Summary
As stated earlier in chapter one, the objectives of this study are, to determine the influencing factors ofjungle justice and provide recommendations on how to end or eradicate the menace in Benin City, Edo state. The study was carried out using a sample population of 100 respondents (male and female) within ages of 16 and above. From the researcher's perspective as revealed from the demographic characteristics of the respondents, majority of the population were business owners
and traders who also had tertiary education.
During the research of this study, it was discovered that jungle justice has negative impact on the judicial system and processes in the society. Many are also aware of these negative 1mpact, not only on the judicial system but as well as on the Society as a whole; and due to the increasing rate of the menace, deprivation of human rights to life and fair hearing and also loss of lives in the process of meting out jungle justice are some of the consequences of this menace.
It was also found that the corrupt and tlaccid judicial system not only create room for jungle justice to persist but also promotes it due to the many adjournmentsb ases and people a ses and people in custody without getting tried for the crimes they co tried for the crimes they committee and are later granted bail only to go back to committing crimes. It was ,crimes. It was also observed based ond on data gathered from the field; many believed that ignorance and n1gnorance and illiteracy is rea ally a yardstick as to why people engage in jungle justice. Whereas mauy s ed that the inetficiency of law enforcement agents and police misconducts are or reasons that prompt people to engage in takino the law into their own hands, as these law enforcemet agencCies are incapable of discharping their duties and Tuiy checkmating the act of j ungle justice as various institutions in society are beaeviicu with corruption.
Findings also revealed that there are various factors that influence jungle justice, Some of which are unemplovment. anger and frustration towards the economic situation of the country, failed legal system, wickedness, lack of adherence to processes and system of justice, our historical past of public execution of criminals, lack of education, extreme deprivation and dysfunctional systems, the list could go on but it has been observed that poverty is the bedrock of all evil, because the inability of an individual to fulfill a need, makes him/her resort to stealing or committing crime to fulfill such needs.
occupied and not even have time to engage in jungle justice, To tackle poveny in the country, the govemment needs to formulate and implement progras that will directly benetit the poor, by restructuring sources of Nigeria groBs domestic product to signitficantly include variety of industries that are fab intensive, such as agriculture and industrialization, The saying goes"üh fae hand is the devil's workshop"; if an individual is employed and busy, he/she will not have the time to engage in the act of jungle justice.
2. Most cases of criminal activities go unreported and when they are reported, the law enforcement agents especially the police, fail to carry out their duties efficiently. When a criminal is arrested by the police, the police is expected to charge the criminal to court and the court is expected to also give the final judgment and verdict on the criminal/offender but when these processes are not followed accordingly; it gives the public reasons to take laws into their own hands and inflict the punishment they deem fit on the offender. Hence, there is the need for the law enforcement agencies to carry out their duties effectively and efficiently, without being corrupt in their practices and processes so as to ensure that criminals are brought to book. Also, it is important to spread awareness of jungle justice online to prevent members of the society from engaging in the act, since most of these cases of jungle justice are usually posted online. By putting in place a centralized online ungleungle ustice reporting mechanism, individuals could report cases of jungle justice
and alert the authorities ot intending acts of jungle justice so that the perpetuators of this offence could be detained and prosecuted in line with the provisions of the anti-jungle justice bill.
3. The government also needs to enlighten the public on the effect of jungle justice and also the processes of prosecution of criminal/offenders. Meaningful orientation should be carried out to educate the public on how to hand criminal/offenders to law enforcement agencies such as the police so that the criminal faces the punishment for the crime committed.
4. The government should also enforce already existing laws regarding the prosecution of criminal offenders. Furthermore, to eradicate jungle justice, internal cooperation within the Criminal Justice system and among the law enforcement agents is crucial ror proper implementation of policies by the government and for the granting of justice (for the offender, victim, and society at large).
