The first duty of government is to protect its citizens. Unless this is dine, all else is futile. If the state does not guarantee the safety of its citizens, anarchy ensues.
People are in effect taking the law into their own hands.
And this can only be because their experience tells them that the sate is unable to protect them. Government has correctly deplored such developments while issuing dire threats to crack down on criminal elements. As we all know, empty threats rapidly lose their credibility. It is well known that the support for the return of the death penalty is high among all population groups. Our constitution frustrates the popular will in regard to capital punishment, a subject of heated debate around the world, stuck on a weird perception that the criminal has a right to life.