After Lagos mob killing, senate resolves to pass anti-jungle justice bill

‎The senate has resolved to accelerate the passage of an anti-jungle justice bill to end mob killings.

This follows the alleged killing of a boy, who reportedly stole garri ‎ at Orile in Lagos state last week.

The police have dismissed reports that such an incident happened‎ in the area, but residents of the area said they are aware of the development.

In a motion on Tuesday, Gbenga Ashafa‎, a senator from Lagos state, urged the upper legislative chamber to direct the police “to ensure that they fish out all the perpetrators of this barbarism and make sure they are brought to book.”

However, he said mob justice was a trait of a people with long deprivation of justice which showed the fault-lines in Nigeria’s legal system.

He subsequently called on the senate to move to end the trend in the country.

After a brief debate on the motion, the senate condemned mob killings in the country, and it urged the police to live up to their responsibility of protecting citizens.

It, thereafter, directed its committee on judiciary and human rights to swiftly work on the anti-jungle justice bill before it.

Nigeria has had a history of mob killings. In 2012, four students of the University of Port Harcourt, who were falsely accused of being thieves, were lynched ‎at Aluu community in Rivers state.

In July, a mob in Kano state killed Bridget Agbahime, a 70-year old woman, for alleged blasphemy.

And in October, a man reportedly had his hand chopped off for allegedly trying to steal a flat-screen TV at a football viewing centre in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state.