The story about Ciroma elicited an internal investigation by
Premium Times PT which got their Plateau reporter fired and an apology extended
to Ciroma. In order words, some guys plucked news from Pluto's atmosphere and
tagged Ciroma to it. It is unfortunate that some people still did not get this
memo at all or they got it but found it difficult to accept they were duped so
they carried on with the narrative.
Some people praised PT for apologising and even attacked
Nigerians who didn't spare PT because none of the other media houses who ran
with the reprisal story didn't retract or apologize. Like how the gist about
Arabic in Police screening exams got into church sermons, Ciroma was prayer
point headline and the gates of curses were torn down on account of him and the
people he represents. The gates of hell were also opened earlier in the year
when two priests and about 17 others were killed in Benue. An appointee of
Ortom was arrested for this carnage and Benue has gone cold.
It is baffling how rumour, conspiracy theory and faulty material
gets served as sermons these days. When people can justify a 'pastor' calling
on his members to take heads and offer them to God, what is the small matter of
just accusing an entire tribe of planning to dominate about 250 others?
I listened to the clip about Fulanis not being able to rule in
Guinea and Senegal and how they are all being summoned to Nigeria a few days
ago. I was disappointed that such could have been said. One wonders if those
who got killed or displaced in Ebonyi, Akwa Ibom and Cross River a few days
earlier were non-Christians. It appears there is nothing the incumbent Fulani
President can do to convince those whose minds are made up already.
I commented on a certain post where this video was attached and
a certain young man who attends the church of the pastor concerned decided to
be famous. He called someone "pisshead" and then faced me posting
daddy and mummy abuse. He later on posted "I am about to make you lose
your life," "...if I see you physically, what happen (sic) to those
people in Jos will happen to you," "..don't be worried, the shivering
will soon stop. The dead don't shiver."
I have been laughing all day today because a Yoruba man from
Ekiti like me can boldly make threats to commit murder on social media because
of his love for his pastor. This is unfortunately what some Nigerians have
become; we were supposed to debate on the validity of the history lesson but
sense does not always go side by side with packaging.
Where do we all come from sef? Who is the indigene and who is
the non-indigene? I have learnt a few things about my lineage from my mother
and if you haven't asked your people any questions before, perhaps it is high
time you did. I know a friend and colleague with incredible history that
extends into Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Brazil, USA, Benin Republic and a few
other West African nations. Why do we go about with arrogance (if I must call
it that) like we are superior to other people? We keep talking about 1804 and
an age where we did not have formal boundaries defining nations. Major tribes
in Guinea for example have origin in Ancient Mali, some ethnicities are divided
by national or state boundaries. Should such related people end their
affiliation simply because of boundaries? Should we build walls like Trump
proposed or should we divide Africa all over again so that we don't have any
mixing?
It's easy to say this is our land and others are settlers but
what is the gain? Should original Lagosians say non-indigenes in Idi-Araba,
FESTAC, Aguda, parts of Surulere etc ask 'settlers' to vacate because their
forefathers before Dan Fodio owned the land? Should we not work with those of
us alive at this time and find out ways that the disputed lands and waters will
be efficiently utilized?
I am convinced that blacklisting people who don't share our
ethnicity, culture or religion does not proceed from love (of even ourselves
and family members) but from paranoia and a supremacist ideology. We are not
any different from the Ku Klux Klan or slave traders.
As for the wannabe murderer, I can only pray for him and hope
his friends and family help him. You are not more human because you think one
cannot condemn killings in Nigeria and at the same time support Mr President.
If you can't stand him, get your PVC, identify a candidate and
campaign peacefully and vigorously for him or her to win. it's not war and like
I tell people, I won't mind to see the drama and action a Sowore presidency
will bring. Do you think i won't enjoy watching him jail Jonathan, Atiku,
Obasanjo, Dezieani, Tinubu etc etc?
JOA3072018
