My take on Evans, the Billionaire Kidnapper, By Ifedayo Obi

News Express |30th Jun 2017 | 4,001
My take on Evans, the Billionaire Kidnapper, By Ifedayo Obi

Alleged Billionaire kidnapper Chidumeje Onwuamadike alias Evans

The ‘debate’ on Evansgate should not be sensational for readers and profit to media outfits alone. We should get it right at this time. Recall the onetime human parts supplier, Clifford Orji. We are just treading on the same path again.

For those who are saying we should forgive Evans (real name Chidumeje Onwuamadike), I ask on what conditions? For those calling for his head through our judicial system, I ask: on what basis? There is no doubt that he has gone against the law of the land; he has made many homes to be bankrupted and be in perpetual loss of their members. But, I beg to differ on both views, though I'm an advocate of the rule of law.

My opinion might not be in tandem with our law, considering the gravity of Evans' crimes, but we should look beyond nailing Evans without his victims benefiting from it and his colleagues in this atrocity repenting.

We should do thorough investigation on his assets, both in Nigeria and outside. All these assets should be evaluated with details being made available to the public and, thereafter, confiscate them.

Also, all his victims should come out and confront him with evidence under a serious panel of inquiry.

Afterwards, his confiscated assets should be sold to pay back his victims and whatever remained should be used to build well-equipped vocational centres across the six geopolitical zones.

You may want to ask what should happen to Evans. I will opine he faces the punitive measures within the ambit of the law, but his assets should not be confiscated to rot like others in the past. There are many confiscated properties lying rotten across the country, adding no value to anyone. So, we should do it in such a way that the victims will recover their losses.

My final advice for all government institutions is that they should stop acting film onEvansgate,but do everything possible to make sure that wheels of justice don't grind too slow. Nigerians will be glad to have timely justice on Evans, at most, three months. If not, it will be like 90 weeks wasted on the politically-motivated trial of Senate President, Bukola Saraki.

Let's build our nation.

Obi is Lead Partner, Good Governance Advocates.

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