Good Samaritan Or Victim Of Weak Legal System?

Nigeria was once described as one of the most religious country in the world. This description cannot be far from being true considering the fact that Nigerians hardly speak for hours without mentioning the name of God. Apart from that, Nigeria is thickly populated by two major religious groups; Christians and Muslims.

As a Christian, I was raised knowing that Christianity is a religion based on love. That is why one of the best passages I love in the bible is one that tells the parable of the Good Samaritan. In the passage, our Lord Jesus Christ had asked who our neighbour was. He simply went ahead to explain how a Good Samaritan had helped a man who was probably attacked by robbers and dumped by the wayside. According to the parable, everyone including the man’s kinsmen had refused to lend a helping hand until this Good Samaritan came.

Anytime I see or hear a story of how an accident victim had been left to die on the roadside unattended to; the first thing that comes to mind is the parable of the Good Samaritan. Why is it difficult to stop and offer a helping hand to someone who is an accident victim? I won’t be the “first to cast” the proverbial stone; but it is important to ask because a lot of us have watched accident victims die when we could have been of great help.

As I seat in front of my computer typing away; I can’t help but wonder why we turn the other way when we come across accident victims or people who truly need our help.
Well, is it because some people can’t stand the sight of blood or are we worried about the possibility of getting into trouble because of the society we live in?

We live in a society where a lot of innocent people have been sent to jail for daring to offer a helping hand to car crash victims. Our laws have been made in such a way that even hospitals struggle to accept accident victims without police reports or initial deposits. Our society is so cruel to people who dare stop bye to save lives of accident victims; but should that be enough reason to abandon a man or woman who needs our urgent help to stay alive?

I have watched and heard on national news how the government had on several occasions promised to amend existing laws to encourage people to offer assistance to accident victims without being made to suffer unnecessary consequences; but I dare say nothing has come out of those promises.

Some of our hospitals have failed us in hours of needs, and we have hopelessly watched innocent people depart this world when all that could have saved their lives was a show of care. People who shouldn’t have died in the first place are dying in our hospitals; and we couldn’t care less.
Children and innocent pedestrians are run over by escorts and other reckless drivers who have turned our roads into racetracks. Ironically, hospitals that should provide care and first class treatments are not helping matters. Even when some of these hospitals are willing to offer a helping hand; the required medical equipment are lacking.

Our society is so cruel that the rich who get involved in accident are soon flown abroad where they get first class medical treatments; while the poor are left or dumped at a general or private hospital with no first class medical equipment.
Sad thing is, when a Good Samaritan decides to damn the consequences just to save the life of an accident victim; he is discouraged by the ‘no doctor on duty’ or ‘no police report’ disease. Issues like these have led to the death of hundreds of people all over Nigeria.

The law should not only protect accident victim; but also protect the ‘Good Samaritan’ who should be given the benefit of the doubt; and not treated like a criminal. Our country should stop treating the poor as second class citizens who should be dumped in some local hospitals to die waiting for non-existing drugs or doctors to cater to their needs.

We either treat or respect them as Good Samaritans or turn them to victims of weak legal system. We owe it a duty to stop making monsters of our citizens. In other civilized societies or democracies, laws are made for the people, and not the other way round.


SOURCE:www.iyandasdiary.com