By Myke Uzendu, Abuja
As a result of the gruesome killing of Deborah Samuel, a 200 level students of Shehu Shagari College of Education Sokoto over alleged blasphemy on Thursday and subsequent crises that greeted the arrest of suspects, Nigeria Bar Association has postponed its NBA-SPIDEL Conference 2022 scheduled to hold in the state from May 22-26, 2022.
NBA further expressed worry that the arrested suspects were merely charged for mere breech of peace when it was obvious that a young lady was gruesomely murdered in her prime.
In a statement on Tuesday, the NBA president Olumide Akpata who regretted the postponement said that the action became necessary due to the volatile security situation in the state and taking into considerations the safety of guests and participants.
“The NBA is deeply worried not just by the chilling news of the murder of Miss Deborah Yakubu, but also by the sudden and sad turn of events and the deteriorating security situation in Sokoto State. As such, having critically reviewed the current security condition in Sokoto, it has become apparent that we cannot guarantee the safety of our guest speakers, delegates and other stakeholders that have committed to attend the NBA-SPIDEL’s conference which was designed to put the State in the global spotlight for the duration of the conference and beyond. Accordingly, the Executive Committee of NBA-SPIDEL came to the painful decision to request, and I have approved, that the 2022 NBA-SPIDEL Annual Conference be postponed not only for the safety of our conferees and guests, but as a mark of respect for the memory of the slain Miss Deborah Yakubu”.
Akpata acknowledged the efforts put I place by the State government, Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal (Life Bencher) and other stakeholders but regretted that the situation in the state be monitored further before the next step would be announced.
“The NBA acknowledges the efforts put in by the Sokoto State Government towards the conference which is now beset by the prevailing security situation. While we recognise that the Sokoto State Government has imposed a curfew to stem the unrest, the NBA urges the State Government to fully collaborate with the Federal Government to initiate measures — and where necessary deploy its coercive instruments — to restore peace and order to the State, safeguard lives and property and dissuade vandalism and impunity”.
The NBA president appealed to the state government to ensure that the suspects are charged with the right charges so as to serve the right punishment which will serve as d deterrent to many.
“We are, however, worried by yet-to-be confirmed reports reaching us that the suspects have been charged with mere breach of public peace in an episode that cut short Deborah’s life in her prime. The NBA is strongly opposed to a banalisation of the situation, and if these reports are true, then we call on the Sokoto State Government to immediately rethink its prosecution strategy and file charges that truly reflect the gravity of the situation.
“While the expectation of Nigerians and the international community is that the culprits should be brought to justice speedily for the appropriate offences, the demand for the release of the suspects by some protesting youths coupled with assault on innocent citizens, burning of worship centres and destruction of property has added an entirely new and worrisome dimension to the unfortunate incident. This is clearly a test of the will of the State to fully enforce its laws and foster rule of law” he said.
The NBA president recounted the various unfortunate developments in the country that have trivialised the sanctity of human lives, exposed the weakness in security architecture, tested the collective resolve as a people, and significantly threatened the unity of Nigeria as a nation namely: the South-East, where there were reports of the gruesome killing of security personnel by the now notorious “unknown gunmen” and other non-State actors; in Lagos, where a young man (simply identified as David) was reportedly lynched by commercial motorcyclists around Lekki and so on.
He called on all state actors to live up to ensure that the menace to reduced to its barest minimum.
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