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THE MURDERED UNIVERSITY OF PORTHARCOURT STUDENTS, THE BIG PICTURE.

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the uniport students murdered in cold blood

Ever since the murder of the four University of Portharcourt students went on air, my plan has been to keep away from the discussion due to the agonizing ways it has been narrated. As i watched the mother of one of the boys wailing her heart out, i felt a sharp strike on my chest. When i saw her knelt down while she cried out to God, i felt i could play the role of god and comfort her instantly. Hot tears rolled down my cheek. I have never seen myself so helpless like that before.

I received 15 emails, asking of my opinion regarding the killing, but have avoided the action of those emails until two days ago, when i decided to watch the video, to see for myself how it all went down. Here are my personal feeling and analysis.

THE TRUE STORY

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I gathered that one of the boys, Ugbonna, has been complaining to his father that his house in school was being invaded all the time by robbers so he doesn’t sleep there. He had a friend in the community that he spends the night with.

Himself and his room mate were coming back from where they went to spend the night when they met their other friends Chiadika and Lloyd so they decided to go together, back to campus.

On their way, Lloyd said that he needed to collect his money from someone who was owing him. In the cause of collecting his money, the whole situation went bizzare and turned into a fight.
The guy who was owing them started screaming and the vigilante group was alerted and they thought they were the criminals disturbing the community since they were more in number than the guy they went to collect their money from.

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This i gathered, was the actual story. No laptops or phones or cultism involved. Those boys were homely and they were all Christians. If listened carefully to statements in the video, you’d hear the murderers saying “una live for GRA…”. It appeared to be a strategically planned attack. [embedplusvideo height=”250″ width=”350″ standard=”http://www.youtube.com/v/wyaX6f81eb8?fs=1″ vars=”ytid=wyaX6f81eb8&width=350&height=250&start=&stop=&rs=w&hd=0&autoplay=0&react=1&chapters=&notes=” id=”ep4630″ /]

THE VIDEO

The video is 3 minute 34 seconds in length. For me, it was a real life horrible nightmare that i never wish to go back to. Till this very moment, my head still aches, my heart still beats in great trepidation, my bones figgles in fear…the trauma has not yet left me. I pray to almighty God, that i will overcome this feeling.
What i saw in the video was an unspeakable wickedness and hatred to mankind. The cruelty was out of place. Even the most “mean soldier” that fights in places like Afghanistan or Iraq will never have the heart to treat a fellow human in that manner.

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I couldn’t stand on my feet after watching that video. I sat down, my legs feeling very weak. I thought i will never have the strength to rise again. Every night as i go to bed, i kept hearing the sound of the stick landing in their heads and face (kpo…kpo…kpo). For hours i kept thinking about what i saw in the video, my mind kept playing it back and forth, feeling their pains at every seconds of play. How they murmured for help. How they looked faintly with pain, to those who stood and watched, while they die. How they weakly put up their hands in defence for the thick stick that kept coming down their head and face. How even at their weakest strength, they tried running away from the burning fire targeted on them.

May the good lord help me to forget this torture!

THE VIDEO SHOOTER

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From all indication, the person that took the video is a big part of the plan to take those boys down, else, is he freelancing? For who? For what? I mean, how do one have the heart to steadily glued his camera while such unholy act was going on? He enjoyed the killing. He must have been asked to take the video in order to show to Nigerians and the entire world what their community are capable of doing.

If he’s not part of them, why hasn’t he disseminate pictures of the perpetrators of the act? Why wasn’t he focusing more on the murderers rather than those been murdered? He has a question to answer, either here or in heaven, as every card has a reading.

THE POLICE

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From the information gathered, i understand that two patrol team of police officers came by the scene. First team came while they were still parading them naked, and the second came while the attack was still going on. They stayed a while, watched their own bit, before leaving the scene. Leaving the boys to their fate.

Will it be right to say that those police officers were part of the big plan? That they were consulted by those murderers before deciding to lynch those boys? That the conspiracy was high enough, up to the divisional officer in that community?

Only these officers can answer these question in the court of law, that is, if there will be true justice.

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THE COMMUNITY

Report has it that the Chief of the community gave consent for the boys to be gruesomely killed, and burnt afterwards.

The question is, what kind of father is that Chief? What form of leadership example is he setting in that community? Even though these students were criminals, was he not supposed to be the one they will be brought to, while he takes it up to the police? Why will he and his stewards take the law into there filthy and murderous hands?

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The chief must have been the chairman of the hoodlums causing havoc in that community all along, only to use the innocent students as a cover up so that no one will further look into his gang’s operation.

The boys and the role the were to play in this world has gone, the only compensation the government can give to their loved ones alive, is JUSTICE.

It is my prayer that God will grant us the serenity to accept the things we cannot change, the courage to change the things we can, and the wisdom to know the difference. May there souls, rest in peace. Amen

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Jeff Okoroafor is a leading member of a new generation of civic advocates for government accountability and democratic change in Nigeria. The Citizen Affairs Initiative is a citizen-driven governance initiative that enhances public awareness on critical issues of service quality in Nigeria. It encourages citizens to proactively seek higher standards from governments and service providers and further establishes new discussions in communities about the standards that citizens should expect and deserve from those they have given their mandates. Jeff is the Managing Director of SetFron Limited, a multimedia development company that is focused on creative and results-driven web, mobile app, and ERP software solutions. He is the co-founder of the African Youths Advancement and Support Initiative (AfriYasi), a non-governmental not-for-profit organisation that provides tertiary education scholarship for young people from low-income homes in Nigeria. He is a Fellow of the Young African Leaders Initiative and the United Nations World Summit Awards. A Strategic Team member of the Bring Back Our Girls movement, and a member of the National Technical Committee on the Establishment and Management of Missing Persons Database in Nigeria. Jeff holds a Bachelor and Postgraduate diploma degrees in Computer Science, and a Certificate in Public Administration from Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration, GIMPA.

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