The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)
on Tuesday complained about the prolonged delay in the dispensation of justice
in Nigeria.
The Islamic human rights
organization, therefore, called on the Federal Government to expedite action on
the long-expected reform of the Nigerian judiciary.
The call was made in a press
statement issued by the Director of MURIC, Professor Ishaq
Akintola, on Tuesday.
The organization lamented delays
in the criminal justice system which allows criminals who have confessed to
still continue to ‘maradonise’ law enforcement agents and judges years after
their arrest.
MURIC continued, “How can a
notorious kidnapper like Chukwudi Dumeme Onuamadike, popularly known as Evans
still be appearing in court years after his celebrated arrest.
“It is sheer gymnastic
procrastination. A lot of things are wrong with our judicial system. Evans was
arrested on 11th June 2017. This is September 2019. It is past two years now
for crying out loud and he may still be in court for the next six years.
“This is a man who confessed to
several high profile abductions, including murder. What is he still doing
shuttling between courts and detention?
“Evans’ house is worth N130
million. He has two houses in Magodo, Lagos and another two duplexes in Ghana
worth N15 million each. Evans’ wristwatch costs 170 thousand dollars and his
net worth is estimated at N2.2 billion.
“Like Evans, the Taraba State
kidnap kingpin Hamisu Bala, also known as Wadume may face trial ad infinitum if
care is not taken. Wadume, whose first arrest on 6th August 2019, caused the
unfortunate death of three policemen due to an inter-agency betrayal, was
rearrested on 20th August 2019. Another big fish in the kidnapping profession,
40-year-old Bello Audu A.K.A. ‘Commander Yellow’ who was arrested on 12th
September 2019 is also expected to enjoy the luxury of prolonged hearing if the
poor showing of the courts is anything to go by. This delay is nauseating.
“The same goes for corrupt
politicians where cases drag on for years. Is it not a shame that the cases of
16 former governors still linger in court since 2007? That is a whopping 12
years! To make matters worse, some of them have contested two or three times
and won senate seats while their cases drag on in the courts. Equally worrisome
is the fact that almost all of them claim one ailment or the other and request
for treatment abroad.
“This makes a mockery of not only
the judicial system but also the war against corruption. Watching these
ex-governors defy the courts encourages other politicians to steal public
money.
“Although MURIC does not deny
that suspects and criminals have certain rights, we contend that it is
counter-productive for the judicial system to dignify self-confessed criminals
with prolonged and ‘executive’ cases. Delays in judgement embolden criminals.
Both criminals and corrupt politicians exploit the various loopholes in the
system to their own advantage and hide behind legal technicalities, thereby
creating the impression of ineptitude on the part of the judiciary.
“It is also a pity that Nigeria
suffers from desertification of lawyers of conscience. The alacrity with which
our lawyers jump at defending criminals constitutes a taint on the integrity of
that noble profession. The speed with which they grab cases of persons of
extremely low morality is quite disturbing. It is a major impediment to the
elimination of criminality in the Nigerian society.
“The nonchalance of past regimes
to job creation, particularly the Jonathanian ideology of ‘stealing is not
corruption’ has created an economic mess which cannot be cleaned up in a hurry.
Jonathan turned the institution of national honours to a jamboree for
international rogues and ‘fantastically corrupt’ politicians. This is worsened
by the phenomenon of religious charlatanism whereby licensed thieves,
acknowledged armed robbers, established kleptomaniacs and registered kidnappers
are given front row seats in churches and turbaned in the mosques.
“MURIC is aware that the Buhari
administration has introduced several economic measures to reduce poverty.
Nonetheless, we believe that the puritanic regime of President Muhammadu Buhari
can still do more to stem the tide of criminality. Fewer young people will be
tempted to commit a crime if the government can reduce hunger in the land.
“We will conclude this
intervention on an optimistic note. If police stations can be closed during
weekends in Sweden because crime has been reduced to the barest minimum; if
shops can be left open in Saudi Arabia at prayer times with no one to watch for
the owners, Nigeria can also become a good point of reference in crime-free
environments in a not too distant future. However, the panacea lies in a well
planned, focused and effective reform of the judiciary.”
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