Deborah Samuel: Two Dimensions Operating Under One Legal System

This is not the first time citizens have been lynched by an angry Islamic extremists over alleged insult on Islam or Prophet Mohammed, it has been a disturbing issue while the perpetrators and likeminded justify the killing of people. Northern Nigeria is growing fast unsafe especially for non-Muslims inhabiting that part of Nigeria, where all the human affairs are justified and modelled in a religious way without free expression. The two codes operating under one legal system; Criminal Code, for the southern part of Nigeria and Penal Code, for the northern part of Nigeria. This has further divided the country on where they have modelled their views on different school of thoughts and innocent citizens go through unfortunate stories.

The deceased who was a student of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, challenged the largely religious inclined posts on their class WhatsApp group which based on Islamic teachings. It has become rifer among university students in Nigeria to pass information especially from school authorities, lecturers and other relevant information through WhatsApp platform and students find it easier to sell their products when it is advertised. Notwithstanding, the primary objectives of the group which is based on academic information cannot be substituted for anything else, it overrides any other objectives and when the group deviates from the primary assignment, it is with notice of the Admin by the concerned students that order is restored and that’s exactly what Debora Samuel did, and she was reduced to ashes.

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The judicial system in Nigeria is denial of justice, court is last hope of a common man, but in Nigeria it is lost hope of a common man. It is barbaric to see some people in Nigeria justifying the killing of Debora Samuel, under religious teachings. Any religious that model its dogma in taking life of another should be made away with. In a country where there is judicial activism and respect for life, such incident is not bound to happen, the judicial system, the government and elected officials have reduced life to nothing in Nigeria, that’s why kidnapping, paying ransom to kidnappers, banditry, terrorism and killing are the order of the day and security is at its minimal level, it is now brute force, can be equated to animal kingdom.

It is high time the issue of blasphemy [Penal Code] and what the Constitution said is addressed, the country is heading towards dangerous way, where human lives will be reduced to nothing in the name of religion. It seems that under the one legal geographical entity called Nigeria, but two legal systems are operating under it, and it is making the law not enforceable and unpracticable. The killing of Debora Samuel will always hunt the kind of society that people have come to live in, it is really dangerous time to live in Nigeria, and the leaders put their interests first as opposed to the interests of millions of Nigeria, this shows how void the whole system is, it is saddening that nothing is done when somebody like Debora Samuel is taken by brute force and the perpetrators move freely.