S.O.S ALIEME

The fight to halt violence against women is still a huge struggle in Nigeria. Unfortunately, ritual related crime of ‘get rich fast’ syndrome has further exacerbated violence which is a particularly extreme kind of violence against women in Nigeria. Women fall victims, their relationship with the male perpetrators speaks volumes and the reason for this act against women is just by the corner. Women love money more than anything. The rate at which people are murdered and incomplete bodies abandoned in Nigerian cities has been alarming in recent years.

In fact, hardly will a week pass by without news (on the media - prints and online) of a missing person and an incomplete human body found. In addition, cases of individuals caught with human body parts continuously flood news updates. The actual number of people mostly women, murdered for money rituals in Nigeria is not known, owing to lack of systematic data gathering on issues relating to money ritual–related killings in the country.

It is important to note, however, that ritual–related killings are not new in Nigeria. The practice dates back to the precolonial era when many communities offered human (and animal) souls and parts for ritual sacrifices to the deities.  The upsurge in taking peoples’ lives for money ritual sacrifices in Nigeria is pervasive in recent times. The reasons for this increase remain unclear.

Some experts, on one hand, claimed that the undesirable socio-economic condition (the level of poverty and unemployment) in Nigeria is an underlying factor, while others held that the culture of boundless quests for material wealth, power, and fame among Nigerians and the general beliefs that ritual sacrifices (especially those that contain human body parts) induce fortunes have encouraged money ritual–related killings in Nigerian cities.

In order to prepare ritualistic concoctions that can make the offenders wealthy, protect and advance the cause, ritualists target people who possess breasts, vulva, ovaries, head, and other physical parts as their targets especially women and girls. The incidence of using females for money rituals, its consequences for security and prevalence targeting minors, lunatics, the physically impaired and albinos calls for great concern because little attention had been focused on the “get rich fast” syndrome of   ritual killings as a form of gender-based violence against women in Nigeria.

It is widely believed that the major perpetrators of this evil act are the yahoo boys. Yahoo Boys are not ghosts, they live among us. We grew up with some of them. They share their scam escapades and proceeds at beer parlours, club houses and social gatherings in the midst of like-minds. They are very approachable as long as you are not a security operative and the principle of confidentiality is assured.

You can doubt for all you care, a lot of Nigerians, even Christians are getting involved in black magic to enhance their endeavours, the music industry is filled with traditional worship and other related sacrifices to blow and make ends meet; most business men and women also patronize native doctors to enhance their business and sales, politicians as well use ladies to unlock political charm and success. Yahoo boys are the biggest culprit as ‘real yahoo’ stopped paying some years back, but the ‘yahoo plus’ that started with pounding of a new born baby for charms is potent and many boys are ready to even mortgage their parents for wealth!  This is so painful how we’ve lost it as a nation, our values has been eroded by lure of wealth and the fast lane of life, our spiritual leaders are more interested in the validity of tithe, when the nation is burning, girls younger than 16 sell their bodies to the highest bidder and are involved in all forms of drug taking! Young boys no longer learn hand work or trade as everybody wants to be rich by all means; boys of questionable characters and reputations are role models to majority of our youths.

Where are the elders to pave the way for hard-working and integrity? Where is truth, justice and equity, where are the big multinationals to reward excellence academics and hard-work, they rather reward mediocrity with lucrative deals, Nigeria is on the verge of disaster, but no one is seeing it! I weep for the future and youths of my nation, because the future is really bleak. 

The root causes of all that we witness these days are from our leaders.  When school aged children cannot get admission into higher institutions, when graduates can no longer get jobs, when government cannot pay the living minimum wage to its workforce, when politicians turn electoral process to do or die battle, when electricity can no longer meet the demands of the citizens, when businesses have crumbled, when a citizen is an alien in his country of birth, when Boko Haram have sacked and killed innocent citizens, when Fulani Herdsmen have turned all lands in the country into their private property, when lies are told by leaders to get people’s votes, when pensioners are dying every day because of lack of payment of pensions and gratuities,  the list is endless.

Discussions on ritual crimes are generally broad, but women are being targeted for their body parts by desperate men who, with the help of ritual doctors, prepare these severed female parts for quick money rituals. Ritual-related crime against women demands immediate attention. Thus, in order to stop this terrible trend, the government must apply a gender lens to address ritual-related crime and use all available tools to ensure that it is completely removed from society.

Addressing crime will also address gender-exacerbated violence against women. Where do we go from here except we pray to God to deliver Nigeria and Nigerians from the hands of the wicked ones!!! 

God Bless Nigeria!!!