"Temper Justice wth mercy"- Obasanjo writes UK govt over Ekweremadu's conviction

Olusegun Obasanjo, a former president, has entered the legal wranglings of Senator Ike Ekweremadu, a former deputy president of the Nigerian senate, in the United Kingdom over the crime of conspiring to harvest an organ from a 21-year-old Nigerian.

Obasanjo stated that even though the Enugu West Senator’s behaviour was inappropriate and deplorable in a letter dated April 3, 2023 sent to the Chief Clerk of the Court and entitled “Ike Ekweremadu,” the senator had made contributions to the sociopolitical advancement of Nigeria. The British government was then encouraged by him to balance justice with mercy.

The former president said that before punishing Ekweremadu and his wife, the UK government should take into account their good deeds in the past as well as the condition of his sick daughter.

Senator Ike Ekweremadu, his wife, Beatrice, and their doctor, Obinna Obeta will be sentenced on May 5 after they were convicted of organ trafficking, in the first verdict of its kind under the Modern Slavery Act in the United Kingdom. They were found guilty of facilitating the travel of a 21-year-old Lagos street trader to London to exploit him for his kidney.

Read Obasanjo’s letter below…