ALUU FOUR KILLINGS: ARE YOU IN SUPPORT OF JUNGLE JUSTICE?

Babalola Yusuf Abiola

In a society where majority of the people have lost faith and confidence in the government of the land, what the citizens usually experience are lawlessness, chaos, jungle justice and civil unrest. But the fact remains that in a situation like that, only the innocent and the underprivileged suffer the most.

The UNFORTUNATE FOUR that were murdered in cold blood by the indigenes of Aluu community in Rivers state were victims of circumstances of the inadequacies and corruption in the nation’s security and legal system, because should these systems work effectively and properly as they should and as we see and hear in some societies of the world, the boys would not have been killed in such condemnable manner they were killed.

They rather would have been handed over to the relevant security agencies for thorough investigation and prosecution if found guilty irrespective of personality of parents or social stratification because in other societies, the law is a respecter of nobody, not even their leaders or the billionaires.

But here in Nigeria, the reverse is the case as hardened criminals are left off the hook without persecution while innocent Nigerians who know little or nothing about an offence are put behind bars because they have no  godfather to speak for them.

In the case of the UNFORTUNATE FOUR they were lynched and burnt to death by people that are supposed to protect them, gone are those days when students are seen as the leaders of tomorrow and are taken care of by their host communities.

When I was still in the polytechnic, though the school I attended was one of the notorious institution in the South Western part of the country (apologies to graduates and students of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic, Abeokuta), that whenever the name of the institution is mentioned anywhere in the country we are seen and addressed as a cultist and prostitutes, still host communities pampers, cherish and protect us.

I still remember the old days when I stay many days without money or food stuffs in my half room apartment still the host communities provided what I eat, drink without even knowing who my parents are but in Aluu community the reverse was the case not because they are evil from the beginning but because something must have been the reasons why they behave like that. 

Am not holding brief for Aluu villagers neither am I supporting them for what they have done to the innocent students but I will like to ask few questions from my readers, has any one of you ever experienced a robbery scene before or have you ever seen a place where cultist are dealing with innocent students on campus before? If no then listen to this.

I was in the office discussing this Aluu incident with a very senior colleague in the office and he said “if these boys are really cultist I am totally in support of the punishment meted out to them” are you surprised then wait for this bombshell “a fellow corps member was killed in port Harcourt by suspected student cultists when I was on national service because they wanted to dispossess him of his mobile phone and laptop.

This guy was not struggling any of his belongings with them yet he was stabled on the neck and bled to death some days to his passing out,” my senior colleague narrated.

For anybody who has witness a robbery scene before, you see these guy brandishing dangerous weapons, beating, raping and most times killed their victims even after dispossessing them of their belongings, am sure we have not forgotten the case of the over 40 secondary school students that were rapped early this year by yet to be identified armed robbers when the students were returning from their school in the East.

Am not justifying what Aluu villagers did, but if the boys are truly what they were called that serve them right!

This is my deduction about what happened to the students and it is still a hypothesis because nobody knows what really happened, Nigerians and the world were only being filled with conflicting reports about the incident.

“Also, until Nigerians are told the real account of the story, what led to the lynching, molestation and burning, I pitch my tent with residents of Aluu Community”

Before a vigilante group could be formed in a community, it means the state, and I mean the (police) cannot guarantee security of lives and property in the said community any longer hence it is imperative for the community leaders to safe guard the lives and properties of her subjects from attacks.

Probably, men of the underworld have been given the residents’ sleepless night, so they found a way out by forming a vigilante group to secure their property. Also, due to youthful exuberance, which youths specially students don’t know where to direct them, thus direct it on the community members so Aluu being a student residential area might have been under siege by the student cult members.

When I was in the polytechnic I was opportune to see a video on a friend laptop where a group of cult members invaded a student home and ask a guy and his girlfriend to have sexual intercourse in their presence, they even go to the extent of filming the act and send the clips to friends and students on the campus, the lady’s offence was that he left one of their members to date another student in the institution, the lady later left the school when the shame was too much for her to bear.

What about the molestation of three innocent students of Tai Solarin University of Education, Ogun State by cult members because a friend of their victims was alleged to have slapped one of the cult members, the ladies were kidnapped and taken to an uncompleted building where the ladies were undressed, molested and the video taken were sent to the internet and all around the university environments.

One of the three ladies could not withstand the humiliation she received from the cultist for an offence she knows nothing about hence commit suicide, the rest as they say is now a story because nothing was done to the guys after the issue was reported to the police, though arrest were made in the first instance but nothing concrete came out of the arrest.

So, in a society where impunity are not checked, jungle justice are meant to happen because people no more have patience and believe in the system, then I ask you these mind bugging questions, if the robbers that raped the innocent secondary students on their way to Lagos were caught in the act by residents of the community where the act was perpetuated, will they have forgiven them or will the community have administer jungle justice on the criminals? Or will the parents of the students ever wish the criminals well with the trauma the children will have to live with till the end of their life. 

What about a big brother in my community that have his father killed in his presence by men of the underworld who visited their house, will he ever wish the boys who perpetuated the act well and should those guys be caught that night then will he wished to hand them over to the police or administer jungle justice on them? Permit me to borrow a verse from the Old Testament that says, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

And lastly, the corps member that was killed in port Harcourt some days to his passing out parade when he was being disposed of his personal belongings he bought with his hard earned money, if you are his family members and you caught the perpetrators in the act will you hand them over to the police or administer jungle justice?

These and many more are questions begging for answers from Nigerians am not in support of what Aluu community did to the promising young chaps, neither am I in support of jungle justice or kangaroo trial but if the government doesn’t restore confidence into the mind of the people in the society, should corruption is not fought to stand still in the security system or the society at large, Nigeria will soon experience another Aluu killings.

Also, until Nigerians are told the real account of the story, what led to the lynching, molestation and burning, I pitch my tent with residents of Aluu community,