Just before you crucify me based on the title of this article, I’ll implore you to read through before you pass your judgement..
I can chastise Uniport students for embarking on a reprisal rampage on Aluu community now because I’m out of school, but I know I would have done worse when I was also a student. In fact, I did when I was still an undergraduate of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State. I was never a member of the SUG at any time and never held any post in my department and faculty but, I was a rebel. A true rebel in the sense of the word, all thanks to the orientation I got from my secondary school, Saint Finbarr’s College, Akoka, Lagos. For most of you who know live/lived around Akoka, you will know exactly what I am talking about. Being the rebel I am was the reason behind my sneaking out of my parents’ house to #OccupyNigeria last January. Though, I was spotted on TV by my folks later on.
I remember vividly when the indigenes of my university’s host community decided to turn on the students, I fought and fought mercilessly. Though, I shouldn’t have, but the rage burning inside of me was far too much. How could they kill a student simply because he disobeyed curfew despite the fact that the only weapons they found on him was a small torchlight, and his books? “What the hell is wrong with these people?”, I muttered to myself. After 2 weeks of ultimatum given to the community and police to produce the killers elapsed, we decided to deliver justice by ourselves.
That fateful day, I was on campus awaiting my Physics 101 test, the SUG came on campus and announced a peaceful protest was going to be staged. Immediately, my secondary school days orientation kicked into motion. It seemed like an opportunity to get back at the community. By that afternoon, I was fully engrossed in thoughts on what to do. Just then the protest march began and we were on our way to the Oba’s palace. I was so angry that I felt like killing all the indigenes we met on the way, but it was peaceful all along until we got to the Oba’s palace, then all hell was let loose. Immediately we got to the Oba’s palace, we were denied entry as the Oba who was well known to be a notorious snub demanded that we return to our various houses without attending to our grievances. When it dawned on him that we won’t budge, he took the worst decision. He grabbed a gun from one of his palace guards and shot into the crowd of students, before we could recover, he had disappeared into thin air.
That was the trigger I needed. As soon as the dusts settled, we marched on into the palace and brought it down along with all the cars in the compound. Next we marched to the Oba’s family house and razed it down, not willing to spare anything that belonged to the Oba or his family. Only after all these had been done did it occur to me that I had missed my friend Joe with whom we went. I started searching for him in the crowd, after a minute of searching for him, I got a message telling me Joe had been shot in the head. And then ‘sshhhh’, my heart sunk. Just when I was almost crying, the rage grew again, I was determined to kill at least 1 indigene to get justice for Joe. We terrorized, tremendously, the whole of Ago-Iwoye community till evening. We beat everything and everybody that we came in encounter with. While some were busy looting shops, some were singing war songs, the spirit of Aluta had descended!
Later that evening, an announcement came that all students living in the Ago-Iwoye community shouldn’t sleep at home, rather they should all move to the mini-campus which was safer. Fearing that there’s a possible attack on students during the wee hours of the night, most students moved to the mini-campus while some who didn’t get the memo or simply ignored the message slept at home that night. I was among those that slept at home, reason being I stayed in Oru-Ijebu which was another community entirely as at then so there was no cause for alarm. I couldn’t sleep throughout the night as I thought of Joe, my friend. He had been shot in the head and I can’t really say what’s actually up with him.
The next day I woke very early and stood outside my house, then I saw students who had slept on campus trickling in their hundreds from the neighbouring Ago-Iwoye town into Oru-Ijeb. It was a treacherous journey they had made as early as that time. Just when I was grinding my teeth against each other in anger mixed with fear, I heard my neighbour Bukola crying. As I walked up to her to ascertain what was wrong, I was shivering expecting to hear the worst. I was a bit relieved when she told me her younger cousin, Sulaiman was stuck at home as he couldn’t leave the building for fear of being attacked by the indingenes as school had already been shut down. I spoke to him on phone and I knew he was really terrified, in fact he was hidden in the house by his old landlady (God bless her). She had denied harbouring any student in her house when the indigenes came at night looking for students. The woman then advised that we find our way down to Ololo in Ago where he was located so as to rescue him from the house. Armed with a UTC chopping knife, otherwise known as ‘lèbé’ and a machete, I summoned my roommate, Adeyinka Babade (@Babarde) and we marched out. Against all odds, we went into the death zone.
As soon as we got to Itamerin junction, we met the presence of the police, armed to the teeth. I just walked past them like they never existed. On and on I went like Spartacus, with my Babarde right behind me on our rescue mission. As soon as we got to Mariam junction in Ago, we faced our greatest fear, a gang of young indigenes wielding dangerous weapons and different types/sizes of charms. At that point, I knew I had gotten to that point of no return. But instead of begging, I will rather die fighting. After a series of sticks, bottles, stones-throwing and a little effort from some other students (Get Sense Crew), we apprehended one of them. And then the lynching began. At that time, I was more concerned about my mission and the thought of my shot friend weakened my anger that I couldn’t join in the beating of the scape-goat. After I dealt the guy some punches, I left the attempted murder to the others. When it became obvious that the other students’ intent was to kill the indigene, I stood up for him and pleaded for his life. After a hot argument with some of the others, they reluctantly agreed to free the guy. Although I felt stupid for standing up for the guy because that was my only chance to get revenge for my Joe but…
We pushed further into Ololo, our rescue mission location and got Sulaiman out safe and unhurt. He was very happy to see us as we raced out of Ago. Wielding my weapon in victory, I felt great! Just then, my heart jolted to a halt when I remembered Joe again, he had been shot a day ago and no word yet from anybody, then I became all gloomy, sad and angered!
As soon as we were on our way back to Itamerin junction, we saw our school bus racing at top speed right behind us. I stopped to look back at the occupants of the bus. With my hands in the air oblivious of the fact that I was holding a weapon, I screamed on top of my voice in happiness. Little did I know that I was mistaken, for the bus was filled to the brim with indigenes. They had seized our school bus and were then using it as a camouflage against us (students). With my hands still in the air, I saw someone point a gun at me from the window of the bus, my whole life flickered right in front of me. I heard the gun go off and then I was on the ground almost immediately. I thought I had died but thanks to God, I was narrowly missed or so I guess. The bus sped off and rammed into a road block set up by the police. It was a bad collision that the bus almost tumbled, flinging some occupants who sat on the window of the bus unto the road. Just like ants to sugar, students descended on the ones that fell off the bus because even with the collision, the bus never stopped. It sped off leaving the fallen occupants at the mercy of the students. By now, there was nothing I could do to save the fallen indigenes.
They were so mashed up that it will take surgeons from India to reconstruct them. But before they could be killed, the police stepped in and cleared the mob. So I hooked up with Sulaiman and my room-mate Babade and we made the rest of the journey back to Oru. Not long after we got to my house in Oru, my phone rang. And guess who? It was Joe. He had been treated for gunshot wounds. Fortunately, he was shot with a local gun which uses pellets instead of bullets. Although, he was badly hurt but at least he survived. The next day, my cousin’s dad sent a car all the way from Lagos to pick us up with a military escort. We left Ago-Iwoye safely. It was later I discovered in the news that scores of students had been killed over the previous night. It was a horrible site to behold. I was so sad. As angered and vindictive as I was with the indigenes of Aluu for the murder of the four UniPort students, I thought within me, if I were a student of UniPort, what would I have done? The normal answer that came to mind was; I will erase Aluu from the Nigerian map. But wait, why did I forgive that indigene we caught in Ago-Iwoye? Why did I not just end his life there or probably step aside and watch the others do it? Why did I plead for his life? It wasn’t until now that I discovered I had done the right thing. It took the Grace of God to take that painstaking decision to forgive and also for other students to have listened to my pleas. Not everyone will have that forgiving mind like I did years back. Hence, my reason to stand with UniPort.
This, however, is no justification for UniPort students’ reprisal attacks on Aluu community but it’s an eye-opener to see the lapses of our security operatives. Based on experience, I believe the police should have anticipated a reprisal from the students which seems natural as students are known to be trouble-prone.
I hope this incident will help stir our government into top speed to commence a general restructuring of Nigeria’s hugely corrupt and unreliable justice system
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