Kanu: A Call for True Justice and Equality in Nigeria – Otunba Babatunde Olushola Senbanjo

By Otunba Babatunde Olushola Senbanjo (BOS)

The recent life-imprisonment sentence reportedly handed to Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has once again exposed the deep cracks within the Nigerian judicial and governance system. It raises a fundamental question that every patriotic Nigerian must ask: Do we truly have a justice system that treats all citizens equally, or do we have one that selects who to punish and who to ignore based on convenience, politics, or sentiment?

For years, our nation has been plagued by the activities of bandits, terrorists, kidnappers, and armed groups who have unleashed chaos across all geopolitical zones. Thousands of innocent Nigerian farmers, commuters, students, and entire communities have lost their lives. Billions of naira worth of property have been destroyed. Families have been displaced and dreams shattered. Yet, despite the magnitude of these atrocities, how many of these perpetrators have been arrested? How many have been prosecuted? How many have been sentenced?

Instead, what we see is a pattern where certain individuals are pursued aggressively, while the true enemies of peace roam freely. If Nigeria is truly a nation of laws, then the same energy used to arrest, detain, and sentence others should be used to capture the bandits, terrorists, and criminal networks that have brought this nation to its knees.

Justice must never be selective.
Justice must never be political.
Justice must never serve as a tool for intimidation.

A judiciary that passes the harshest judgment on one individual while turning a blind eye to the thousands who have spilt the blood of innocent citizens cannot claim to be just. A government that deploys its entire strength against one man but fails to bring the real enemies of the nation to justice has lost its moral standing.

Nigeria desperately needs a justice system that is fair, fearless, consistent, and blind to ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, or personal emotion. Until bandits, terrorists, and their sponsors are arrested, tried, and punished with the same intensity shown in other cases, the people will continue to lose faith in our institutions.

This is not about supporting Nnamdi Kanu or condemning him this is about demanding a Nigeria where justice does not wear the uniform of bias. A Nigeria where every citizen, regardless of who they are, is treated equally before the law. A Nigeria where the judiciary stands as a pillar of truth, not an instrument of selective enforcement.

We must rise to demand fairness.
We must rise to demand accountability.
We must rise to protect the soul of our nation.

Because a country where justice is selective is a country standing on the edge of collapse.