From Stanley Mijah, Yola.
Hundreds of thousands of members of the Numan Federation Community in Adamawa State flooded the streets of Numan town in a peaceful protest to seek for Amnesty for Sunday Jackson, a local farmer condemned to death by the supreme court for killing a Fulani Herdsman in self defense during a scuffle that ensued when his victim drove his herds of cattle to graze on his farm produce.
The protest rally which kicked off from the LCCN Cathedral Numan and went through the Cross Roundabout and the palace of the Hama Bachama before terminating at the Catheral was led by the Bishop of Shalom Ministries and many other Clergies from other denominations.
The protesters who were singing spiritual songs and brandishing placards with the inscriptions, “justice for Sunday Jackson”, “free Jackson”, “acting in self defense is not a crime” among others, were all dressed in black robes to express their sad moments.
The leader and spokesman of the community, Bishop Bulus Taya of the Shalom Ministries sought for Amnesty for the unjustifiably Condemned innocent soul who was acting in self defense and called on the National and state judicial councils to thoroughly investigate the circumstances surrounding the verdict of the two courts to safe the reputation of the nation’s judicial system.
He pleaded with the community to await the decision of the government on the matter assuring that as a responsible government it will not ignore the aspirations of the people and urged the people not to take laws into their hands.
The peaceful rally was also preceded by a press conference addressed by the Gongola People’s Forum in Yola, the Adamawa State Capital seeking the intervention of government to correct the miscarriage of justice since the victim of law only acted in self defense.
It could be recalled that Justice Fatima Ahmed Tafida of the Adamawa State High Court sentenced Sunday Jackson to death in 2021. In her judgment, she stated that Sunday, despite being attacked, had the opportunity to flee rather than stab his attacker. She informed the defendant of his right to appeal within 90 days, which he subsequently did, taking his case to the Supreme Court.
On Friday, March 7, 2025, the Supreme Court, in a brief “2-minute” sitting, upheld the High Court’s death sentence.
Sunday was was said to be working on his own farm when a herdsman brought cattle to graze on his property. Notably, the knife used in the incident belonged to the herdsman, suggesting the herdsman was the initial aggressor
There appears to be growing concerns on the verdict. In a similar case in 2018, another Adamawa High Court, presided over by Justice Abdul-Azeez Waziri, sentenced five local farmers—Alex Amos, Alheri Phanuel, Holy Boniface, Jerry Gideon, and Jari Sabagi—to death by hanging for allegedly killing a herdsman in a reprisal attack.
These judgments raise questions about potential religious bias in the judicial system, as judges from one religious background have sentenced defendants of another faith to death in controversial circumstances. This pattern may warrant investigation by the National Judicial Council (NJC).
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