One mob action too many -By Ronke Sonowo

The lynching of a 38-year-old sound engineer, Dave Imoh, by a mob of okada riders on Admiralty Road, Lekki Phase 1 in Lagos, on Thursday, May 12, 2022, brought back memories of similar mob actions from the past. Time or should I say space constraints will not permit a list of them all. However, a must recall is the Aluu 4, which occurred in 2012. Four male undergraduates at the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, were lynched by a mob in Aluu, a community in Rivers, for alleged theft. It was later discovered that the accusation was false. The horror is etched in my memory.

On the day Imoh was murdered, a beautiful Christian lady experienced a similar atrocity in Sokoto State. Deborah Samuel was a 200-level student of Home Economics at the Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto. Samuel was beaten, stoned to death and burnt. She was just 22. Her crime? Alleged blasphemy. In this time and age? Tragic!

This is one too many mob actions and it is simply unacceptable that any civil and sane society tolerates this. Samuel’s death invokes a myriad of emotions—sadness, anger, fear, disillusion, helplessness, ‘fed-upness’ (if there is such a word). Why is Nigeria like this? How is it possible that in 2022, in a modern metropolitan town like Lekki Phase 1, a senseless mob action, executed by commercial motorcyclists (Okada riders) on a tax-paying family man, can occur in full view of passersby who videoed the incident?

I first heard of the horror on Monday, May 16, from my husband, four days after the gruesome murder. He had gotten home from work that evening and asked if I’d heard of a sound engineer who’d been beaten and burnt to death by a mob on Admiralty Road. I was shocked. Being a resident of Lekki, this literally happened in my backyard! I replied I hadn’t, and then I suddenly remembered: Earlier during the day, I saw a post on WhatsApp that said, “It was Deborah in Sokoto, Now it’s Dave in Lekki…#AriseNigeria.” I made the connection. I didn’t want to believe what happened to Deborah in Sokoto had within a few days suddenly been replicated here in Lekki (then I wasn’t even aware both murders had occurred on the same Thursday)—apparently, I was in denial. My husband shook me out of my false bubble and brought me back to the horrific reality we are presently living in Nigeria—mob action, lynching, kidnapping, robbery, killings, rape; all these are security concerns the average Nigerian deals with every single day are quite overwhelming and enough to make one’s mind pop or just shut down!

This has gotten to a level of ridiculousness! I live in Lekki, so I’m aware there are at least two police stations in the environs. Where were the police when this wickedness was being perpetuated? And how is it possible that in a sane society full of humans—not animals—people will watch a fellow human being beaten and burnt to death and just you stand there, capturing it on video? The inaction of passersby and video recorders is a direct reflection of how low we’ve sunk as a society.

Dear passerby, was there absolutely nothing else you could do besides staring at the situation mouth agape? Pray tell, of what use are your ooaas, eeeeyahs, omase os when a life is being snuffed out before your very eyes?

Dear video recorder, was there nothing tangible you could do to save Dave besides recording him being debased. Have we all become so callous and conscienceless that none of the watchers were moved to productive actions that could have saved Dave Imoh? No one was moved to jump into the fray to save his life? Have we all lost our humanity? Is our only focus self-preservation? It may be you in this situation tomorrow, or your sister, or your brother, wife, mother, father or friend. Won’t you wish someone steps in to help? Why are we such fearful people? I dare say if someone had taken the courageous step to help, more people may have been emboldened to jump in to help defend Dave. Who knows? That action might have made a difference. Who knows? Maybe Dave would have been saved and his wife and two children won’t be mourning his demise. It only takes a person to make a difference. Let’s be our neighbours’ keeper.

I understand the Lagos State Taskforce swung into action by confiscating scores of Okada (motorcycles) over the past couple of days. Sahara Reporters reported that 10 suspects linked to Dave’s murder have been arrested. These developments are highly commendable, however, I’m curious to know what happens to the numerous confiscated Okadas? I do hope they are destroyed.

Everyone knows these Okada riders are dangerous and have been a menace for a long time. My question is why has the Lagos State Government not done anything to rid Lagos State permanently of these disasters waiting to happen?

On a final note, it is rightly said that evil triumphs where good men sit and do nothing. Enough of us sitting and doing nothing, hoping by some miracle it will all go away. As the WhatsApp post aptly put it, “It was Deborah in Sokoto, now it’s Dave in Lekki…. Who is Next? #AriseNigerians.”

To this end, I’d like to appeal to the relevant authorities to ensure they leave no stone unturned in bringing the full weight of the law on these murderers, to serve as a deterrent to all.

I’d also like to appeal to the Lagos State Government to ban okada riding in the state. They constitute a danger, a menace and a nuisance on our streets. Riders can be given the choice of either engaging in meaningful work and contributing to the growth of Lagos State or return to their home states.

Micah 6:8…He has shown you O man what is good. And what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly before God.

EKO ONI BAJE O!

Ronke Sonowo writes from Lekki, Lagos