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The list of murderers gets longer…

By Chukwuneta Oby
28 March 2020   |   3:58 am
In a social media post about the Nigerian cousins that fought themselves over money palaver in South Africa...in which one ended up hitting the other with a stone on the head and snuffed life out of him

IMAGE CREDIT: One man’s funnies

In a social media post about the Nigerian cousins that fought themselves over money palaver in South Africa…in which one ended up hitting the other with a stone on the head and snuffed life out of him, someone commented that the police who stood by and couldn’t stop the fight also share in the murder blame.

But I think there’s another category of MURDERERS to be added to that list. Those who were more concerned with capturing the incident on video!

Couldn’t they have dropped the phone and join forces to separate the brawl, on seeing that it was taking a dangerous dimension? No sane person gets entertained by violence!

People, no amount of “social media entertainment” is worth a human life or dignity!

When witnessing an unfortunate incident that can do with your intervention, please keep away that phone and do the needful. Don’t wait to see “who will win”…because none might emerge.

Your effort may end up averting an unfortunate end-result, otherwise you are an enabler and life will mark you so!

This also brings me to the incidents of publicly ridiculed women accused of various “offences”, from committing adultery, to pilfering and (as claimed in the videos) – trying to kill somebody.

What rattles me about the MOB (including those who stand by and just make videos of such madness) is the penchant to strip such women naked…with some prodding their “privates” with sticks. And then come to the injuries being inflicted with sticks and other weapons at hand.

What comes to mind is the sexual depravity of individuals who hide behind “the mob” to perpetuate all sorts.

Only a sexually depraved individual would think it appropriate to strip anybody -especially a woman- (no matter her offence) naked and begin to prod her “privates” with sticks. Even you that is busy making video of such madness (probably for social media entertainment)…you are NO better.

If a woman (or anybody for that matter) has committed any offence…HAND HER OVER TO THE POLICE. Yes, lock him/her up.

If it’s your woman that is caught doing something bad and you don’t want to marry again…kindly send her away. But for goodness sake, don’t debase her through a mob court. It doesn’t portray you in a good light.

This is the time for the NIGERIAN POLICE to rise up to the occasion. Put out a notification…that, it’s actually an offence for anybody or group of persons to take matters of this nature into their own hands. Set an example with a few people, so that the rest can regain their senses.

The video makers are culprits, too. It’s an infringement on another’s privacy. Where are the NGOS tackling social issues? Here’s a worthy cause for you as well.

Embark on some enlightenment campaigns. Make people understand that IT IS NOT JUSTICE when you set up a MOB COURT on anybody-no matter their offence. Especially one that seems to comprise of sexually depraved individuals. Nobody should be debased in such a manner.

Like everything that has to do with the MOB…some of these accusations are not even substantiated, but that’s story for the gods because all a mob court needs to hold is a SHOUT.

I mean, we don’t even know when someone (a scorned lover, for example) is spearheading such out of spite? By the way, whose right is it to dictate what two CONSENTING ADULTS do with themselves?

You read me right…what right does anybody have to lay a finger on another accused of committing adultery? Is there a law in Nigeria against WHO SLEEPS WITH WHO (based on MARITAL STATUS), yet?

Moral values are a personal decision. And so, it’s really nobody’s business who another slept or didn’t sleep with. These mob courts seems to hold on vulnerable fellows in the community and this is where the rest of us should come in.

Ignorance is also a huge factor here. Otherwise, victims should know how to simply CALL THE POLICE in such circumstances and set an example with some known faces in the crowd.

To shop owners…if anybody is caught pilfering in your premises, please hand him or her over to the POLICE and NOT to a MOB!

The craze to capture everything on video and used to garner “likes’’ on the social media is so alarming that even when someone is in grave danger, those who should help out are busy doing videos of such incidents. A preference for social-media popularity to humanity?

In narrating his experiences, a friend who incurred losses during a fire outbreak, said: ‘’As my place of business burnt down, there were at least 50 people recording the incident, instead of helping us salvage the salvageables.

“Sadly, the few things we were able to salvage, were looted right there, as the cameras rolled on.’’

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