World Bishops, CAN Petition To Buhari Against Conviction To Death Of Five Nigerian Christians

The Supreme Council of Bishops, has petitioned to President Muhammadu Buhari and  pleaded for pardon to five Christian young men sentenced to death by Adamawa High court for the killing of a herdsman.

Also, the Christian Association of Nigeria has called on the Federal Government to caution the Adamawa State Government against the implementation of death sentences passed on five Christian youths.

CAN president, Rev. Samson Ayokunle, made the call in a statement signed by the Special Assistant, Media and Communications to the CAN President,  Pastor Adebayo Oladeji, on Tuesday in Abuja.

The five convicts were alleged to have, on June 1, 2017, ‘willfully and intentionally conspired and attacked three herdsmen rearing cattle at Kadamun village in Demsa Local Government Area.’

A Yola High Court had on June 11, 2018, sentenced the five men from Kodomun in Demsa council area of the state to death by hanging for murdering a herder in retaliation to the several killings in the area.

However, in the letter, the Supreme Council of Bishops otherwise known as World Council of Bishops, noted that Nigeria “has suffered untold bloodshed from killings, maiming, traumatisation of innocent citizens around the north eastern, north central and Middle Belt states, as a result of the frequent attacks by the militia herdsmen times without number.”

The correspondence, titled, “Special request for presidential pardon: Killing by hanging of five young men,” was signed by founding Primate, Abuja, Nigeria, Archbishop (Dr.) P. Sunday; Ecclesiastical Prelate Administrator, Houston, Texas, United State, Archbishop (Dr.) H. Parker; Apostolic Nuncio and Prelate to Africa, Lagos, Nigeria, Bishop (Dr.) J. Onyegbulem; and Ecclesiastical Prelate to West Africa, Niamey, Niger Republic, Bishop (Dr.) J. Hussein.

The clerics regretted that “till date no adequate justice had been meted out on them commensurate to the lives and property lost.”

It therefore “totally condemns and disapproves vehemently the death sentence passed on the five young men on Monday, June 11, 2018 by a court of competent jurisdiction in Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria accused and charged for killing a herdsman.”

The letter, dated June 13, 2018 from the World Episcopal Headquarters in Texas, U.S., was routed through the Africa Episcopal Headquarters, Lagos and copied the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo; Senate President, Bukola Saraki; Chief Justice of the Federation, Walter Samuel Onnoghen; Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha; as well as Governor Mohammed Jibrilla and the state’s Attorney General, Silas Bala Sanga.

The bishops added “what our nation Nigeria sues for now in our nascent democracy is peace and tranquility, and not otherwise.”

Justice Abdul-Azeez Waziri of a High Court in Adamawa state recently sentenced the convicts to death for culpable homicide for killing one of the herdsmen, Adamu Buba, whose body was thrown into a river and also maimed several cows.

The names of the convicts are Alex Amos, Alheri Phanuel, Holy Boniface, Jerry Gideon and Jari Sabagi.

The CAN President however said: “CAN is not supporting jungle justice or any criminality. But hundreds of our members in Southern Kaduna, Benue, Taraba and Plateau states in the North-central geo-political zones, and a state like Enugu in the South, have been killed.

“Some criminals parading themselves as Fulani herdsmen are still killing our members on a daily basis, but are yet to be apprehended.

“Citizens stood helpless at the massacre of their peaceful fellow Nigerians, the international community watched in anguish how government security agencies could not bring perpetrators of these heinous killings to book.

“Donald Trump, President of U.S had expressed sadness over killings of Christians in Nigeria.

“The U.S president even told President Muhammadu Buhari when he recently visited the White House in Washington DC that the U.S.A will no longer tolerate a situation where Christians were being killed with impunity.”

Ayokunle, however, said despite the outrage that has trailed the killings of Christians in Nigeria, it was disheartened that none of the killers has been brought to justice.

“We are shocked at the speed of light deployed by security and judicial officers in sentencing the alleged killers of the herdsman in Adamawa state.

“Why did the court discharge the alleged killers of Madam Bridget Agbahime on the orders of the Kano State Government?

“Why have security officials not arrested those behind the killings of Christians in Southern Kaduna? While did Nigeria Police set free those arrested for the murder of Mrs Eunice Elisha Olawale in Kubwa, Abuja.

“In view of this, CAN is calling on President Buhari to intervene in the death sentence passed on these Christian youths in Adamawa,” he said.

Ayokunle said CAN has directed its legal team to secure and study the text of the judgment with a view to preventing “a miscarriage of justice and a future re-occurence.”

In a related development, he said CAN is visibly disturbed at reports that the Federal Government has allegedly directed the Nigerian Army and Police to recruit some former members of Boko Haram terrorists who recently underwent deradicalisation programme.

“If it is true, CAN condemns such a policy in strong terms and ask the Federal Government, especially security agencies, to withdraw such directive which is capable of compromising the nation’s security system,” he said