The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has appealed to Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf to sign the death warrant of convicted murderers, insisting that enforcement of capital punishment would serve as a deterrent to future crimes.
The monarch made the call while reacting to the Saturday’s gruesome killing of a housewife, Fatima Abubakar and her six children in the state.
Sanusi also called for the speedy trial of the suspects arrested in connection with the brutal attack, stressing that once convicted, the Governor should not hesitate to authorize their execution.
He condemned the brutal attack as barbaric and senseless, describing the act as a tragic reflection of society’s failure to enforce capital punishment and justice.
According to him, “We expressed condolences to the deceased husband, family and the state in general.
“If a country continues to condone a person killing another without justice, and the perpetrators go scot-free, then the act would continue.
“What is happening in this country where you find a person who commits murder, and pleads guilty before the court, he would be convicted for murder or sentenced to death by hanging, and the execution would not be carried out, because the governor has not signed the death sentence (execution warrant).
“There is a need for the leaders to know that when someone commits murder, it is forbidden to pardon that person out of pity since he didn’t have pity on his victim. For that, there is no reason to pity or pardon such a person.
“In this country, they have stopped executing people who commit murder. In some cases, the murderers are pardoned and forgiven.
“Nobody has the liberty to pardon a murderer because it’s not his right, it’s only the right of the family and God to pardon the person, but you will hear that such convicts are granted the prerogative of mercy to the murderers.
“If it is the government that is offended or someone steals money, that is something different entirely, but not in murder cases.
“So in this kind of situation, there is no way out but to go back to apply the principle of justice, which says that those who killed another should also be killed.
“If someone knows that if he kills another, he would be killed, it would serve as a deterrent.
