Dr Sam Omale has condemned what he described as Nigeria’s historical injustice in executing generations of young p. ople for crimes whose severity, he argued, pales in comparison with the alleged corruption, electoral manipulation and economic devastation associated with the country’s political elite today.
In an emotional statement titled “Nigeria as a Criminal Enterprise: Why the State Owes a Historical Apology for Firing Squad Executions,” Omale questioned the morality of a justice system that imposed the ultimate punishment on convicted armed robbers, coup plotters and drug traffickers while, in his view, powerful political actors accused of plundering public resources continue to enjoy influence and protection.
He cited the controversial execution of Bartholomew Owoh, Bernard Ogedengbe and Lawal Ojuolape in 1983 for drug-related offences under a retroactively applied death-penalty law, describing their deaths as a grave miscarriage of justice. He also recalled the 1976 executions following the failed coup that claimed the life of General Murtala Muhammed, as well as the 1995 mass executions of convicted armed robbers in Lagos and Warri. Omale further referenced the 1972 execution of Anthony Hanson, popularly known as Bassey Akpan, and four members of his gang.
According to him, these cases represent painful chapters in Nigeria’s history that deserve sober reflection and an official reckoning with the families of those executed. He argued that the state must confront the human cost of its past criminal justice policies instead of allowing historical tragedies to disappear into collective amnesia.
The former approach to punishment, Omale lamented, becomes particularly troubling when contrasted with the persistent allegations of corruption, stolen public funds, electoral fraud and political violence confronting contemporary Nigeria. He accused some members of the political class of inflicting greater damage on the country than the offenders who once faced firing squads, arguing that the economic consequences of large-scale corruption run into billions and trillions of naira.
“Why were young men executed for offences involving relatively small sums, while those accused of destroying the national economy and undermining our democracy continue to wield political power?” he asked in his statement.
Omale characterised electoral manipulation as an assault on the people’s sovereignty, accusing political actors of grabbing and suppressing citizens’ votes to retain power at the expense of democratic accountability. He maintained that a society cannot credibly claim to uphold justice when punishment appears severe for the powerless but uncertain for the powerful.
His central demand is for Nigeria to acknowledge the painful legacy of these executions and confront the apparent contradictions in its administration of justice. For Omale, the tragedy is not merely that lives were lost, but that the country may have sacrificed generations of young people without building the just, accountable and prosperous society those punishments were supposedly intended to protect.
He concluded that Nigeria must urgently reassess its moral priorities, strengthen institutions, end impunity and ensure that accountability applies equally to ordinary citizens and political officeholders. Without such a reckoning, he warned, the nation risks perpetuating a deeply troubling system in which justice is swift for the vulnerable but elusive for the powerful.
