FINDING ECONOMIC FREEDOM: THE INDONESIAN WAY
Just after the NTA network news at 9:00pm, there was a
loud knock at my door - Knock! Knock!!
Coincidentally there was a power outage as well, still in shock, I yelled at the top of my voice to conquer any form of fear within “Who
is knocking at my door this night?”
And there was a response – “It’s me MC Whale Mouth.” I
reluctantly opened the door with a long hiss “so because you are MC Whale Mouth
you have the right to bang my door is such a manner?”
“My brother abeg no vex oo, But I’ve your
heard?”
Heard what? You have come again with this have you heard
of yours. Please I want to sleep, I don’t have time for them say, them say.
This is not them say but reality, three Nigerians and
an Indonesian have been executed in Indonesia for pushing drugs.
And so? Is that coming to you as a surprise? To me it
is not. Moreover four armed robbers were recently sentenced to death by firing
squad in Akure for ‘mere’ robbery.
But my brother this Indonesia people are wicked oo, I
want death penalty abolished.
Why will you say they are wicked? Let me tell you,
while one cannot throw away the baby with bath water, it is also very
imperative not to point accusing fingers on Indonesia and condemn her actions
in totality. The execution of Nigerians in Indonesia and other parts of the
world is a repeated re occurrence and will remain so. Mc Whale Mouth abi Mc Fish Mouth
or whatever you call yourself don’t you know that the Indonesia State has long
ago spelt it out that drugs trafficking is a capital offence that must be
greeted with capital punishment? And since them there has been no two ways
about the enforcement of this punishment.
I don’t know. See me, see trouble.
If you don’t know, know now. Only in 2007 the
Indonesian constitutional court upheld the constitutionality of the death
penalty for drugs cases, you should know by now that that once it’s a
constitutional matter countries with resilient rule of law don’t divide options
on such matters. Abi you think say Indonesia be like Nigeria when nor dey
respect her constitution? In Nigeria the rule of law has over times been
trampled upon and impunity has eaten negatively into her law enforcement.
In Indonesia capital punishment is enforced only in
serious cases like murder or drugs related offences. Of all the nine Nigerians
executed in Indonesia since 1987, they have all been killed for drugs related offences;
does that not call for serious attention and lessons if we want the killings of
Nigerians to stop in Indonesia or elsewhere?
I see, but do we really learn in Nigeria?
Mc it is time we start learning and learning very fast
because we are very far behind the comity of nations. There is urgent need to
have a rethink and redirection on the path of Nigerian youths especially those
nursing the ambitions of going to ‘Sia’ to follow the footsteps of their executed
countrymen. The government at all levels must as a matter of fact strengthen
institutions so as to reduce the numbers of Nigerians going overseas to push
drugs or indulge in other criminal activities. Opinions should be reshaped
quickly, if not? Nigerians will continue to cowed into such executions and as
such remain victims forever.
Cowed? Did you just say cowed? Does that imply that
the court procedures leading to these executions are flawed with irregularities
with the poor and weak often victims?
Fish Mouth, Oh sorry Whale Mouth don’t put words into
my mouth, how can I criticise the Indonesian judicial process? Even if I do will my
opinion change anything? However, there were complaints from the lawyers of the
executed Nigerians that the whole process did not follow due process quoting
corruption, errors and miscarriage of justice. Amnesty international cited
‘Systematic flaws’ in the trails of several inmates on death row. One of the
executed criminal Michael Titus Igweh also tearfully told the court that police
electrocuted his genitals to ‘cow’ him to confess to possessing 5.8 kilograms
of heroin, alleging that he was constantly beaten until he became helpless. All
these allegations fell on deaf ears. However, the Indonesian foreign ministry
spokesman Arrmanatha Nasir defended the imminent executions saying it is pure
law enforcement and emphasised that all the legal processes of the convicts have
been completed with all their rights fulfilled. Strictly, the Indonesian state
has spoken, whether it has spoken correctly or not posterity will judge.
But Bro, Come to think of it Indonesia is very tough
on its stance to execute ‘guilty drug traffickers’. Imagine plea for clemency
coming from the United Nations, European Union, Amnesty International and many
other countries rejected out rightly. I heard Widodo boasting on state
television that Jakarta is fighting a war against drugs and traffickers must be
‘harshly punished’. Why will Jakarta refuse calls for clemency coming from the
United Nations and perhaps the European Union even if they won’t listen to any
other?
I have told you before that once it is a
constitutional matter, it becomes sacrosanct for countries that are strong
willed in the enforcement of their laws. President Widodo defended the use of
death penalty as a measure in combating the rising use of narcotics. That is to
indicate that there is no going back on Jakarta’s position no matter whose ox
will be gored. You should think of the shame and disgrace an execution in
Indonesia will bring to your family before you embark on such adventures.
I have not said I want to go to Indonesia to do drugs,
I am contended with my work as an Mc .
Nobody was born with the intentions of going to push
drugs in Indonesia or elsewhere, it is the hardship in the country occasioned
by the failure of institutions that pushes one. Picture a country that has a
very low standard of living, unemployment at its bane, loss of lives and
properties due to insecurity are a daily occurrence, total collapse of
infrastructures and inability to provide basic amenities just to discussion a
few makes it difficult to eradicate the tendency of opting for quick money like
going to Indonesia and other countries to either push drugs or indulge in other
nefarious activities, that is why Nigerians often times fall victims of capital
punishment abroad. Besides ‘all die na die’ and ‘man dies but once’.
That apart, Widodo’s refusal to bend constitutional
laws because of appeals from the UN, EU and others only exhibit that Indonesia
is a sovereign State. Indonesia has shown that it has the powers to do whatever
it pleased within its territorial borders without external control or
interference. Come to think of it, is the UN or EU fit to interfere in matters
of human right as it concerns Indonesia? There are uncountable cases of human
right abuses all over the world, even in the most advanced democratic ones and
nothing has been done by the UN. Has the UN been able to stop capital
punishment in the USA? Did many European countries not refuse migrants recently
from entering their territories? Was that not a human right violation? What did
the EU do about it? Thanks to Germany and a few others.
Charity they say begins at home and as such the EU
should attend to the plenty issues of human right violations within its region
before trying to wade into Jakarta’s death penalty policy. Mc I don’t have
enough time to trash these issues, dawn will meet us if I try to venture into
human right excesses where the UN and the EU ought to have intervened but
failed to do so. Human right is perhaps one of the most contentious issues in
international relations and like democracy it’s a Greek gift to us by the west.
Wait oo, did Nigeria make any effort to stop the
executions by also asking for clemency for its citizens?
I don’t think they did, it would have been an effort
in futility, the Jonathan administration did that in the penultimate executions
and no stance was shifted. It was after the executions I read that the minister
of foreign affairs summoned the Indonesian charge d’ affairs in Nigeria
appealing to the republic of Indonesia to ‘temper justice with mercy by
commuting the sentence of the remaining Nigerians put on death row’. To me this
is a call coming rather too late.
But …but, why did the minister not make such moves
before the first round of executions?
Too many questions Mc, I am tired, I want to sleep, and
maybe you should ask the minister yourself.
Possibly, the Nigerian government was waiting for the
UN and EU to do that for them because they know such appeals to Indonesia from
the government will definitely fall on deaf ears. Come to think of it, which
serious minded country will even listen to Nigeria making such appeals? We are
not a serious people and are guilty of human right abuses ourselves. Nigerians
die every day in circumstances that are far worse than death penalty in
Indonesia, so why do we imagine that an appeal for clemency of ‘only’ six
Nigerians on death row will be listened to by Indonesia when Nigeria is a killer
of its own people? Recently, I was driving along the Effurun roundabout and due
to the bad state of the road, there was a little bit of hustle and bustle which
is associated with driving in Nigeria on a daily basis, suddenly came a police
escort pick up van blaring siren, I was not able to give way immediately as
expected of me and other road users because there was a gigantic pot hole
greeting me in front, therefore, I diverted a bit in a bid to avoid falling on
it, unknowingly to me that I had blocked one of the vehicles on the convoy,
what happened next shocked me: a policeman who is supposed to protect lives
appeared, cocked his gun and pointed it at me as though I was facing the firing
squad in Indonesia. Further probing revealed to me that three white men were
being escorted. So this trigger happy policeman whose actions appears to be the
prototype of what is wrong with the Nigeria Police Force wants to kill his
father and not me because of three white men became a regular thought as my day
went on. If he had succeeded in killing his ‘father’ would that not had been a
shoddier way to die than being executed in Indonesia haven’t been found guilty
of drugs related offences? One begins to wonder how many Nigerians die unjustly
on a daily basis. In the words of the famous Ijaw musician Barrister Smooth “if
na me be God I for don send fire down”, “if na me be God I for send thunder
down”. Only God indeed can free us from these bondages.
Human right abuses are a daily occurrence in Nigeria.
The Odi, Zaki Biam and Baga massacre of helpless civilians by persons expected
to provide protection, the partial execution of the Ogoni Nine, the horrific
killing of four uniport students in Aluu for allegedly phone theft, the daily
human right abuses in the North East, just to mention a few are some of the
many human rights abuses that has showcased Nigeria to the rest of the world as
a barbaric country where human life is meaningless. Where is social justice?
Where did it elude us?
Until we begin to cherish and value the sacredness of
human life in Nigeria, the rest of the world will continue to shun us whenever
we make appeals for clemency where it concerns our country men and women.
Igbogidi
Ogaga Andrew
Delta State
oigbogidi@yahoo.com
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