The much awaited appeal hearing of Pastor Joshua Esosa’s case today (06.06.2012) in Vienna , Austria came and went but our expectations are still hanging. The absence of one of the witnesses stalled the court proceedings that forced the case to be adjourned to August 1st, 2012 in the same court room by 9:15 am.
Even though the sound of bitter cola is different from its taste, however, if testimonies of people both Africans and Austrians in Vienna regarding the current presiding Chief Judge are anything to go by, Pastor Joshua Esosa will get a fair hearing under his lordship.
“The name of Nigeria can never be re-branded
when her citizens are seen as criminals in the
eyes of the world.”
According to Pastor Joshua Esosa’s lawyer whom I spoke to after the court, Dr. Georg Uitz, Pastor Joshua Esosa would get justice because the judge was a no nonsense judge with integrity that could not be influenced by the police or anything against his conscience. He said that holes had been picked in the first trial that made the case to be transferred from higher court to the lower court. In his words, “I am optimistic that the truth will come out that Esosa is not guilty. We have been fighting since more than a year he was arrested. In the first trial he was sentenced but the decision was reviewed by the upper court and now the whole trial has to be repeated. […] I cannot predict the future because only God knows the future but I hope very much, that he will be set free because this is a very, very honourable judge, he will not let himself to be influenced by the police or by demonstrations. Whatever he believes he will decide. I believe, I hope and I am sure that he has the right feeling for the case […] that Esosa is not guilty. If he has the opinion that he is not guilty he will set him free. As I know and I’m convinced that Esosa is not guilty, I am very optimistic, very optimistic that the judge will say so.”
I want to appeal to the federal government of Nigeria to please not to allow this evil racial sentence against Pastor Joshua Esosa to stand because he is really innocent. If this iniquity is allowed to stand, it will be a conviction on all Nigerian clergymen, it will be a conviction on all black men in Austria especially Nigerians and it will be a conviction of Nigeria as an entity. Of what relevance will it be to the Nigerian citizens if their government that has been campaigning hugely about re-branding the name, Nigeria , allows them to be disgraced, insulted and humiliated into prisons in foreign lands for offences they have not committed without their government asking questions. The name of Nigeria can never be re-branded when her citizens are seen as criminals in the eyes of the world. The best way to re-brand Nigeria for international recognition and respect is to fight this stereotype that Nigerians are criminals, and the case of Pastor Joshua Esosa is one of the few cases for which we need to launch the awareness in Austria . What is happening to Pastor Joshua Esosa can never happen to any European or American citizen.
“I equally appeal to everybody to stand up and
help to break the yoke of this Armageddon network
built by Babylonians because this is the 21th century.”
I want the world to know especially the Nigerian audience that I have gone deeply in this issue and that the truth I saw was naked, Pastor Joshua Esosa is not guilty. I equally appeal to everybody to stand up and help to break the yoke of this Armageddon network built by Babylonians because this is the 21th century.
- Uzoma Ahamefule writes from Vienna, Austria. Mail: uzomaah@yahoo.com