I have been thinking of what to write for the past few days.
Baga! Life has not been the same.
I have wondered, sought answers, hoped, but all I get in return is deafening silence.
Two thousand, it is not just a number, but the number of lives said to have been lost in one day.
One is too many. Then two whole thousand?
We have wondered what to do, how to force the relevant authorities to act, but we all have a role to play.
Will a march make a difference? Maybe too many of us are scared for our lives.
A life lost means little or nothing.
There are no words, absolutely none to convey my grief.
It feels like a hopeless situation as I succumb to helplessness.
Crimes against humanity, fundamental human rights have forcefully been taken away, the right to life and liberty.
Our humanity seems to be chipped at each day. When did we become so comfortable with death?
May they all rest in peace, may their families be comforted.
In Askira, Baga, Biu, Buni Yadi, Chibok, Damaturu, Damboa, Geidam, Gombi, Gwoza, Hong, Kubla, Lamurde, Madagali, Michika, Mubi, Potiskum, Shani and many more towns that have suffered senseless losses. May they all rest in peace.
I chided myself a few days ago because I was nonplussed about the recent killings in Baga and then my thoughts spiralled out of control. Why is this happening? What are our security agents doing in the North eastern parts of Nigeria? The answer to my questions was like an epiphany.The reason we are unperturbed about this gradual "genocide" is because it hasn't gotten to our door steps. If our sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers, cousins, girlfriends, boyfriends, wives, husbands, children are killed in this inhumane manner, I am sure that we will fight insurgency any way that we can. This is not a Northern problem. It will sink it's claws to all the hinterlands if we do not cry out!!!!!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, it is not a Northern problem at all. I know people who had to flee for their lives. Some ran amidst gun shots thinking it was their very last moment. Chatting with them filled my mind with images.
DeleteI have stopped asking what the security forces are doing. They do not have the ammunition they need yet some are set be executed for 'mutiny, assault and cowardice'. Is that not an irony?
We sit back and watch while we wait. 12 people died in Paris and they came out in their numbers to march for unity. Someone asked where the Nigerians are. He said we marched with the French, if Nigerians do not stand for themselves, who will we march with?
We all have a role to play.