On the killing of 16 Fulani hunters, remember it was not done by Igbo
By Invitation.
I am not a fan of jungle justice, and I regret the fact that innocent lives were lost.
It happened that in Edo State, the farmers/herders crisis had persisted, with the kidnapping of the people of Edo State and wanton killing of farmers happening on a daily basis. The state government couldn’t control it, although it had become a national problem over the years.
The herders use AK47s, and when a man possesses such an assault rifle, he could do anything he wants, ranging from kidnapping for ransom to intimidation for control. And the people of Edo State had had enough of the menace.
On seeing a trailer load of Fulani hunters travelling for the Salah celebration with their hunting guns and charms, the people of Edo State pounced on them, yelling that they had caught the Fulani kidnappers and marauders terrorising the indigenous people (of Edo).
Unluckily for the Fulani hunters, jungle justice had overshadowed the sequence, and they were burnt alive with fanfare. It was a relief for the people of Edo that the perpetrators of murder and kidnapping had finally been served jungle justice, but it dawned on them that the wrong guys were burnt.
I am disturbed because Nigeria is deeply divided to the extent that each tribe wants the blood of another.
Someone may ask why I chose this caption or line of thought. The answer is not far away. When a cartoonist in Europe mockingly drew Muhammed, Hausa/Fulani descended on Igbo Christians and massacred them.
When a group of young Nigerian soldiers in 1966 planned and executed a coup, Hausa/Fulani and their Yoruba backers tagged it the Igbo coup and descended on the Igbo and massacred them. That action spiralled out of control and led to the civil war that took the lives of more than 3.5 Igbo people.
So, I chose the topic because I know what Nigeria can become in split seconds. I know that Igbo is the target in whatever happens in this country. Igbo, as an endangered species, must take extraordinary measures to remind Nigeria of her position when the wind of tribal tension is blowing.
When the EndSARS protest occurred, Igbo people joined the protest, and we all saw the blood that was shed during the protest. Despite the protest starting in Lagos, Igbo people were blamed for the protest, and in the Southeast, there was more open confrontation than in other regions.
Meanwhile, during the Hunger/EndBadGovernance protest, Igbo people distanced themselves and the region from the protest, and we saw how it panned out. The protest was successfully done without much waste of lives. Nigeria mildly approached the protesters and wisely suppressed it.
Compare it to the unarmed protest championed by IPOB in the country; we saw the Nigerian government unleash their mad dogs in the military and change the rule of engagement – shoot at sight! Of course, any time Igbo is involved, they get badly agitated to kill.
The next thing that triggered me to choose this caption is the antecedents of Nigerians in relation to Igbo. In Lagos, during EndBadGovernance protest, the Igbo were accused of orchestrating the protest because they said some people saw one protestor dressed like an Igbo man. The accusation was shut down because Igbo openly declared that they were not part of the protest.
Agreed, Igbo are residing in every part of this country, and despite the alleged domineering nature of an Igbo man that made them the destination of massacre, an Igbo man barely gives a hoot about politics in his host community. He only wants his shop to be open, and every other thing is irrelevant.
Before Fulani acts or before we hear Hausa/Fulani are angry in the northern part of the country and, as usual, begin to target Igbo people, it should be clearly communicated to them that the murder of Fulani hunters has nothing to do with Igbo people.
Hausa/Fulani are fond of saying southern Nigeria is one when it comes to looking for a loophole to offend Igbo, but when it comes to what will benefit Igbo, southern Nigeria becomes divided. Igbo becomes isolated, of course; in this issue, we remain isolated.
It’s more of a conflict between the Hausa/Fulani and Yoruba; we already know how it would end. Get down and do your peace talk, but be well informed that southern Nigeria is not Igbo. So, please, respect Igbo people in your region and keep them out of your plans.
Author.
Ifeanyichijioke97@gmail.com
