unfortunate that mob justice is becoming a way of life in our communities, towns and in villages and I can directly attribute it to the loss of confidence between the people, the government and the law enforcement agencies,” he said.

    For Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, “If you look at the context of this motion, some of the issues are really pathetic but it is very clear and evident that it shows loss of confidence of the people in the security agencies to defend them so they resort to self defence, which I think is a bad omen for this government and this country.”

    Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, warned that a nation where people take laws into their hands is a very dangerous situation. The Senate, he said, must work to ensure that the rule of law is always strictly adhered to.

  • Stop jungle justice

    SIR: I join others to condemn in strong terms, the recent barbaric and gruesome public lynching of a ‘boy’ by a mob in Lagos over an alleged robbery now circulating in the social media. I was completely devastated by the report of the killing and I kept wondering why people would be so heartless to the extent of taking the life of another in such a cruel, wicked and an illegal manner would mean nothing to them!

    We would not forget so soon, the gruesome murder of four undergraduate students of the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State by a mob at Aluu, on the allegation that they were armed robbers, an action that received widespread condemnation. Unfortunately, it was later found out that the slain victims were allegedly innocent of the offence but that their ordeal was simply as a result of the mischievous action of a debtor, who simply wanted to get rid of his creditors.

    Clearly, jungle justice is encouraged by the general lack of faith in the police and the judicial system. In order for the people to get quick remedy from the perceived injustice inflicted on them, they often result to self-help. This should not be. It is not only barbaric, it is, unlawful and criminal. Such acts are against natural justice, international laws as well as the spirit and letters of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended). It is also at variance with the provisions of both the criminal code and the penal code that prohibit illegal and arbitrary killing of persons.

    Secondly, people rely on jungle justice because it is considered faster. Passing through the process of litigation or adjudication for them is slow, cumbersome and bureaucratic. Should we then resort to the Dark Age and Hobbesian state of nature to resolve differences? Moreover, the procedure for adjudication in Nigeria could be expensive considering what is involved and having to get the services of counsel. This is where stakeholders in the business of judicial administration should do all they can to ensure that the integrity and due process of the law is always guaranteed.

    Irrespective of the excuses given by the perpetrators of jungle justice, there is no basis, rationale and justification for someone to either revenge a wrongdoing or take the life of another under any extra-judicial circumstances. That is the more reason why our law enforcement agents should be above board in preventing future occurrence in any part of the country. The people should have confidence in the institutions of state to protect lives and property.

    Finally, it is bad to see others rejoicing and recording the misfortune of others with their camera phones and posting on the social media. Those found abetting, participating and condoning jungle justice should be severely punished to deter others. Concerted efforts should be made by all to ensure that jungle justice stops in our society!

     

    • Adewale Kupoluyi,

    Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta.

  • No to Jungle justice

    With the high level of crime in the country, including armed robbery, kidnapping, ritual murders and others, it is understandable why Nigerians are not pleased that many criminals escape justice.

    Instead of ensuring that the criminals are penalized in accordance with the law of the land to serve as a deterrent to others, the police have in some cases not been able to diligently prosecute matters referred to them.

    Many criminals have been able to bribe their way out of detention and it is not unusual to hear people say the best way to allow a criminal go scot free is to hand him or her to the police.

    While the accusation against the police may not be entirely true, there have been proven cases where the law enforcement agents have been found guilty of compromise and endangering the lives of informants and complainants.

    It is against this background that the public have become impatient about long and winding prosecution process sometimes exploited by those who are supposed to enforce them and resorted to taking the laws into their hands.

    The jungle justice by the mobs on the streets across the country these, days is a fall out of the lack of trust in the ability of the police to stem the wave of criminal activities which have become the order of the day.

    Criminals now seem to have a free reign and appear unstoppable by security agents who are sometimes ill equipped and not sufficiently motivated to perform their duties.

    However, notwithstanding the situation, jungle justice which has become rampant at the slightest accusation against anyone cannot be justified. Particularly worrisome is emerging evidence that some of the victims of instance justice may not be guilty of the offenses for which they were being punished.

    All what is require these days for one to be beaten up on the streets and set ablaze is to be accused of being a kidnapper by some faceless persons based on unsubstantiated accusations.

    A woman who was recently accused of attempting to kidnap some kids in Iyana Ipaja area of Lagos was mercilessly beaten, stripped naked and set ablaze turned out to be a mentally challenged graduate. Her accusers had claimed that she came to the area in a Jeep to abduct some school children.

    Now that the mob have had their way, the question to ask is where is the Jeep she allegedly drove to the area? and who are the children she attempted to kidnap?

    An old woman would have been killed in a similar way in Ajegunle recently but for the intervention of the police. Some miscreants who saw her with a new baby who they said she could not have delivered were not persuaded by her explanation that she was coming from the hospital where her daughter had just given birth.

    The old woman was carrying the baby home on the instruction of the doctor due to the state of health of the baby’s mother who needed medical attention and could not take care of the baby.

    If the mob had gotten away with their usual jungle justice, they would have sold another lie to the public about an old woman who had kidnapped a day-old baby.

    The claim of a bird which dropped from the sky and transformed into an old woman also turned out to be a false allegation which would have been the basis for the killing of another innocent woman.

    Much as we all have to be vigilant and assist law enforcement agencies in apprehending criminals of all kinds, it is necessary to ensure that innocent persons are not falsely accused and punished for offenses they did not commit.

    I would rather prefer that a criminal escape justice than an innocent person being a victim of jungle justice.

    The Lagos State Government should enforce its warning against this worrisome trend before more innocent victims are killed and penalise ring leaders who are usually responsible for the false allegations.

    The police and other security agencies working with the judiciary will also do well to live up to their responsibility of ensuring that criminals are not allowed to.