By Emmanuel Onwubiko
Nigeria’s highest court of justice, known as the Supreme Court of Nigeria, has been in the news in recent times for the ugliest of reasons. The Court delivered two highly contentious and unpopular judgments first on the political differences in Rivers State between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his estranged political godfather and current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
Wike who is believed to be waging the war of attrition against his estranged political godson through his stooges who are 27 in number and were the members of the Rivers State House of Assembly who parted ways with the governor leading to the division of the Rivers State legislature, has been in jubilant mood since that judgment that favoured his stooges emerged.
Since then, Rivers State has become a hotbed of intensive political infighting just as armed thugs have already shot some supporters of the governor dead and then an amorphous bunch of gun wielding hooded boys, made a video threatening to rain fire and brimstone on Rivers State should the Wike’s supporters whose political relevance has been reinforced by the Supreme Court’s verdict, carry out their threats to impeach the first ever Ijaw born governor.
The second most ridiculous judgment that has just dropped off the shelves of the Nigerian Supreme Court, is that incredible verdict that insists that a Christian farmer who was attacked by armed herders in his Adamawa State based village farm but he fought back and the chief aggressor died from his wounds, should face the public execution only for exercising his right to self defence. This judgment has stood logic and commonsense on their heads.
The rebellious group of legislators who openly announced their defection on public television, have now been licensed by the Supreme Court’s contentious judgment to take over the Rivers State House of Assembly which they have done and have already started stoking the embers of divisions and issuing threats against the governor and some of his key appointees even as Rivers State is now in a state of war.
We need to be reminded that there was already a controversy that the FCT minister had openly allocated expensive FCT lands and has already commenced the building of living quarters for Judges and Justices of Federal High court and the Court of Appeal. Wike maintains that there was nothing unethical about the housing estates for judges and justices. Many senior lawyers have criticised the donations to the judiciary by the FCT minister.
In the Rivers judgement, the Supreme Court made unbelievable claim as if the justices are monks insulated from watching television, that there was no iota or shred of evidence to support the claim of defection made against the 27 members of the House of Assembly from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC). In the judgment signed by Justice Emmanuel Agim, the Apex court said that the Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, who raised the allegations of defection against the 27 lawmakers on his own volition withdrew the allegations at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
By not supporting the defection claim against the Amaewhule-led leadership, the apex court held that in the eyes of the law, no defection has taken place and consequently the status quo in the House of Assembly must remain.
“The claim that the 27 members are no longer members of the House on the basis of an alleged defection is a continuation of his determination to prevent them from participating in the proceedings of the House. It is an engagement in chicanery.
“The eight″respondent’s fear of impeachment by the House Assembly is no justification for his attacks on the House of Assembly, the Constitution, the Government of Rivers State, and rule of law.
“Political disagreements cannot justify these attacks and contempt for the rule of law by the Governor of a State or any person. What the 8” respondent has done is to destroy the government because of his fear of being impeached.
“For avoidance of doubt it is hereby ordered that the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Accountant General of the Federation should forthwith stop releasing and paying to the Government of Rivers State, its organs, departments and Officials any money belonging to Rivers State until an Appropriation Law is made by Rivers State House of Assembly constituted as prescribed y the 1999 Constitution…The Rivers State House of Assembly should resume sitting with all elected members forthwith,’’ the apex court said.
Then what seemed like the most absurd judgment to have ever emanated from the court system in Nigeria was the confirmation of the death sentence on the Adamawa born Christian farmer who fought off an attack by Fulani herders and succeeded in taking out the chief aggressor. The Supreme Court agreed with the lower courts, which blamed the appellant for fighting back to stay alive instead of running away according to the judgment of the first court of instance in Adamawa State.
The ruling has drawn sharp criticism from human rights advocates, who argue that it reflects a disturbing trend in Nigeria’s justice system, where citizens defending themselves against violent attacks are increasingly facing harsh penalties, while their attackers often evade accountability.
The case dates back to an incident in Adamawa State, where Jackson was attacked on his farm in Codonti Forest by Buba Bawuro, a Fulani herdsman who had trespassed with his cattle. According to Jackson, Bawuro pulled a knife and stabbed him multiple times during the altercation. In a struggle, Jackson managed to seize the knife and fatally stabbed Bawuro in the neck. Jackson was subsequently arrested and charged with murder despite his consistent assertion that he acted in self-defense. In 2021, a Yola court sentenced him to death by hanging, a decision the Supreme Court has now affirmed.
Human rights lawyer Emmanuel Ogebe, part of Jackson’s defence team, expressed deep concern over the implications of the ruling. He highlighted the broader issue of Nigerians being criminalised for defending themselves in a country where violent attacks by Fulani herdsmen have resulted in thousands of deaths.
Dr. William Terence Devlin, an American human rights leader supporting Jackson, echoed these sentiments, stating that Jackson was merely protecting himself and his livelihood from an aggressor.
Furthermore, Jackson’s defense team has pointed out that the trial judge misinterpreted the constitutional right to self-defense, suggesting that Jackson should have fled rather than fought back, despite evidence that he was stabbed and momentarily incapacitated during the attack. This reasoning has been widely criticised as illogical and inconsistent with universal legal principles that uphold the right to stand one’s ground in the face of imminent danger.
Jackson’s supporters argue that the case should never have gone to trial, as it was a clear instance of self-defense. At most, they contend that a charge of manslaughter would have been appropriate. Instead, Jackson has spent over a decade in prison, including six years awaiting trial for a case that involved only five court sittings. His prolonged incarceration and the subsequent death sentence have been described as a gross travesty of justice, so say many commentators.
The Supreme Court gave us two judgments of fire and brimstone. It will take a very long time for faith and trust confidence in the Nigerian justice sector to be restored amongst the greatest percentage of the people of Nigeria. To think that someone who fought back an attacker intending on killing him would now be killed for successfully exercising his constitutional right to self-defense.
And to remember that this judgment of the Supreme Court has come at a time of widespread attacks by armed herders all over Nigeria, one is then left to wonder whether these judges reached this strange determination because they or their family members have not become the victims of the widespread violence by armed herders in Nigeria. Onwubiko is the founder of the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria and was a National Commissioner of the National Human Rights Commission of Nigeria.
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