HURIWA PROTEST DELAY IN PROSECUTION OF KILLERS OF ALUU 4 AND MISS CYNTHIA OSOKOGU

Convinced that the judicial system and the administration of criminal justice in operation in Nigeria is still very slow and compromised, HUMAN RIGHTS WRITERS' ASSOCIATION OF NIGERIA (HURIWA) has urged the Chief Justice of Nigeria Mrs. Maryam Alooma Muktar to take quick administrative measures to change the trend, immediately.

The civil society group which made this plea stated that it was worried about the bad image the Nigerian judiciary has internationally especially since the dastardly criminal murder of four undergraduates of University of Port Harcourt, by villagers of Aluu in River State and also the slaughter by internet fraudsters of the post-graduate student of the Nasarawa State University Miss. Cynthia Osokogu who was lured to a Lagos hotel and killed.

HURIWA disclosed that one of the ways to fast track serious criminal cases with far reaching significance, is for the office of the Chief Justice of Nigeria to establish a national data bank of priority criminal cases across the country and effectively implement administrative measures to quicken the administration of criminal justice in Nigeria to comply with international best practices and eliminate the current regime of impunity in the country. The group also wants the chief judges of the 36 states to work closely with the national hierarchy of Nigeria's judiciary to repair the extensive damage to our image caused by slow dispensation of criminal justice over the years.

The Rights group through its National Coordinator Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National media Director Miss. Zainab Yusuf urged the hierarchy of the nation's judiciary to borrow a leaf from the British Judicial system so as to quicken the dispensation of justice.

"It is inconceivable that Britain whereby Nigeria borrowed criminal justice system during the colonial era has advanced and is renown for one of the most efficient, effective and speedy dispensation of criminal justice in the World whereas Nigeria which borrowed from the olden days Britain has continued to practice the pre-colonial criminal justice system", HURIWA, affirmed.

HURIWA, however tasked the Federal Attorney General and minister of Justice Mr. Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN) to actively work with the Inspector General of Police; Commissioners of police in the 36 states and Abuja and the Attorneys General of the 36 states to effectively bring about pragmatic measures for the quick dispensation of Justice just as if charged the National Assembly to quicken the process of passing relevant extant bills which spell out strategies for effectively modernizing Nigeria's moribund criminal laws.

The Rights group stated thus; “We are ashamed that Nigeria's criminal justice administration has become the most criminally compromised globally thereby institutionalizing a regime of impunity. We therefore plead with all relevant authorities to implement practical measures to quicken the prosecution of the murderers of Miss. Cynthia Osokogu; Aluu 4 undergraduates and the Apo 6 traders among other gruesome cases of mass murders in Nigeria over the years”.

HURIWA recalled that the 25-year female post-graduate student of Nasarawa State University Miss. Cynthia Osokogu was lured and killed by suspected FaceBook Criminals in Cosmulla Hotel, Lakeview Estate, Festac Town in Lagos on July 22, 2012 but regretted that the suspects in the murder of Miss. Osokogu namely Okwumo Nwabufo, Olisaloka Ezike, Orji Osita and Ezike Nonso are not being efficiently prosecuted for the alleged murder by the Lagos State Director of public prosecution.

Besides, HURIWA also recalled that the killing by villagers in Omuokiri-Aluu in Obiakpo local government area of River State of four undergraduate students of the University of Port Harcourt, took place in October 2012 but the mass murderers are yet to be efficiently and effectively prosecuted. The four Uniport student gruesomely murdered are Ugona Kelechi Obuzor; Biringa Chiadika Lordson; Mike Lloyd Toku and Takena Erikena. The group said the killers of APO 6 traders in Abuja are still not convicted over ten years since the dastardly criminal act was perpetrated by operatives of Abuja police command.