New EAC entrants must be aware of mob justice

The recent mob justice in Kenya that resulted in the death of Laurent Habineza, a Rwandan trailer driver must be a big lesson to Rwandans and Burundians, who will be travelling across East African countries. It is unfortunate that mob justice in the old members of EAC has become rampant, and culprits enjoy impunity.When the Rwandan driver was recently lynched after a trailer he was driving brushed its side mirror with that of passengers’ bus in Eldoret, it took me back to ugly scenarios of mob justice in Nairobi. Mob justice is a common practice in Nairobi where a mob, usually in dozens or several hundred persons take the law into their hands in order to injure and kill a person accused of wrongdoing. The issue of the victim’s defence or side of the story is usually secondary, since the mob serves as prosecutor, judge, jury and executioner. So, the late Laurent Habineza was a victim of such despicable criminals. The ugly scenarios in Nairobi city prompted me to consult a number of scholars to know why such acts go on unabated. The more hours you spend in Nairobi city, the more victims of mob justice you will witness. In fact, a Kenyan friend of mine staying in Nairobi South C told me that it is a question of one pointing a finger to you (Huyo), and you are dead.People in Nairobi say it all begun when the legal system, couldn’t be trusted due either to social inequalities or corruption. “Thugs and thieves could go scot free, whenever brought before the law so, angry and disenfranchised people resort to mob justice when frustrated,” said David Ndinga a retired teacher in Nairobi. Indeed mob justice blossoms when corruption in government agencies takes the order of the day. In such circumstances, when suspected criminals are apprehended and handed over to the police, many are able to either negotiate their way out using the intricacies of the law or through corruption. So, people start taking the law in their own hands, to punish and kill suspects. It grows slowly and spreads like wild fire to the whole society. In fact, mob justice is not unique to Kenya; all other East African countries witness it. Of course the degrees differ, but the actions are the same.The warning actually goes to recent entrants in East African community. Burundians and Rwandans must be warned that as they enjoy free movement of goods and services, as member states, they are not immune to the ills of the societies they are joining. Habineza was not killed because he is a Rwandan; he was just a victim of strange societal traits. Mob justice affects the people of Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda every day, and I am sure most of them are not happy with it. It however, gives warning signals to the two new entrants that the way criminals are handled, determines the future behaviour of the population. There are some cases, where people complain that known criminals in society are let free by concerned authorities. This is always the beginning of mob justice. Much as we need to be cautious of mob justice in EAC, we should also be careful not to nurture it on our own communities. mugitoni@gmail.com