Voice of Emancipation: Extrajudicial Killings in Okun Land

By Kayode Emola

Last week, I saw a video showing scores of people being displaced in Okun land, Kogi State. Whilst this is prevalent in many areas of Yorubaland and elsewhere in Nigeria, we need to pay particular attention to what is happening in our Yoruba northern borders, especially Kogi and Kwara.

The rate at which the Fulani terrorists are kidnapping and killing villagers in Okun land is alarming, and we cannot afford to do nothing. The Nigerian government appears impotent in the situation, but we know it is not because they are incapable of reacting.

That the Nigerian government has not reacted to the extrajudicial killings going on around the country is not because the military is weak. It is because the killing of innocent civilians does not threaten the seat of power. Therefore, the government does not feel obliged to help communities being displaced by the Fulani terrorists.

Had the terrorists declared war on Aso Rock or any state government building, the government would not hold back from unleashing the power of the state to crush the terrorists’ activities. However, because it is merely citizens who are crying, the government does not see the need to act.

Our Yoruba people should understand that the Nigerian government does not care for our welfare. They care only about the resources available to loot. If there is nothing in the treasury, then they seek to borrow from the international community in order to pocket that, as well.

We cannot pretend that all is well when our kinsmen are being driven out of their inheritance. Our ancestors will not forgive us if we close our eyes to these atrocities and do nothing to help our tribesmen who are being displaced from their communities in their thousands.

These affected communities cannot afford to wait for the state or federal government to help them secure their environment. The events in Plateau State have shown us that the military officers sent to protect the community were the same ones who were working for the terrorists.

The only recourse we have now is to set up an effective vigilante group in every community vulnerable to the Fulani terrorist attack. The answer lies in encouraging the youths of these affected areas to defend their lands and their heritage. Recent events have demonstrated just how badly taking justice into one’s own hands can end.

The government instruments cannot be the answer to the situation in which we find ourselves if they are complicit in the crime being committed. Let us not deceive ourselves; Nigeria is long gone and cannot be salvaged.

Therefore, at this time, every Yoruba person needs to think deeply about the future that we want to leave for our children. Is it a future in a rotten society like Nigeria, or do we want to secure our own sovereign Yoruba land where justice and equity will prevail?

If the latter is the desire of our dreams, then we need to understand that it requires effort to work towards it. In order to achieve it, we must be ready to put all our heart into it, not just for what we shall gain personally but for what will benefit the entirety of our people.