He Who Kills Must Die

Human rights NGOs in the country have fighting so hard to convince the government to drop the use of the death sentence in punishing hard criminals. However, I am worried it might be time now to give the death sentence a second thought considering the heinous inhuman acts we are currently seeing in the country.

In the recent past, at least three prominent gruesome murders have occurred including that of Ms. Robinah Kiyingi (RIP), Ms. Christine Apolot, wife of former Mukono Police Chief James Peter Aurien, and lately Rehma Nasur (RIP), wife of Arua Municipality MP Hussein Akbar Godi, and the several child sacrifice cases that have been awash in the media lately.

Without any question, the people carrying out these murders, as well as those masterminding them, are nothing but inhuman. They are extremely dangerous to our society and must be eliminated first as a lesson to their colleagues in the trade, but also to avoid subsequent murders. The best way to punish a murderer absolutely is to take away their very own life not by an injection but by the guillotine.

The above captioned cases are more tearful especially if you realize that they involve the most vulnerable members of our society, women and children. This is absolutely a double tragedy because by killing a woman, by killing a child, you are killing the future of this country.

We must be careful not to discuss the issue of death sentence timidly while trying to safeguard our own lives in case the guillotine were preferred against us should we be found guilty of the evils we commit daily in the dark. It’s only when we live knowing the obvious cost of our actions that we shall censor ourselves even without police surveillance.

Have we never heard of the English saying; “Spare the rod, spoilt the child”? Yes, if people kill others and they are simply sent to Luzira Prison for a lifetime holiday, then surely we shall continue to have more and more murderers. By the way, I have heard that with the biting credit crunch, lots of people would be comfortable living in prison where they get free food, free housing, free water than dying miserably of hunger in their rented rooms! Yes, this is how much the love for money can drive people crazy.

Meantime, other than people carrying out murders for money, it appears that very many men are increasingly killing their wives accusing them of cheating. While I hold a personal view that all men are cheats, I also wish to reiterate that on the other hand, women are more likely to be faithful. Nonetheless, the fact that all men cheat does not make cheating their preserve. Therefore, men should remove the logs in their sexual habits first before pulling the trigger to remove specks from their wives’

Talking of murdering for cheating, I was watching the Oprah Winfrey show recently. She hosted couples who had reconciled after the men were caught cheating red-handed. In one instance, one of the men who was officially wedded, maintained a secret mistress for 15 years in addition to three other short-spelled cheating sprees. To his wife, he was very loving and caring and played his game so discreetly that no one could ever suspect him. When he was finally discovered, he admitted his sins to his wife and the two reconciled.

This is where Ugandans are still lagging behind. While I do not condone cheating for whatever reason, I must emphasize that no amount of it should call for the murder of a spouse. Cheating is something that can be avoided if a wife gives her husband the best, and the other way round. Appreciating that as human beings we have weaknesses, married people must learn to share their feelings and keep close to each other as much as possible to avoid undue temptations. 

We must keep in mind that when men are cheating, they don’t cheat with trees, and vice versa. As such, where there’s a cheating man, there’s a cheating woman: and before cheating with someone’s wife, remember that someone else could be cheating with your own, and your daughter. Stop cheating, and stop these unnecessary murders. He, who kills, must die.