Media Group Condemns Sokoto Killing; Says It Is A threat To Nigeria’s Fragile Unity

By Akinwale Kasali

Media Group, Journalists for Democratic Rights, JODER, has urged President Muhammadu  Buhari to use his position to ensure justice for Ms Deborah Samuel who was lynched and killed by a mob in Sokoto, the North West Nigerian State.

The Group said If nothing is done, other people with the same instinct will continue to take laws into their hands posing greater danger to the prospect of stability in the country.

JODER added that the killing of the student of the Shehu Shagari College of Education in Sokoto represents a potential threat to the fragile peace in Nigeria.

In a statement on Friday signed by its Programme Officer, Tajudeen Disu, JODER said the stoning and burning of a lady is a trait unknown to all Religions and alien to the Nigerian constitution that everyone in the country is bound to uphold.

It added that the perpetrators have brought sorrow and pain not only to the family of the bereaved but have also diminished the collective humanity of the country.

“Ms Deborah was not given any chance to defend herself, there was no arrest or trial except that a mob passed death sentence on her through stoning and lynching.

“These conducts are despicable. We call on the Federal Government and the Sokoto State Government to take pro-active measures to ensure justice and also to punish the perpetrators of the inhuman murder”, JODER.

Disu said given the fragile nature of Nigeria and the growing religious and ethnic distrust, killings of this nature could fuel a national crisis.

The group added that the killing of the lady by a mob can spark conflict in other parts of the country if not addressed with the highest form of responsibility by the government.

“Sokoto State has been one of the most peaceful states in Nigeria which has recorded less faith induced violence. The current incidence raises the danger that several states in Nigeria may have become vulnerable to violence induced by faith”, the statement reads.