Some scholars believe that the concept of justice in law is closely related to the idea of due process, and of transparency, consistency and good order of legal proceedings. They argued that if legal institutions are not designed to ensure that the administration of justice is reliable and proper, then they risk failing to deliver justice. Justice, they declared, must be seen to be done in all cases brought before the court of law.
Recently, justice was served in Minneapolis. Most headlines in electronic and print media globally, have been dominated by the conviction of former Minneapolis Police officer, Derek Chauvin in the murder of George Floyd. Let’s tell ourselves the simple truth – police brutality cannot, and must not be accepted in any society. As long as we all have human rights, no citizen is above the law.
In a world that is divided along racial and religious lines, prosecutors told jurors in the Chauvin trial that their case was not anti–police, but pro–police. And that the case was intended to weed out a bad element that had soiled the reputation of officers who perform their statutory responsibilities diligently.
During the protest last year in Minneapolis, it was reported in one of the local newspapers that Floyd’s 6 – year old daughter, Gianna said that “daddy changed the world.” We all know that Chauvin’s conviction is just the beginning of a journey in America’s justice system. But the question everyone is asking is: Will this be a trend or one–off in a wicked world?
We know that the verdict will not bring Floyd back from a pointless death to this sinful world. And it will not purge most African Americans of the fear they feel in encounters with police after decades of shootings and discrimination in the justice system. It is instructive to note that in this particular case, a jury of the masses established a principle that White police officers or any police officer for that matter, can be held accountable for the unlawful killings of either Black or White Americans. The jury validated the global political and cultural movement triggered by Floyd’s death, and the impression that progress is achievable in the fight against racism.
I looked at Chauvin whose face was covered by a surgical mask as he was hands cuffed after the verdicts were read out by the judge. Importantly, however, the sight of him being led to the cells, hands cuffed behind his back, sent a warning signal to the world that no one is above the law.
If the Chauvin–Floyd tragedy had taken place in my country, what are we likely to see? May be, there would have been colossal embarrassment from the Nigeria Police. Or, justice would have been served appropriately to the accused as prescribed by the law. One may argue that the case would have been frustrated. It is also possible that those who are to prosecute the case would have been procured by those in authority to delay the process of justice. And we all know that justice delayed is justice denied. Indeed, the case would have exposed the independence or otherwise of our judiciary.
The judicial system in my country is not the best at the moment, and that is why analysts say that the Nigerian judicial system needs complete overhaul. A judicial system where corruption, intimidation and manipulation of judges, delays and lacklustre infrastructure are symbols that perpetually disable the restoration of confidence, and hope of the common man in the judiciary needs urgent attention.
I concur with scholars who believe that any society that recognizes justice as the foundation of equal treatment in certain respects, and equitable treatment in all other respects has the making of a good society. The question of whether or not the Nigerian judiciary is totally independent of the executive arm of government either at federal or state levels has generated strong debate in the polity. Even to allow financial autonomy of the judiciary and legislature at state level became a challenge to most state governors. This provoked the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) and Judicial Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) to go on strike to demand their constitutional rights. It is good that some Nigerians have started to take their destines in their own hands. So, state governors have pledged to start implementing financial autonomy for state legislature and judiciary in May this year.
One hopes that the lessons from the verdict of Derek Chauvin’s case will bring about education, understanding, empathy and consideration in most nations where there is no independence of the judiciary. It is only then one can boldly say that the justice served during Derek Chauvin’s trial would change the world. Thank you.
