Jungle justice is taking the law into one’s hands rather than going through the proper government agencies for appropriate dispensation of justice, which results in the infringement of other people’s rights. It is an action backed with anger, pain, hatred, and violent acts that deprive the accused individual of the opportunity to speak or defend himself or herself.
Jungle justice stripped an accused person of his fundamental rights and tossed him into an unsightly bowl where the same people served as the complainant, prosecutor, judge, and executioner all at the same time.
Jungle justice is inhumane and ferocious, yet the current surge in the implementation of jungle justice is due to the destructive effects of criminal elements on innocent citizens. It is the apprehension of someone in the act that does not excuse the unlawful killing of that person. Jungle justice can be described as one of the social vices that obstruct any society’s growth.
Section 3(1) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria provides that every individual has a right to life. No one shall be wilfully deprived of their life except in the execution of a court’s sentence for a criminal offense they have been proven guilty.
The Nigerian constitution maintains that only the state has the authority to punish criminals, which can only be done after a proper trial and the alleged criminal has been proven guilty. Such individuals must be turned over to law enforcement agencies for prosecution and conviction under the law.
However, several regions in the country have shown little concern for human life by killing people for no reason in recent years. Daily, innocent citizens are targeted by criminals, resulting in the loss of many lives and property.
Many Nigerians have died due to this tendency, including innocent people who were not given a fair trial before denial. One of the recent cases is Deborah Samuel, a second-year student of Shehu Shagari College of Education in Sokoto, who was gruesomely murdered on May 12 by her schoolmates in the name of religion. She was stoned, flogged, and burnt to death without a legal conviction by colleagues who accused her of blaspheming Prophet Mohammed.
Similarly, in the Lekki area of Lagos State, a sound engineer, David Sunday Imoh, was allegedly murdered by suspected motorcyclists because of an argument over N100 that ensued between the passengers (Frank Olatunji and Philip Balogun) over an additional transport fare by the motorcyclist.
These and many more cases have happened and still happening in Nigeria, the heart of Africa. The question is where is our human conscience when some person kills another for saying something or when someone is killed just because of N100? Is there any sanity for those carrying out such actions? Can a person be lynched to death for a crime that may be due to poverty and the unemployment rate in the country? What implication does jungle justice have on economic development? These and many more questions come to mind.
Factors contributing to jungle justice
Several factors can be attributed to the cause of jungle justice in the country. One of the reasons for engaging in jungle justice is the absence of efficient and effective policing in Nigeria. This is seen as the primary reason for the widespread practice and acceptance of mob action, also known as jungle justice.
Read also: Spread of mob justice in Nigeria
The trustworthiness of the Nigeria Police Force, which is tasked with protecting lives and property, has not been actively established, maintained, or preserved. Because of a lack of public faith in Nigerian security units and service members, Nigerian neighbourhoods have become places where mob action or jungle justice can be used in times of security concern.
Events such as mob action in Nigeria have demonstrated that the police and court systems lack public legitimacy. While there are clear signs of relative socio-economic disparity, measuring justice and public confidence in the police is complicated.
Another factor aggravating jungle justice is the shocking rate of poverty, which leads to negative attitudes due to anger and unemployment. This results in idleness and growing demand for swift criminal justice.
Furthermore, a broken or ineffective judicial system, mistrust of the police and other related institutions, historical precedents, failed humanity, and ignorance of human rights are causes of jungle justice.
Also, illiteracy, inequalities in income, dissatisfaction with societal issues, and a diverse range of religious and cultural beliefs are other likely causes of jungle justice.
Busayo Aderounmu is an economist and researcher
