“This is not purportedly written
to foment gross-misconduct{s},
Criminality and its callous brothers,
but to avert the incessant breaching
of the citizenries’ fundamental rights to life, and right to fair hearing”.

Empirically, before the definition of the soulless and illegal term[Jungle justice/mob action] is given, I will like to state paraphrasingly, Chief Gani Fawehinmi [SAN]: “it is unlawful to be lawful in a lawless society. He concluded that unless government is ready to obey Court Judgement, not minding whose ox is gored, this act of lawlessness and impunity called Jungle justice will continue in great proportion”. The words of the ever celebrated Legal Lord were not without reasonable substance that ought to have propelled total adherence to the laws. The truth is that, every person is seeing the country from his standing pole. Like seven blind men who were told to cut the elephant from the neck, everyone of them started cutting it from where his hand could touch, believing that that was the neck. That is the situation of some Nigerians. Until Nigerians see one thing from the stand point of law, this, and many other lawless acts will persist in their coexistence. Personally, I see jungle Justice as an unlawful illegal or non-judicial killing of suspect who is alleged to have committed a criminal offence.
Authoritatively, according to Black’s Law Dictionary, Jungle justice or Mob Action is an assemblage of many people, acting in violent and disorderly manner, defying the law, and committing, or threatening to commit, depredation upon property or violence to persons. Lamentingly, it is so sad enough to always see persons executed with this cruel tool of unsocial and illegal engineering maliciously under the cover of keeping side with law, deliberately taking law to their hands. As it was once said by Barr. Okeke Onyekabuchi; “jungle Justice is not justice at all, but a travesty of Justice, since it does not guarantee fairness to anyone”. Truly, jungle Justice/Mob Action is a threat to the elementary rights of the citizenries. It slaughters human right upon the altar of exasperation and infuriation where Justice is always voided.Over the years, Nigeria had recorded countless number of the cases of jungle Justice/mob Action, which had glaringly thrown some muds on the living and dying fame of the country.
Conspicuously; it is always a deliberate attempt by some societies in Nigeria to addictively perpetuate this callous act, basically to smuggle the rudimentary rights of the citizenries. Jungle justice/mob Action had maliciously infringed the law by jumping above the edge of protection around the Citizenries. As it is enshrined in Sec.33[1] CFRN 1999 as amended; every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria. As it is obviously stated in the section and subsection thereup, no person has the right to take the life of another person in the name of keeping side with law. Except if such person was convicted by a Court in Nigeria for a criminal offence, the killing which can only be done the law enforcement agencies and not ordinary person. Therefore, any other person found functioning in this cadre is breaching the fundamental right of life of that person who such action was taken upon/the victim. Such perpetrator of this act had taken the law into his hands, and had to be brought to book for the lingering wraths of the law have its way.
Credably, I know that, it will not be extraneous to opine the manner with which suspect(s) are to be arrested, as it enshrined in Sec.20,21,22,23 of Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA 2015, it is legally required, stating Sec.23[1][b] that a private person who arrests a suspect without a warrant shall immediately hand over the suspect so arrested to a police officer, or, in the absence of a police officer, shall take the suspect to the nearest police station, and the police officer shall make a note of the name, address and the other particulars of the private person making the arrest. And where there is reason to believe that the provisions of section 18[1] of this act, a police officer shall re-arrest him. Also Sec.18[1] which states the right of police officer to arrest suspect without warrant. So, it is not constitutionally and legally expected of the society to exert their infuriation in this cruel form, but rather to also play the role of a watchdog and a predator seeking prey to feed on. It shall be worthwhile to say that, any person/society shall be made to face the dreaded wraths whenever this is breached(that is, the commission of the heinous crime: murder). This parchydermatous act {Jungle justice/Mob Action} is not just an infringement of the citizenries right to life but also that of fair hearing. As it stands out in Sec. 36[5] CFRN 1999 as amended; every person who is charged with a criminal offence shall be presumed to be innocent until he is proved guilty: providing that nothing in this section shall invalidate any law by reason only that the law imposes upon any such person the burden of proving particular facts. Even in Sec.6[a,b,c,d&e], the considerations and chance to be given to the suspect are aptly stated therein.
Infallibly, I fearlessly want to say that this practice is anachronistic, archaic, illegal, local and antique deterring approach. It is a soulless that should have been abhorred and detested, which knowingfully well the Constitution is not in alignment with it. Trial by ordeal as it is legally known as banned approach of punishing those culprit of a particular criminal offence, settlement of disputes between two parties. But, favourably speaking, the law had silent, taken the deadly stings of trial by ordeal[Jungle justice/mob Action] in its entirety, as it can be seen in Sec.208 of Criminal Code Act, CCA 2004: Any person who directs or controls or presides at any trial ordeal which unlawful is guilty of a felony, and is liable, when the trial which such person directs, controls or presides at results in the death of any party to the proceeding, to the punishment of death, and in every other case to imprisonment for ten years. Affirmatively, having unearthed the masked face of the law on whoever[any person] that is perpetrating the heinous act. It will be pertinent to also state why suspect shall not even be tortured as it can be found in Sec.8[1][a][b] ACJA 2015: A suspect shall: be accorded humane treatment, having regard to his right to the dignity of his person, and not be suspect to any form of torture, cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment. Written thereup must be observed and not by burning God’s Creation to ashes without properly judicial trial(s). I see this soulless act as a premeditated act of wickedness. I holistically plead that the law and the law enforcement agencies should not be silent over this. For, it rubbing the parched image of the underdeveloped young country [Nigeria] in the muds, and it shall continue to be, if pre-emptive legal measures are not taken to tackle it timely. Although I do see this atrocious local administration of Justice [Jungle justice/mob Action] as what can be referred to as “homo homini lupus[man (is a) wolf to man] in legal Maxim. So credably, it is an exertion of the element of evil/the evil tendency in man. It is high time this atrocious act is deterred and extirpated in its entirety, if Nigeria must sustain, obtain, and attain the civil and democratic cadre in the international societies.
This soulless act had grown over times and it had been in existence over the years, and its incessant spreading/increment is vehemently threatening the legal development of this Country. Because, if this is yet practised and seen in this country, it therefore means that the clench of the law cannot apprehend the fomenting strength of criminality. And it will always make the law in this part of the world seemingly susceptible and feebly enacted that hold the wrist of crime. This also has more answers to give to the most prevalent questions of; where are the fundamental rights? Where is equity? Where is democracy? Where is the civil society whose lubricated wheels ought to have been the law? Nevertheless, if these questions thereup can be answered favourably, we must say NO to jungle justice/mob Action and unmuffle the mute Constitution/laws of the country that deal punitively with this parchydermatous display of wickedness. Over the years, Nigeria had recorded countless number of Justice justice/mob Action, just five months ago, it was revealed by Daily Trust Newspaper that No fewer than 104 persons have fallen victim of jungle justice in at least 26 of the 36 states of Nigeria between January and December last year [2019]. A review of Newspaper reports by Daily Trust indicates that out of the number of victims within the period, 73 were reportedly killed by mob Actions, while 31 others sustained various degrees of injuries from incidences of severe beatings. Some of the victims which were suspected to have committed crimes such as armed robbering, kidnapping and other related actions, were either stoned to death or set ablaze in the process at the very spot of commission. The cases of jungle justice/mob Action were in high proportion and incessantly occur in Lagos and Bayelsa States, followed by Abuja, Cross River, Benue and Delta States. The other States where cases of Jungle justice/mob Action resulting in deaths and injuries to Victims were documented are Anambra, Ondo, Katsina, Ekiti, Edo, Enugu, Abia, Kwara, Oyo, and Nasarawa States. Others are, Ebonyi, Zamfara, Kaduna, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Kogi, Nigeria, Ogun, and Plateau States. Among persons that fell victim were Police officer, one-chance robbery suspect, suspected motorcycle thieves, allegedly homosexuals, and cattle rustlers. One of the eccentric incidence of jungle justice was reported from Liokom Village in Wanihen Community, Yola Local Government Area of Cross River State, on may 29, 2019, where a man was allegedly buried alive by angry villagers for beheading his elder brother. Daily Trust Newspaper also revealed another outrageous incidence of Jungle justice that was done on a young boy identified as Temitope Adeoye who was burnt to death after he was said to have been falsely accused of being a thief at Cele-Ijesha Area of Lagos State on Monday, February 11, 2019. Temitope, who worked at Tin Can Island, Apapa Port, was on his way from the Office that evening, when he met his death ugly. He was said to have highlighted at Cele-Ijesha Bus-Stop, and was about to mount the commercial motorcycle that would have taken him home when some boys in the area shouted “thief, thief” and pointing at him. Before he could say anything, he was rough handled, beaten up, stabbed and then set ablaze-what a man cruety to man! The jungle justice case I shall not forget in a hurry is the disheartening case of four students of the University of Port Harcourt in Nigeria on October 5, 2012, who were beaten and burnt to death by Lynch mob, for allegedly stealing a Blackberry Phone and a Laptop. Also, in 2012, a little boy was burnt alive at Surulere, Lagos after which it was said that he merely alleged to steal.
Unapologetically, I deem it pertinent to abreast us with some courts Cases and some Legal masquerades’ relevant assertions/obiter dictum cum judicial precedence. A legal practitioner, Abubakar Sani once said, Jungle justice is a criminal offence. He said “if a suspect or any person is found committing an offence, the only power you have under the law is to apprehend him, if you can and handle him over to appropriate law enforcement agencies”. The extract above was aptly asserted, because the only legal duty the society on suspect for a particular crime is elementarily to bring the suspect to book and not to prosecute. Justice Muhammad of the Nigerian Supreme Court, in the Case of Spiess V. Oni has this to say: “my noble Lords law is meant to provide peace, security, protection, Concord and purposed co-existence amongst citizens. No reasonable society will encourage resort self-help for whatever reason and not certainty on mere suspicion”. These purposes of the law as so opined by the erudite learned justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria had over times been infringed with impunity. Also, in one of the celebrated case of Kaza V. State; the supreme Court vehemently frowned at the lynching of a Muslim by his music brothers who accused him of insulting prophet Mohammed and slaughtered him on the out-skirts of the city as a result. In dismissing their appeal and upholding the sentence of death by hanging imposed on them by the High Court of Kebbi State for culpable homicide, the Supreme Court condemned the evil of mob Action/jungle justice.
Suggestively; having known that it will not be out of place to suggest some pre-emptive measures that can ameliorate this callous act. It is my discretion that these followings shall go a long way to restoring the hope of this evil-inhabited-society[Nigeria].
[1] Educating the society about the requisite laws, duties and punishiments. It is almost a general beliefs that, if the masses can be inculcated and educated about the law requires of them, their duties and the punishments that follow when these law is infringed upon. The socitey would sit-tight, and thereby relinquish taking the law into its hands.
[2] The Criminal Justice System in the Country {Nigeria} must be reinvigorated to always ensure that those perpetrators of the heinous act shall be brought to book promptly. In this line, Dr Amaechi Nwaokolo once said; “in order to avoid jungle justice in Nigeria, the judicial system must restore confidence in people who seek justice. The criminal Justice System and the law enforcement agencies must be allowed to work very effectively”.
[3] Public Enlightenment: The public should be enlightened by the relevant authorities such as the National Orientation Agency, on the need for Nigerians to desist from taking the laws into their hands and to report criminals/suspects to appropriate agencies. This was also suggested by Dr Amaechi Nwaokolo.
In conclusion; It is apt to be abreast with the position of laws[legal pace] on this soulless act[Jungle justice/mob Action], as seen in Sec.207,208,209 of Criminal Code Act, CCA 2004. These sections which referred to this heinous, archaic, antique and cruel approach of administering justice as Trial by Ordeal. The sections mentioned thereup equally repealed the unfriendly friend legal and human development-Jungle justice/mob Action, inspire of this, some societies had deliberately refuted to turn off from. I hereby want to legal sound it as a deterring warning that our duties as Citizenries are not to prosecute but rather to help the law enforcement agencies in bringing the suspect[s] to book. As it is seen in Sec.20, 21,22, and 23 of Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA 2015, and not to punish, beat, kill, and burn such suspect[s] during the process of apprehension. Inhumane treatment should be prohibited during apprehension on the ground of helping the law, thereby, taking the laws into their hands. It can also stand out in Sec. 8[1][a][b] of Administration of Criminal Justice Act, ACJA 2015 as aforementioned, that; “A suspect shall: be accorded humane treatment, having regard to his right to dignity of his person, and not be subjected to any form of torture, cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment. The law is wiser than we think. Let the perpetrators of this act be guided, as the law will not take it friendly with them. Seeing the dignity of Nigeria restored is my utmost desire.