Crusaderhotnews
Eben Enasco reporting
Edo State like Taliban of Afghanistan, has “gone off the radar” and now under heightened threat for sane habitations.
The State is now literally steeped in history over cult related crisis.
The threat to human lives and properties have escalated beyond mere imagination with the spate of violence of all forms including assassination, robbery, theft, burglary and murder in the State.
Thanks especially to recent Jail-break and Police facilities that were razed down that tend to have let loosed condemned criminals following #ENDSARS# peaceful protest reportedly hijacked by suspected hoodlums.
Security apparatus were carted away, leaving the society in their own fate.
Since then, the level of insecurities in the state have tubor charged with those who would have done justice to their menaces still morale down.
Security threats had for long constituted a major impediment to the smooth economic growth and
pursuit in Edo State.
In a state that was relatively calm and known for Peaceful coexistence, today, the sound of the gun, now bring closer another embarrassing end of the day with fears.
Not until the bread winner in every family returns physically home after work every day, no one is sure of his safety and who the sporadic spinning Pilates would have knocked off the perch as well.
It is an understatement to say that the environment devoid of peace
cannot enhance a meaningful growth.
The net is closing in on rivals court groups who are at the center of the bloody upper Sakponba gang feud after over 28 people have been reportedly murdered in less than two weeks since the recent feuds.
Several Frightening footage have emerged across strata where robed gangs attacked rivalry group with knifes, Broken bottles, pitchforks, guns and Cutlasses in attempt to over power and perhaps sniff life out of their prey.
The fulcrum of Youths who are direct perpetrators are between 15 and 25 years age bracket.
These, when in action, don't believe in Mercy. They shoot for fun and always happy doing so.
The United Nations defines youth as persons between the ages of 15 and 24 with all UN statistics based on this range, the UN states education as a source for these statistics.
The UN also recognizes that this varies without prejudice to other age groups listed by member states such as 18–30.
At this age stages, Youth can be a positive force for development when provided with the knowledge and opportunities they deserved.
Human development is a continuous process that proceeds in a fairly orderly manner throughout life.
All individuals experience the various stages of physical, psychological, and social development.
A PRIORITY MISPLACED.
Killing Youths of same struggle in a society where they would have channeled their grievances to the Government at all levels, have become a failure, and a misplaced priority.
Youths must now see the outcome as a total waste of future generations.
Those who ought to pay for their sins are not youths but acclaimed Leaders who had been clustered in selfishness.
But then, it's not enough to channel whatever anger of theirs on killing each other. It's a bad formula to turn your eyes against one another.
Why embarked on house to house search for each other without any challenge, in spite of the recent Protest seeking a change to Youths neglect by the authority, it is an indication of lack of concentration on priorities.
If youths truly represents the hope of this nation, killing each other in the guise of Cultism shouldn't be a priority.
The Endsars Protests united Youths against bad leadership, but then, resorting to killing one self is a misplaced priority and that have to stop.
Like the case of Etinosa Osifo, father of one of the killed youths who was reported to have been shot at close range by members of another rival group is a testimony of youths losing grip about the future.
At Edaiken Primary school Road Uselu, a popular gang star was bundled to death with linings of Cutlass marks that demembered his body.
A source disclosed that prior to his death, he was seen attacking another road user who was said to be returning from work.
He was said to have succeeded in stabbing the Victim with a knife who was eventually rushed to the hospital.
The Victim according to the source also belong to a deadly cult group whose members avenged and hack him to death.
The parents who reside in a close by street where the unfortunate incident occurred lamented the manner at which their Son was murdered according to eye Witnesses who narrated the ordeal.
With the murder of that youths, it has become a minus to his Generation and the ones to come.
HOW THE GAME CHANGED.
Before cultism spilled into the streets, its base of operation lay in the secret corners in Nigerian universities and polytechnics.
It should be stated that confraternities should not be mistaken for secret cults.
In the 50s, confraternities were created with noble ideas and objectives by founding fathers.
In Nigeria today, a significant proportion of student activism does not present a desire by the activist students to correct campus or society ills and/ or assert alignment with an identity.
Rather, it has been abused to form cults—covert activist cum religious occultist associations that are not only dangerous to themselves but to others who are on the campus to pursue their legitimate goals.
The distasteful sweet feeling that comes with harming someone in return for an injury is what propelled some students to join cult gang.
The need to exert revenge on a campus bully, lecturer, or a fellow student who wronged another is a prominent reason for joining among cult members.
Cultists mostly operate underground, bestriding the campus landscape like a
colossus whenever they choose to strike.
Surreptitiously hiding their identity from other members of the university community, members of the campus cults are bold, daring and deadly.
Their activities involve murder, rape and robbery, among other forms of violent.
Those who relatively cut corners for more powers are adventurous Cult leaders who believed in lording over others.
Power gives you wing and wings that can make you fly above everyone else on campus and lord your presence over everyone.
This is the kind of narrative some cult groups deploy to lure innocent students, Bus drivers, dropouts and some street urchins into their midst.
And anyone who feels having such power would make him cut corners, escape lecturers punishments and feel like a lord among his peers would buy the rhetoric and get initiated in no time.
This is where the narrative deviated from the original agenda of setting up Confraternity activism on campuses.
They missed it the moment they witnessed some level of success in campus battles only by initiating homeless boys, those closed to friends in campuses that couldn’t gain admissions, bus conductors, land grabbers, motor park touts.
The body bags are on the increase because of poor background of those initiated with leaders losing grips over their supposed subordinates.
Most often, heads of various cult groups have no Educational background yet dictates for those in campuses who are supposed to build territorial gaps.
The land-grabber and Bus Conductors now determine how campus life works, whilst they have no idea how campuses it actually functions.
They form bulk of Zonal heads with the only orientation to avenge any opposition whenever crisis arose.
To curb these numerous excesses, the leadership must halt initiating those without perquisite and instill stringent procedures.
FAILED INSTITUTIONS.
The basic roles of institution which include efficiency in service delivery are absolutely relegated to the background, which by extension, impacts negatively on economic performance in the Country.
Unlike the widely held views that corruption is a manifestation of institutional failure, I suggest that institutional failure is rather a manifestation of corruption in the Country.
It is obvious that Nigerians are not happy that the Federal Government has misplaced its priority by meddling in what should not be of concern to them.
The Standard of living in the Country today, is less than zero in ratings.
Youths have become stranded with bad policies and the implementation of such policies by successive Governments.
Government at all levels are palpable culprits culminating from bad leadership that had steered the resources' overtime.
Despite governments not leaving up to expectations, parents also have a fair share in a child up brings and this must be addressed.
Nigeria's institutions are weak because successive Government have failed to build infrastructures stable for development and create job opportunities.
The expectation of average Nigerian who just graduated to secure career job lifeline is almost impossible. In Nigeria, jobs are created on papers.
Therefore, many of those youths who would have obeyed common ethical nubs only survive through their own efforts since Government can't provide for them basic needs
THREATS TO SECURITY OPERATIVES, THREATS TO ALL
If those whose first mandate is to secure lives and properties are now afraid to carry out their duties surely because of certain threats, then something definitely is wrong with such society.
This is the frightening moment a gang, one of whom is armed with a pitchfork, broken bottles, guns and other life threatening weapons launch a savage attack on citizens.
Footage of scary scenes have unfolded in most flash point areas and have become a source of worry.
Few days ago, Police team led by an Assistant Commissioner Of Police who also heads one of the Area Commands were Attacked with the officers sustaining bullets wounds occasioned in exchanges of guns between the suspected criminals and the police.
Police are human and also deserves protection. Most wives of Policemen have become widows and poorly treated with no end in sight of their welfare packages.
In a recent remarks by the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, while on official Visit to affected States to take on the spot Assessments of the attacked police stations in Edo State Command post Endsars Protests, he said, "is it Good for a police policeman to die with a raffle in his hands? The response was thunderous.
The IGP was right to an extent when he urged the police operatives to defend selves considering the level at which hoodlums have continued to launch various attacks on them.
Although, some bad elements have polluted the police institution, however, that can't underscore the values they bring in curbing criminal attacks.
The commissioner of Police Edo State Command, Johnson Kokumo said recently that since various police divisional stations were set ablaze, crimes have been on the increase.
His words: “Just imagine what it means that three police stations along Sokponba Road, Benin were destroyed and burnt, patrol vehicles were destroyed in many other parts of Edo State".
Today, many of the criminal cultists openly brandishes AK-47 rifles, machetes, battle axes, broken bottles, clubs and other dangerous weapons in broad daylight, shooting sporadically throughout the night and heightening tension in Benin and its environs.
Speaking on the telephone on Saturday, the Edo State Commissioner of Police, Babatunde Kokumo, said that officers and men of the command were working within existing limitations to reclaim public space and restore normalcy to the state.
These anomalies must stop and peace must return to encourage development.
ROLE OF EDO STATE GOVERNMENT.
One of the major step undertaken by responsible Government is to create jobs for restive Youths.
Creating an integrity base Community Policing can also help stamp-out lawlessness in the state.
However, Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, recently reassured that his administration is devising a new state-led security scheme to tackle rising insecurity in an effort to safeguard lives and property in Edo State.
Obaseki disclosed this at the Passing out Parade of 877 Special Constables under the Community Police Project, at the Police Training School, Ogida, in Benin City.
The governor noted that it has become inevitable in the light of the flawed central policing system in the country, which makes the demand for restructuring of the nation more germane.
Obaseki added that the 877 Special Constables are part of the first batch of the 2000 constables to be trained for community policing in collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force in Edo State.
“The idea of community policing is not new to us as an administration. This concept which has led to the recruitment, training and subsequent graduation of the special constables was one of the ideas I discussed with the present Inspector General of Police, Adamu Mohammed, when he served as the Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police Zone 5 in Benin City, several years ago,” he said.
There are two sides to the creation of the Community Policing.
First indication is the window of jobs creation and secondly taking Policing to the grass root were indigenous people will play a key role in Combating crimes.
By this, it would help fish out those who are not from the state and endeared the lost trust between the Government and the governed.
The Frame work for the community Policing architecture must encompass traditional institutions, Religious leaders, Community leaders and various stakeholders to bring it to fruition.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Thus, the Nigerian economy faces enormous challenges and a bleak future unless fundamental steps are taken to redress the legacies of the past.
Among the many requirements for curbing corruption, crimes and hopelessness, is moral regeneration through moral education.
This would require the establishment of an institute for ethical studies for public officers, youths and business persons in the state in extension Nigeria.
It would also require Nigerians doing things in fundamentally different ways than in the past to break away from the corruption, institutional failure and poor economic performance trap.
Of more relevance is the need for government to restructure the whole system, create openings for youths engagement, perhaps reward and incentive system, especially in the public sector.
Youths must now rethink before this Generation is wiped out through their misplaced priorities and create a template for positive recognition to engage Government for proper collaborations as well as societal values.
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