The Niger community clashes

RECENTLY, two communities from Gbako Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State clashed following development at a reception held in honour of some husbands and their brides at Tsakwo Makun village. The clash was said to have started  when a young man allegedly from Gbangba Dzuko village attempted to kiss one of the brides while the grooms and their brides were dancing, an attempt which infuriated the friends of the groom. According to reports, the intruder was allegedly beaten up by the friends of the groom and, considering the extent of his injuries, he was later rushed to the Lemu General Hospital, from where he was referred to the Federal Medical Centre, Bida, where he eventually died. Angered by his death, youths from Gbangba Dzuko village allegedly mobilised to Tswako Makun village and launched a reprisal, killing one person and setting houses, farm produce and motorcycles ablaze.

Reports said that 12 motorcycles, bags of groundnuts and other food items, millions of naira  cash and other valuables were burnt, while some people, including one of the grooms, sustained injuries and they were taken to Lemu General Hospital. The Press Secretary to the Gbako Local Government chairman, Yahaya Ibrahim, confirmed the incident in a statement, adding that his boss, Hassan Muhammed, had visited the concerned communities for on-the-spot assessment and to condole and sympathise with the victims.

It is sad that what ought to be a joyous moment turned sour owing to an act of indiscipline by a badly brought up youth. Under normal circumstances, a wedding day ought to be a day of glory for those involved, not a fracas leading to the loss of life. Even if the traditional setting precludes the kind of formal arrangement where guests attending a wedding do so strictly according to invitation and must present evidence in the form of a card or some code to validate their presence, there is still enough social and cultural bulwark against the kind of behaviour exhibited by the culprit in this case who unfortunately lost his life following his rash, undisciplined and patently provocative action. Given that the Niger incident also speaks to the breakdown of family values that continues to underline many of the conflicts with which the country has to contend, there is an urgent need for parents to take active interest in their children’s moral upbringing and guide them in the right path. The failure of social institutions like the family is definitely too obvious to be ignored in this specific instance. The young man who was brazen enough to make a public display of his absurd and ribald desires at the wedding reception was definitely wrong.

That said, however, the degree of punishment meted out to the deceased was rather too excessive. Yes, the deceased erred but the authorities should have been allowed to handle the case and deal with it in the manner prescribed by law. Taking the law into one’s own hands by beating an offender to death amounts to self-help and there must be retribution for such action. The friends of the affected groom not only overreacted in this case, they took a cause of action that has culminated in deaths across communities and may yet get worse unless the Niger State government takes quick steps to arrest the development.

It is really scary to see the scale of destruction in the relatively affected villages.  The security arrangements for the wedding reception was also probably poor. Security arrangements for such public wedding receptions should be more professional going forward. It is important that such receptions be rid of undesirable persons who are only interested in precipitating social mayhem and disturbances.  It is really unfortunate that an otherwise happy and pleasant occasion easily morphed into a tragedy that  led to avoidable deaths. If law enforcement had been appropriately mobilised, they could have minimised the level of damage that was done. The Niger State government muse ensure that the two feuding communities sheathe their swords while it resolves the issue and restores normalcy to the affected villages.

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