By Brave Dickson
One Naaman Ugbaja Mbere-Edeh has been remanded in prison custody for allegedly instigating communal war as well as an attempt to illegally exhume the buried corpse of one Cleopas Johnson Gashion of Agana community in Andoni Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The 40yr-old suspect is now standing trial on three-count charge punishable under section 516A (a), section 42 and section 242 (b) of the Criminal Code Cap 37, Vol. 11 Laws of Rivers State of Nigeria 1999.
“Count one: That you Naaman Ugbaja Mbere-Edeh ‘m’ and others at large on 28th day of April 2019 at Omoni family in Agana community, Andoni LGA did conspire amongst yourselves to commit felony to wit: promoting native war by using your trusted boys to threaten the life of Omoni family.
“Count two: That you Naaman Ugbaja Mbere-Edeh and others at large on the same date and place without lawful authority did conduct yourselves in a manner likely to cause breach of peace by preparing to carry out warlike undertaking against Dr Ntinya Cleopas ‘m’, Warison Gogo ‘m’, Lucky John ‘m’, Wilson Etenduk ‘m’ and the Omoni family by ordering the exhumation of the corpse of Cleopas Johnson Gashion.
“Count three: That you Naaman Ugbaja Mbere-Edeh and others at large on the same date and place did without lawful authority improperly interfere with indignity to the late dead human body of Cleopas Johnson Gashion.”
Narrating to our correspondent, the Vice Chairman, Community Development Committee of Agana town in Andoni LGA, Mr John Inwonma John said, “the Community Development Committee was established to serve as an interim government of our community until we get a new paramount ruler.
“In April 27 this year, a man called Mr Gashion died. We, the governing body approved an area for the man to be buried, some members of our community without meeting with the CDC went ahead to issue threat to Omoni family members where the deceased came from, saying they will cause crisis if the remains of Gashion were not exhumed from where he was buried.
“So we went to the police when we noticed that the said group has started unleashing terror on Omoni family and the community at large through cult boys.”
The magistrate court in Port Harcourt however adjourned the case till June 10, 2019.
Recent study has shown that the Nigeria criminal justice system has
over the years played a crucial role in the maintenance of law and order.
The system according to scholars is an embodiment of
crime regulating techniques, through the use of government agencies that
function as the instrument of the state to enforce its set rules necessary for the maintenance of peace, order, and tranquillity.
The task of criminal justice system is carried out through the means of detecting, apprehending, prosecuting, adjudicating, and sanctioning those members of the society who violate its established laws.
More so, the effectiveness of the system is measured by its ability to meet the goals of deterrence, rehabilitation, and
reintegration. The realization of such goals depend on the level of coordination among the
various components of the nation’s criminal justice system.
Regrettably, the outrageous number of awaiting trial inmates in prisons across the country has called to question the effectiveness of the Nigeria criminal justice
system.
