JUNGLE JUSTICE: WHY NIGERIANS ARE TAKING THE LAW INTO THEIR OWN HANDS

 

Jungle justice in Nigeria, highlighting the dangers of mob action and the growing concerns over citizens taking the law into their own hands.
Designed By Solomon Emmanuel | ZpotHub News 

LAGOS — Another video surfaced this week. A group of young men surrounded someone in the street. Shouting. Pushing. Before police could arrive, it was over. 

That is what we now call jungle justice. And it is happening too often.

I do not know if I should feel anger first, or sadness. 

Anger because no one should die without a trial. Sadness because I understand why it keeps happening.

We are living in a country where many people do not trust the system that is supposed to protect them. And when people lose trust, they take things into their own hands.

This is not an article to defend mob action. People die in these moments. Sometimes the wrong people. Sometimes over accusations that are never proven. 

But if we want it to stop, we have to ask the hard question: why do ordinary Nigerians feel like jungle justice is their only option?

THE MOMENT TRUST BROKE

Talk to people in markets, in buses, in neighborhoods across Nigeria and you will hear the same story.

"Police will arrest him and collect money."  

"Court will take 5 years."  

"If we hand him to them, they will release him tomorrow."

Whether it is true in every case or not, that is what people believe. And belief drives behavior.

When a thief is caught in a community, the fear is not just about that one theft. It is about the next one. And the next one. People are tired. Shop owners have been robbed multiple times. Parents are afraid for their children. 

So when someone is caught, the crowd does not wait. They act immediately.

That is where it starts. Not with wickedness. With exhaustion.

FEAR, FRUSTRATION, AND A FAILED PROMISE

Let us be honest about what is going on.

First, there is fear. Fear of crime. In many areas, people feel unsafe at night. Response time from security agencies is slow. Sometimes they do not come at all.

Second, there is frustration. The legal process feels long and expensive. A case can drag for years. Witnesses disappear. Files get lost. For a regular person, justice feels out of reach.

Third, there is the perception of a failed promise. The social contract says: pay taxes, obey laws, and the state will protect you. When that does not happen, people create their own version of justice.

None of this makes jungle justice right. But it explains why it keeps repeating.

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THE COST WE DO NOT TALK ABOUT

Here is the part that hurts the most. Jungle justice is messy.

Sometimes the person beaten is guilty. Sometimes they are not. I have read too many stories of mistaken identity. A stranger walks into the wrong area. A misunderstanding. A false accusation. And in minutes, a life is gone.

There is no evidence collected. No investigation. No chance to defend yourself. 

And even when the person is guilty, mob action does not solve the bigger problem. Another thief will come tomorrow. Because the root causes are still there: poverty, unemployment, poor policing, slow courts.

Jungle justice feels like justice in the moment. But it leaves communities more traumatized, not safer.

I have spoken to people who participated once and regretted it later. The images do not leave you. The guilt does not leave you.

YET PEOPLE STILL DO IT

So why does it continue?

Because in the absence of alternatives, people choose what feels immediate.

If you catch someone stealing your neighbor’s phone and you call the police, you might wait 2 hours. If they come, they might ask you for transport money. If the case goes to court, you might be asked to keep coming back for months. 

Or you can deal with it now. In 10 minutes. 

That is the calculation happening in people’s heads. It is a terrible calculation. But it is a human one.

Social media has also made it worse. Videos spread fast. People see others doing it and think that is how things are done now. It becomes normalized.

WHAT THE LAW SAYS

The law is clear. No one has the right to take another person’s life. No one has the right to beat, torture, or kill a suspect.

The constitution guarantees every Nigerian the right to a fair trial. 

But law on paper and law in practice are two different things. If people do not see the law working for them, they will not respect the law.

That is the gap we have to close.

IS THERE ANOTHER WAY

Yes. But it requires work from all of us.

For government and security agencies: 

We need faster response times. We need police that people can trust. Not police that ask for money at the station. Community policing can help. When people know the officers in their area, they are more likely to call them first.

We also need the courts to work faster. Special tribunals for minor offenses. Legal aid for people who cannot afford lawyers. When justice is swift and visible, people will wait for it.

For communities:

We need to talk about this openly. Town hall meetings. WhatsApp group admins setting rules. Religious and traditional leaders speaking against mob action. 

It also means protecting people who are accused until the truth comes out. That is hard in an angry moment. But it is necessary.

For all of us online:

Stop sharing gory videos. Stop celebrating mob videos with "he deserves it" comments. Every share teaches someone that this is acceptable. 

Instead, share stories of cases that were handled properly. Show that the system can work.

THE BIGGER PICTURE

Jungle justice is not just a law and order problem. It is a poverty problem. It is an unemployment problem. It is an education problem.

A 17-year-old who steals a phone is not doing it because he woke up evil. He is doing it because he sees no other path. 

If we do not create jobs, skills, and opportunities, we will keep producing desperate people. And desperate people create desperate communities.

We also have to deal with corruption. When people see big cases disappear because someone "knows someone," they lose faith. When small cases are settled with money, they lose faith. 

Restoring faith in the system is the only long-term solution.

A HARD CONVERSATION

I know this topic makes people uncomfortable.

Some will say, "You do not understand. You have not been robbed."  

Others will say, "There is no excuse for killing."

Both can be true.

We can condemn jungle justice and still ask why it happens. We can demand better policing and still hold communities accountable for taking lives.

This is not about picking sides. It is about saving lives. Both the lives of victims of crime, and the lives of people who are killed without trial.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

The videos will keep coming if nothing changes. 

But they can also stop.

It starts with one community deciding to call the police first.  

It starts with one police station responding quickly and professionally.  

It starts with one court delivering justice in weeks instead of years.  

It starts with one influencer choosing not to post the violent clip.

Small steps. But they add up.

FINAL THOUGHT

I do not have all the answers. No one does.

But I know this: a society where people are killed in the street is not a safe society. Even if the intention was to create safety.

We deserve better. We deserve a system that works. And until we build that system, we will keep having this conversation after every video.

The question is not just "why did they do jungle justice?"  

The better question is "what made them feel like they had to?"

If we answer that honestly, we might finally start to fix it.

What do you think?  

If the system fails you, what should you do? Should communities wait for police no matter how long it takes?  

Drop your opinion in the comments. Let’s talk.

By Solomon Emmanuel | ZpotHub News