In a statement by her Special Assistant on Media, Abdur-Rahman Balogun in Abuja said that the planned execution was heartbreaking despite repeated warnings to Nigerians to obey the laws of the land of their host countries.
Dabiri-Erewa said since Singapore
determined to enforce its laws as a deterrent to drug trafficking, which has
reduced as a result of its stringent capital punishment , nothing much can be
done
"While we regret the death of
the Nigerian, we once again appeal to Nigerians to avoid crimes like drug
trafficking with most countries especially in Asia declaring zero tolerance for
drug trafficking.", Dabiri-Erewa stated.
She reiterated her appeal to
Nigerians to avoid drug peddling in their host countries as laws of countries,
whether acceptable or not, will be difficult to influence.
A Nigerian, Chijoke Obioha was caught in
Singapore trafficking in hard drugs on December 30, 2008 with his execution
slated for Friday November 18.
Obioha was arrested with more than
2.6 kilograms of cannabis, surpassing the statutory amount of 500 grams
presumed as drug trafficking in Singapore on April 9, 2007
The Amnesty International had called
on Singapore to immediately halt Friday’s planned execution of Chijoke Stephen
Obioha, a Nigerian national on death row for possession of drugs.
Obioha’s family was informed that his appeal
for clemency has been rejected.
Rafendi Djamin, Amnesty International’s
Director for South-East Asia and the Pacific, said: “The Singapore government
still has time to halt the execution of Chijoke Stephen Obioha. We are dismayed
that clemency has not been granted in his case, but remain hopeful that they
won’t carry out this cruel and irreversible punishment against a person
sentenced to the mandatory death penalty for a crime that should not even be punished
by death. “
"The death penalty is never the
solution. It will not rid Singapore of drugs. By executing people for
drug-related offences, which do not meet the threshold of most serious crimes,
Singapore is violating international law.
A Nigerian, Chijoke Obioha was caught in
Singapore trafficking in hard drugs on December 30, 2008 with his execution
slated for Friday November 18.
Obioha was arrested with more than
2.6 kilograms of cannabis, surpassing the statutory amount of 500 grams
presumed as drug trafficking in Singapore on April 9, 2007.
Under Singaporean law, when there is a
presumption of drug possession and trafficking, the burden of proof shifts from
the prosecutor to the defendant.
This violates the right to a fair trial by
turning the presumption of innocence on its head. Drug-related offences do not
meet the threshold of the “most serious crimes” to which the use of the death
penalty must be restricted under international law.
International law also prohibits the
imposition of the death penalty as a mandatory punishment and Amnesty
International opposes the use of the death penalty outright, regardless of the
crime. ####
