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Edeh: Justice at Last?
The police in Lagos disrupt a peaceful protest against perceived delay in the prosecution of a naval officer involved in last year’s murder of citizen, Peter Edeh
Peter Edeh
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By Emma Maduabuchi
will shoot you and nothing will happen,” Felix Odunlami, a naval lieutenant reportedly said to Peter Ede, a young Nigerian– and some seconds later he executed the threat by shooting Edeh dead right on the spot.
The incident took place exactly a year ago. Since then, the Nigerian Navy has played all manners of pranks on the Ede family and interested Nigerians, in an attempt to subvert justice in the case.
According to a family source, part of the pranks was that since the murder, the family members of the deceased have been denied access to the corpse of their son, thereby denying them the opportunity to give him a befitting burial.
Incidentally, this was thwarted as The Source’s investigation revealed, by the naval authorities, who claimed that the body has been buried in a mass grave for some unspecified reasons which some of the deceased kinsmen say is not uncconnected with removing some incriminating evidence.
Last Tuesday, July 25, 2006, at the Radio Bus Stop, Alausa, Ikeja– the very point where the youngman was murdered exactly a year ago– some group of youths relived his memory as they undertook a protest march, claiming that ‘justice delayed is justice denied’.
Incidentally, the Nigerian police did not allow the programme of events, as put together by the organisers, the Igbo Youth Movement (IYM), and the Global Peace Village Network (GPVN), to run its full course. Even at a point, the over-zealous policemen attempted to manhandle The Source’s photographer, Yakubu Yusuf.
As early as 10 a.m that day, youths numbering up to 40 were already gathered at the Bus Stop, singing solidarity songs, displaying their banner and sharing leaflets to the public.
Their messages read: “Let’s join hands and say no to extra-judicial killing;” “No to trigger-happy security agents;” “no to touts in uniform;” and “the Navy must expedite the court martial of the “murderer” and make the findings public.”
Present at the rally were many members of the civil rights community, among them, Bright Ezeocha, leader of the IYM and organiser of the programme; Joseph Ede, father of the deceased; Dr. Joe Okei-Odumakin, president, Women Arise, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), and Toyin Raheem, co-ordinator, Tenants Rights, an NGO.
Others include Patience Ogechi Ogbonna, the lady Edeh was carrying on his bike when his life was cut short by Odunlami; Segun Aka-Basorun Jnr; and Shola Olatunde.
As they were at the point distributing leaflets and singing solidarity songs, the police, under the leadership of Assistant Superintendent ASP Prince Okonkwo, suddenly appeared with about 10 other policemen to put a stop to the rally.
Before this time, Raheem, who was passing by without prior knowledge of the protest had joined in; he told The Source that what was on ground was not just a protest by Igbo youths, but a national malaise which every Nigerian, no matter the tribe, must join to fight. “This is not an issue that should have tribal sentiment in it,” he said.
Raheem equally confronted the police when they were asked to leave the road and go back to their base until they obtain police permit.
His words: “As far as this country is concerned, we cannot be intimidated by the presence of the police. I have also protested on their behalf, and so we do not need permit to protest.”
Even Odumakin’s decision that they jettison their planned march to Alausa, the Lagos seat of government and confine themselves by the side of the road was rejected by the police.
Ekeocha, who told The Source later that he did not want a situation where Ndigbo would be singled out as fomenting trouble in Lagos, later decided to give in, thus compelling the group to relocate later to the residence of the deceased, where they took turns to denounce the police and the Navy.
Odumakin told the gathering that they must work together to resist the lingering situation in the nation where life was made worthless, and the law powerless. “It is when people do not get justice that they get desperate and mete out jungle justice to people,” she said, adding that it was a shame that when the rest of the world was talking of animal rights, Nigeria was still talking of human rights.
Aka-Bashorun jnr. on his part told the gathering that the next logical step which should be to seek legal remedy as a result of the Edeh’s corpse, which the naval authorities were alleged to have buried in a mass grave.
When The Source sought audience with the court martial board handling the Odunlami case last Wednesday, neither the president of the board, Navy Captain G. Mba, nor any other member of the board could be reached. The reason being that the Chief of Naval Staff’s annual dialogue was taking place on that same day.
Attempts to speak to the Base Information Officer, Lieutenant Commander Uche Chiejine Frankov, were unsuccessful as a naval personnel who spoke to The Source claimed that she had just been appointed to the office two days earlier. “Besides, we are all focused on the CNS annual conference right now,” the personnel said.
However, lawyer to the Edeh family, Nnabuike Edechime, told The Source that he was prepared to wait for the legal system to run its full course. He explained that most people do not know much about the procedures and rigours in a court-martial, and as a result may not appreciate what was being done.
Last Thursday, July 26, 2006 judgement on the case was delivered and the panel reduced the charge from murder to manslaughter and sentenced Odulami to life imprisonment, as well as requested the naval authorities to dismiss him from service.
Edechime, who was elated by the judgement, told The Source, that he felt justice had been done, and expected that the confirming authorities would soon confirm the sentence.
"The facts are straight-forward, and we hope it will deter people from being power hungry," he concluded. |
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