There is no justice in the jungle

The word ‘jungle justice’ has once again resurfaced in our national discourse, following the lynching of a couple of men suspected to be members of the Badoo cult group in parts of Ikorodu, Lagos. The incidences, which received much prominence in our dailies, also elicited conflicting responses from the masses, the police and opinion moulders in the society. While a cross section erroneously opined that jungle justice has become inevitable as a result of inability of law enforcement and other relevant agencies to secure their lives and properties, the police, as well as the Church have continually spoken against the taking of lives, insisting that the law should be allowed to take its due process.

It is instructive to note the definition given to Jungle justice by  Wikipedia, an on-line platform. According to it, ‘Jungle justice or mob justice is a form of public extrajudicial killings in Sub-Saharan Africa, most notably Nigeria and Cameroon, where an alleged criminal is humiliated, beaten or summarily executed by a crowd or vigilantes. Note that Nigeria was specifically mentioned alongside Cameroon, as countries where jungle justice is practised. This means that it is not a generally accepted form of justice. It is only peculiar to Nigeria and Cameroon. What does this say of us a nation?

A jungle, according to a simple dictionary definition, is an area of tropical forest, where trees and plants grow very thickly. It could also be used to describe a dangerous place or situation, especially one where it is very difficult to be successful. Like they say, you’ve got to be very strong to be successful in a jungle. A concern for justice, peace, and genuine respect for people.

Some may argue that jungle justice is inevitable in this part of the world. They would want to postulate that jungle justice flourishes in the absence of true justice. It is true that a society that fails to uphold fairness, justness, fair play, fair-mindedness, equity, equitableness, even-handedness – all connoting the various attributes of justice, will definitely give room for lawlessness. For there to be justice in any given society, there must be abundance of impartiality, neutrality and open-mindedness in the affairs of governance and rule of law. In reality, Nigeria lacks several of these attributes expected of a civilized society.

But does that justify our taking law into our own hands?
So many innocent lives have been lost in this country as a result of jungle justice. There have been numerous cases of people fabricating incriminating evidence against their perceived enemies just to have them eliminated. So many people have been lynched on mere allegation of witchcraft or armed robbery without clear evidence to back their claim. This act of violence and ungodliness must be stopped. This is also a wake-up call for our law enforcement agencies to be more proactive and ensure proper and timely investigation of cases brought before them. A situation whereby accused persons are promptly released in exchange for bribe is not acceptable. Many at times, people take law into their hands because they believe they cannot get justice from the police. Though this is not a viable excuse, the accusation deserves being looked into. Above all, we need to show more love and empathy for one another. When there is love, we would not want to hurt others, not to talk of killing them. Life is sacred and must be protected at all cost. Those that engage in ritual killings in the name of quick money should have a rethink before it is too late.

• Very Rev. Msgr. Osu, Director, Social Communications, Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos.