By Vin Okoroji
All Nigerians are united in their deprecation and condemnation of the killing of five soldiers at the Obikabia junction in Aba, Abia State. But the military’s mode of reprisal falls below the standard expected of a civilised society. The highest form of lawlessness is this reign of brigandage and vicarious liability. Men are made to pay for a crime they know nothing about. The most striking and preponderant feature of democracy is the rule of law. In the 21st century Nigeria, we see a reenactment of the ugly, nasty, narcissistic ,aggressive, brutish and animalistic state of nature envisaged by Thomas Hobbes. Man transforms into a wolf, hounding his fellow humans. What men vote on the election day is their security and protection of life and property. They vote for rule of law, and not the rule of man and venality. What is happening at Aba now smacks of anarchy and portends great danger for men everywhere. The civil rights exponent, Martin Luther King Jr, posited that injustice done to one man is done to all men everywhere. In the dictum of Lord Sankey, he underpinned the primordial principle of criminal liability and presumption of innocence that says that it is better for ten guilty men to be set free than seeing one innocent man punished. This is analogous to the provisions of Sections 36(5) and 35(5) of the Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria. The citizens right to personal liberty should by no means be compromised. Rather than deploy a network of intelligence to track down the felons, the military often resort to brigandage. If there are leaders in this country, they should urgently orientate the uniformed men and let them know that they are subject to the laws of land. Sometime ago, two military men were shot at Ubomiri military checkpoint. Trigger happy soldiers drove to Nworieubi and gunned down six innocent persons going about their lawful duties. This sad narrative is festering and punctuating every landscape in Nigeria. We pride ourselves as a nation of laws. Kayode Eso, made it clear that “where there is no law, there is no justice, and where there is no justice, the law labours in vain”. Those who killed the soldiers should be brought to book, and not innocent men and women hounded and thrown into the military van. ——-Vin Okoroji
