The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the decision of the Court of Appeal, Abuja Judicial Division, granting convicted terrorism offender Kabiru Umar, popularly known as Kabiru Sokoto, additional time to challenge his 2013 conviction and life sentence.
HURIWA said the development raises serious questions about Nigeria’s commitment to justice for victims of terrorism, particularly those killed and injured in the 2011 bombing of St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, Niger State.
The organisation, in a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Friday, said it recognises Sokoto’s constitutional right to pursue available judicial remedies.
However, it warned that reopening the procedural window more than a decade after his conviction could create another pathway for a convicted terrorism offender to seek freedom.
The Court of Appeal reportedly granted Sokoto 21 days to file his Notice and Grounds of Appeal against the Federal High Court judgment delivered on December 20, 2013.
HURIWA stressed that the appellate court had neither overturned the conviction nor determined that Sokoto’s proposed grounds of appeal had merit.
But the rights group questioned why a person serving a life sentence over terrorism-related offences should be allowed to challenge the judgment more than 10 years after conviction.
It also demanded safeguards to ensure that the interests of the victims, their families and the wider public are adequately protected throughout the appellate process.
According to HURIWA, the Christmas Day bombing at St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, Madalla, claimed dozens of lives and injured several others, turning what should have been a day of religious celebration into a scene of death and devastation.
The organisation said the victims must not become an afterthought in the legal proceedings.
“HURIWA rejects any approach to terrorism justice that appears to place the interests of convicted offenders above the rights and dignity of their victims,” the group said.
It warned that repeated perceptions of leniency in terrorism cases could erode public confidence in Nigeria’s counter-terrorism justice system.
HURIWA also referenced the 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo, Ondo State, where scores of worshippers were killed, as another grim reminder of the consequences of attacks against innocent civilians and places of worship.
The group urged the Federal Government, Ministry of Justice and relevant security and judicial institutions to handle the case with the highest level of diligence, transparency and sensitivity to the victims.
It further called on the government to explore every lawful avenue to seek an appropriate review of the sentence if prosecutors believe the existing punishment does not adequately reflect the gravity of the offences.
HURIWA, however, stressed that any such action must remain within the boundaries of Nigerian law and constitutional safeguards.
The rights group also moved to distance Vice President Kashim Shettima from the latest development, noting that Sokoto was arrested at the Borno State Governor’s Lodge in Abuja during Shettima’s tenure as governor.
HURIWA said its reference to the circumstances of Sokoto’s arrest was purely historical and did not constitute an allegation against the Vice President.
It insisted that the central issue was the administration of justice and the responsibility of the Nigerian state to ensure that terrorism cases receive the seriousness they deserve.
HURIWA warned that the reopening of the appeal process must not become an occasion for “dancing on the graves” of the Madalla victims.
“The Nigerian justice system must demonstrate that the lives of innocent worshippers matter,” the organisation said.
It urged the Court of Appeal to carefully consider all relevant legal and evidentiary issues if the substantive appeal eventually comes before it, insisting that justice must be served not only to the convicted person but also to the victims whose lives were violently taken.