NBA President: Judiciary should learn from Simon Ekpa’s conviction

Afam Osigwe, president of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), has called on the judiciary and prosecuting agencies to emulate the Finnish court after convicting Simon Ekpa of terrorism.

Osigwe made this admonition while speaking with journalists in Abuja while presenting the communiqué of the association’s annual general conference.

Simon Ekpa, Biafran agitator and leader, was recently sentenced to six years imprisonment for terrorism charges by a Finnish court within a few weeks of his arrest.

His charges were tied to his role he played after the organization, Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), a separatist movement was declared a terrorist organisation in 2017 by ex-president Muhammadu Buhari.

Osigwe has now advised his colleagues to draw lessons from the trial of the self-proclaimed prime minister of Biafra; the speed with which the Finnish court heard and decided his case.

“I wish our Nigerian judiciary is watching and taking note; also, our investigating and prosecutorial agencies.

“Investigating a case properly, getting enough evidence and building a good case before it gets to court so that the trial will go on seamlessly.

“Such that whether you are acquitted or convicted, the facts will be clear. I would rather focus on that aspect as a takeaway for the Nigerian judiciary,” he said.

He also addressed the need to not delay trials as long as there is substantive evidence especially when it concerns an act of terrorism.

“For me, that should be the focus of our attention. The time it took for this trial to go on, the way the case was built and how quickly the court resolved it.

“Not allowing such trials to go on for years without end. So that whichever way the court decides your fate, it is now open to you whether to accept it or go on appeal,” Osigwe added.

Speaking further, he enjoins the law practitioners to work in accordance with the provision of the constitution to not only ensure that justice is served but done in time, because justice delayed is justice denied.

“This should be a lesson to us; and I say it bearing in mind that there is a provision in the Administration of Criminal Justice Act that provides for day-to-day trials.

“Terrorism cases should go on day-to-day so that such matters are concluded and taken off the court’s list. Otherwise, we would be paying lip service to those provisions of the law,” he concluded.