Families and colleagues of the 16 hunters who were murdered by a crowd in Uromi, Edo State, have threatened to exact retribution on the government if the criminals are not apprehended and brought to justice.
On suspicion of kidnapping, several vigilantes stopped and killed the victims as they were making their way from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to Kano for the Sallah holiday.
Nationwide indignation followed the occurrence.
The majority of the hunters that were killed were from Toranke, which is located in Kano State’s Bunkure Local Government Area.
In separate interviews with The Intercept, the friends and families of the victims said only justice would assuage their hurt.
A community leader and hunter from Toranke, Alhaji Musa Dogo, said the government must bring the killers to book.
He said, “We cannot allow this to go unanswered. The hunters that were killed were our brothers. We trained together, fought criminals together, and protected our communities together. If the government does not arrest and publicly prosecute those responsible, we will take matters into our own hands. We know how to track down those who commit evil, and we will not hesitate if justice is not served,” he stated.
His companion, Bala Danburan, who sat with him, nodded in agreement.
Danburan said, “We know how to sneak into Uromi and take revenge ourselves if justice is not served. This is not a threat; it is a promise. We have buried too many of our own, and we cannot continue like this. We are hunters, not cowards. If the government refuses to act, we will do what is necessary.”
Citing a previous instance in which the Kano State Government turned over a suspect, Yunusa Yellow, to the Bayelsa State Government over an alleged kidnapping, the hunters also sought that the matter be moved to a Kano State court.
“This is not just about us. If they could request for a case to be handled in their state, why can’t we demand the same? This is a matter of fairness. We want the case brought here, where we can follow it closely and ensure that it is not swept under the carpet. The Edo government must cooperate if they want peace,” Dogo said.
The 16 hunters were killed, according to Bunkure resident and hunter Alhaji Usman Bako, who also blamed the government for failing to protect hunters and other local security groups who put their lives in danger to prevent kidnapping and banditry.
Bako claimed that the hunters were ambushed on their way back to the north for the Sallah celebration.
Alhaji Bako said, “If the government refuses to fish out and punish those behind this massacre and continues to ignore us, then they are pushing us to the wall. We may be forced to withdraw from joint operations. We will not continue to die in silence.”
In his closing remarks, he urged the government to acknowledge hunters as the first line of defence for nearby communities.
Malam Sani Umar, a local, also spoke and said that his younger brother Yahaya Umar was one among the dead.
He claims that Yahaya left behind a wife and four children.
He said, “Yahaya was a man of courage, always willing to sacrifice himself for the safety of others. He believed in justice, and now he has been killed unjustly. We have been left with nothing but pain, and those who did this are still walking free. How can we accept this? How can we sleep knowing that the government has not acted?”
Fighting back tears, Hafsat Ibrahim, who lost her son, Nasiru, said, “Nasiru was the backbone of our family. Now, who will take care of us? He worked hard to ensure that his younger siblings attended school and that I never went hungry at the table.
“He was a man of dignity, a fearless hunter who sought only to protect his people. But now, he is gone, and we are left in darkness. We demand justice! The killers must be punished according to Islamic rites, and the government should compensate our families. That is the only way to show us that our loved ones did not die in vain.”
Acknowledging a recent condolence visit by the governors of Edo and Kano states, Umar said, “It gave us some relief knowing that they care about our plight.
“But a visit alone is not enough. We need real action. We need to see arrests. We need to see these people prosecuted and punished for what they did. If the government does not act swiftly, it means they are encouraging more of such killings. We are not just mourning our loved ones; we are demanding justice, and we will not stop until it is given.”
Tension in Sokoto
In the meantime, rumours of protests over the hunters’ deaths caused noticeable tension in Sokoto State on Friday.
The majority of business districts used by non-indigenous people, particularly the Igbo, were closed, according to information obtained by our journalist who kept an eye on the situation.
When The Intercept went, the majority of stores in the city’s Igbo-dominated neighbourhoods, including as Bello Way, Emir Yahya, Sahara, and Aliyu Jodi, were closed.
A shop owner, who identified himself simply as Chinedu, said the fear of attack forced him to lock up his shop.
He said, “We heard of the rumour of possible protest and attack by some youths in the state after Friday prayer, and we decided to take precautionary measures.
“One should not wait till something happens before we arrange ourselves, so we decided to close our shop.”
An Igbo guy who sells tires in Sahara also discussed the shutdown, saying that when locals heard about a potential attack, they quickly closed their businesses out of fear of looters.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, the guy said that his staff made the proactive decision to protect their belongings from robbers.
READ ALSO: Edo on Edge as DSS Arrests Key Suspects in Lynching of Traveller
He said, “The last time they protested during late Deborah (Christian girl lynched for blasphemy) issue, they used the opportunity to attack and loot our goods, so we decided to be proactive this time.”
The police, however, reiterated their willingness to protect the state’s citizens’ lives and property.
Ahmed Rufai, the Sokoto command’s spokesperson, told our reporter that the command has sent personnel to every area of the city to keep the state’s law and order.
