A Washington-based Nigerian-American international human rights lawyer, Emmanuel Ogebe, has written to the US Congress proffering solution to the scourge of mass killings in that country.

In the letter sent to US Speaker Nancy Pelosi today, Tuesday, August 6, 2019, Mr. Ogebe made interesting proposals which he said if implemented would make the US safer and more secure. He also contributed ideas that would help to discourage abortion in the US and enhance the chances of Americans adopting American babies instead of looking abroad for children to adopt. The letter reads:

Dear Speaker Pelosi,

May I express my deepest condolences to you and the good people of our United States on the horrific massacres of the past weekend.

When you spoke to us at the State Department weeks ago, you shared the profound insight that “God participated in our humanity so that humans could participate in His divinity.”

As an international human rights lawyer, I have urged you and the US Congress to participate in our sufferings in Nigeria and you have stood side by side with us as we’ve defied terrorism.

Just last week you retuned from an epochal visit to Ghana to mark 400 years since Africans were taken away to slavery in the West. Madam Speaker, you have definitely stood and participated with Africa!

It is in this light that, although I have spent most of my life advocating for Africa, particularly Nigeria, I must at this time also participate and advocate for America.

I propose the following, simple and commonsensical ideas to help address controversial issues that are taking the lives of Americans.

1. Mass shootings and gun violence

I recommend that Congress introduce a bill requiring mandatory gun ownership insurance. The logic is simple. If cars which are ordinarily meant to operate safely require mandatory insurance to mitigate against the eventuality that they might be in accidents, then guns which by definition are lethal in operation, should require insurance given the high propensity for fatalities.

Gun insurance will help address the high public health and emergency responder costs, victim compensation and rehab as well as security upgrades. It will also impact the arsenal building of unstable elements in society.

Similarly a bill could mandate periodic mental health re-evaluation for gun owners, issue renewable gun permits, eliminate assault weapons in private hands, limit the amount of ammunition per quarter, institute asset forfeiture for gun offenders, impose stiffer penalties for mass murder and crimes against children, fast-track trials of mass killers.

Again, the basic logic here is if individual drivers have to renew their licenses and, as they age, establish fitness to continue driving safely, gun owners should concomitantly be held to similar standards of worthiness.

2. Abortion

This controversial issue can be addressed by a simple compromise. There is a demand for babies which has seen Americans adopt from abroad while other American have unwanted pregnancies. America has adequate supply to meet demand domestically.

Existing technology can establish “baby banks” where fetuses can be nurtured to term and adopted. Advances in science have made prenatal, neonatal and intra uterine medical care possible.

In a world where cryogenics preserves the dead, we cannot possibly say we cannot preserve the living. Embryos could be adopted instead of aborted.

Madam Speaker, the number of people killed in the US in the past 72 hours was half the number of people killed by Boko Haram last week. If the mass shootings in the US were the concerted actions of a solitary terror group, they would place the US in the top 10 most terrorized countries.

Your recent pilgrimage to the Port of No Return in Ghana should inspire us all not to Return to a Wild West America, or a pre-civil Rights America.

It is sincere hope that we can give this our best shot under your leadership.

•Photo shows, to the left of US Speaker Nancy Pelosi is Congresswoman Karen Bass, head of the Congressional Black Caucus and to the far right of Speaker Pelosi is international Human Rights Lawyer Emmanuel Ogebe (file photo credit US NIGERIA LAW GROUP)

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