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Okwe Obi
Residing or visiting some parts of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and adjoining towns is increasing becoming a nightmare. Cultists are making it so. Both morning and evening, they are unleashing terror on hapless residents.
For residents of Lokogoma and Dogongada in particular, who have had to bear the brunt of severe flooding that culminated in deaths and destruction of property, they now sleep with one eye open. Some of the residents told Daily Sun that there is persistent fear of criminal attacks.
It is the same tale in places like Banex, Maitama, Areas 1 to 3, Mararaba and Nyanya. In these places there are recurring cases of bag snatching and robbery. As it is now, everybody is suspect as the issue of trust has taken the back seat.
Dorcas Mamman, a nurse who resides in Dogongada, a densely populated area, with poor road network and epileptic power supply, her pharmacy was ransacked in her presence. She said that she is still grappling with the trauma and the loss of huge amount of money and phones.
She submitted that living in Dogongada has been hellish: “Everything happened so fast. I was inside my shop when I heard people making noise. I ran out but I could not make meaning of circus. A tall guy calmly told me to get inside my shop, allaying my fear.
“As soon as I heeded, there was power outage immediately. Just when I was trying to put on a candle, another guy entered my shop, and tried to hold me. But I quickly ran out and slammed the door behind him. After the whole drama, I noticed that my two phones and money were no more. Nevertheless, I thank God that I was not hurt.”
But Sunday Ubong, a dealer in electrical appliances, was not as lucky as Dorcas. He was beaten and macheted in his back and hand. He spent over N22,000 treating himself.
Everything happened so fast that he thought it was a dream. He wondered why the bandits dispossessed him of his belongings and still inflicted machete cuts on him: “This is the first time such a thing is happening to me. And I am still trying to come to terms with it. I was in my shop as usual, struggling to make ends meet when these bandits sauntered in and started harassing me.
“Before I could say Jack Robinson, one of them slapped and dragged me to the wall, threatening to shoot me if I dared struggle with them. They collected my N50,000, phones and some of my appliances.
“Instead of them to go, one of them gave me a machete cut on my back when the other one wanted to do same, I blocked with my hand before they ran. It was my neighbours who heard me shouting that rushed me to the hospital where I spent over N22,000 nursing my injuries.”
The same gang inflicted pains on a seamstress and her husband, Tolu and Femi. Tolu narrated: “I thought they came to sew or amend clothes but my thoughts were wrong when one of them demanded for my phone and that of my phone husband. But when he tried, although frantically to stop them, they jointly beat us and forcefully collected our phones and money.
“However, we thank God that we were not macheted like others. But these things must be stopped. We cannot continue to live in fear because of bandits.”
The youth caught of the suspected criminals whose identities were not revealed. They were handed over to Kabusa Police Station where he allegedly mentioned his accomplices. Just when these residents thought that they could sleep peacefully at night, the same set of boys came back for another operation but the youth regrouped and came out to face them.
Before this incident, a banker was attacked in his house. When he tried to resist them, he was injured. Only his phone and that of his were stolen.
Sometimes, these people get away with their nefarious activities because of so many outlets coupled with the fact that it is surrounded by bushes. But with current opening up of the area to give way for the construction of estates, residents are optimistic that the problem would soon be a thing of the past.
