•We are traumatized –Victim’s wife
From Scholastica Hir, Makurdi
Despite the fact that this is the 21st century, the advent of technology, which is aiding knowledge irrespective of location, many people still remain ignorant. Some are glued to tradition, culture and superstition to the point that even when they are faced with any condition, they blame other reasons or other persons for their predicaments.
•Dr Emmanuel Aime, a pastor with Living Faith Church, accused of penis stealing, was beaten by a mob in November 2023.
Last year witnessed series of violent activities arising from allegations of manhood theft and snatching. In the process, many citizens were wrongly accused, molested, mobbed and beaten mercilessly. While some were lucky to be rescued by security agencies, others lost their lives as a result of jungle justice.
In Benue State in particular, some residents were mobbed after they were accused of snatching penises. The experiences have left behind nothing but pains and trauma on victims and their loved ones.
•Organisers of the workshop
On October 29, 2023, two residents of Makurdi, one Jude Tyokula and Pastor Terna Uchir, both of Deeper Life Bible Church, New Layout Kanshio, were tortured by youths. The allegations were that both men conspired to snatch a young man’s penis.
In a video, which circulated on social media, the suspects were forced to sit on the ground while Tyokula was stripped naked and being questioned by the youths. After serious beatings, he told the youths he was recruited by the pastor to get him the private part.
On November 8, 2023 at about 9:30am, another victim, a lecturer at Akawe Torkula Polytechnic Makurdi, who is also a pastor with Living Faith Church Wurukum, Makurdi, Dr Emmanuel Aime, was brutalized by some youths for allegedly stealing a boy’s penis in Makurdi
Dr Aime, it was learnt, had gone out for evangelism and was preaching in front of First Bank located along Otukpo Road, Wurukum area of Makurdi, when he was accused of organ theft without any proof. He was beaten to coma by a mob.
A witness told our correspondent that not long after the alarm was raised, hundreds of motorcyclists (Okada riders) and street boys gathered and beat up the man of God.
Elizabeth Uchir, wife to the accused Terna Uchir, told our correspondent that it was a tormenting and traumatic experience you can’t wish even for an enemy.
She said: “We had just returned from church that Saturday evening, 29th of October 2023. My husband is a pastor with Deeper Life Church and we were having a programme then; a Global Crusade with Kumuyi, (GCK). But before we left for the service, the person that was supposed to handle announcements in the church called that he was far away in his farm and would not make it on time. So, my husband was looking for someone to replace him and so he called on Brother Jude.
“But Jude said he was also far and could not come. So, my husband called someone else. After the service, we came home around 9pm and my husband was inside trying to prepare for the next day, Sunday service and the next thing we heard was a knock on the door.
“He opened the door to see who it was and I was also coming from inside. When he opened the door, I saw people at the door and he asked them to excuse him so he can wear something. When he wore his vest and came out, I followed him outside and the people said the Benue youth leader wanted to see him outside.
“When we got outside the gate, we saw so many people with vehicles. The youth leader said to him that what he was about to show him will shock him and that he would want to be as civil as possible. He went close to a vehicle, an SUV, and opened the boot. In the boot, we saw somebody who was stark naked, bruised and his left eye was bleeding.
“We recognized the person as Brother Jude. I asked, is this not Bro. Jude? My husband called Bro Jude, he answered. The youth leader asked my husband if he knew the young man and my husband said yes, that he is a member of his church and the youth leader asked Jude to tell my husband what he told them earlier .
“He said he told them that my husband is the one that sent him to go and remove somebody’s manhood and that my husband promise to give him N1 million. They ask him if he collected part payment from the money, he said no.
“We were all shocked and I was hitting my hands together, asking God what is this. So, they now started saying: ‘Ahaaa! This is the wife, we are going to arrest both of them.’ My husband told them that he doesn’t know anything about what the young man was saying.
“As soon as he said that, they started beating him without asking him any further questions. They took him to one of their cars and I asked them that you said you’re going to arrest both of us why are you not taking me too? Why are you taking only my husband? They said, madam going side.
“When they took my husband away, I followed them on a bike and I told the bike rider to follow at a distance. This was around 10pm.
“At first, I thought they were going to B Division Police station but they passed the police station. Again, I said they may be going to the police headquarters but on reaching Inikpi street, they turned and started going to where there was no police station.
“When they got to the street where you have Del Scan, they made him sit on the bare floor and the youths surrounded him.
“I stood away from them and I was calling our pastor and anybody who can help me. Then they started beating him and other people joined in the beating and molesting him. When they asked the boy some question and my husband tried to say he didn’t do what the boy was saying, they will hit him. They never asked him any question, they concentrated on the head and were just beating my husband.
“It got to a point where they said they should bring something to break their legs and bring tyre to burn them. I panicked because they were just going to kill him if I keep quiet. So, I quickly ran to B Division Police Station and God was with me.
“As I got to the gate, I met one of our member, who works with Civil Defence and we went in and the people on duty listened to me and quickly called those on patrol around IBB square. They didn’t waste time and quickly got there.
“When they saw the police, some of the youth became angrier and dragged me to go and sit on the ground with my husband. And at this point, instead of the boy to speak the truth, he was insisting my husband sent him and was asking him to confess.
“When my husband asked him confess what, the boys will beat him. They didn’t want to hear him say anything. The only time he spoke was when they said they were going to break their legs and kill them. He told the boy to confess the truth because he will go to hell fire if he continued with the lies.
“To cut the long story short, the police rescued and took them to the ‘B’ Division police station and when he was asked to make a statement, he was making conflicting statements. After some time, he said he was confused, hungry and could not continue to tell what exactly happened. All these while, he was naked and bleeding. They asked us to bring money and they took him to the hospital.
“When he came back the next day from the hospital, he started saying: ‘The man is innocent. My pastor is a good person, he didn’t do anything. They were about to kill me and I didn’t know what to do. That was why I mentioned my pastor.’
“Meanwhile, he said when the youths were beating him earlier, they asked who was the last person that called him, he sad it was my husband. That was how my husband came in.
“I feel it was just God using my husband to save his life because even the young man didn’t remove anybody’s penis. My husband is not one who can do that. He is too gentle, too loving to do such a thing.”
Five months after the horrible experience, Mrs Uchir said the husband has been badly affected. She narrated that for almost two weeks after the incident, “anytime he closed his eyes, he will shout and jump up from his sleep. He said anytime he starts dozing, its like someone has come to hit him. He was traumatized for the first two weeks.
She said the husband has been going to the hospital to seek medical attention since then. “As I’m speaking to you, he was booked for operation in January because the beating affected his jaw. They concentrated on the head and was just hitting him. The jaw shifted and if he want to eat and he opens his mouth, you will hear the sound from afar.
He is spending money treating himself while the perpetrators are sitting comfortably in their house.
I felt so bad. I had issues of BP and it was as though I was going to die that day. As I was watching them do that to my husband, when I wanted to talk, I will open my mouth but the words won’t come out. My people saw that and they were helping me. It was so tormenting.”
Mrs Uchir, who expressed joy that people, friends and families showed them support all through the trying times, called on the general public to eschew ignorance. According to her, “when you hear such accusations, do not join in dishing out jungle justice, confirm first and invite the relevant authorities to handle it so that innocent persons are not punished or killed.”
Speaking to Daily Sun through a social media platform, a Psychiatrist, Dr Obekpa Obekpa, blamed such allegations on ignorance and superstition. He called for medical examination of such complainants to determine their mental health.
According to him, penis snatching is a street phenomenon in Nigeria. It hardly gets to hospital. It mostly gets settled in ways such as mob action on the street on the accused or the accused is held until the ‘victim’ reports that his stolen penis has returned, in ashawo house, where the victim is asked to test the functionality of his returned penis, a penis that was previously ‘untested’ before the claim that it was stolen.
“So, part of my recommendation is for such alarmist to produce a certificate of ‘my penis dey work before dem steal am.'”
Obekpa also noted that the issues of manhood snatching are settled in the police station or prayer houses, offices of rev. fathers or pastors.
“Penis snatching hardly gets to the hospital in Nigeria. Health workers mostly get to hear or know it from the streets through all these other places,” he said.
He further recommended that such complainants and anyone who gets involved in aiding such accusations should be arrested and investigated legally to ensure they pay for their crimes.
According to Dr Obekpa, “there is no medical proof anywhere that penis can be snatched. It is just superstition and ignorance that are at work on our people.
“When alarm of penis snatching is raised, the alarmist(s) and the accused and every person, who stopped by and gets involved, should be arrested and investigated legally and medically and the law should take it’s course.”
The psychiatrist, who noted that complaints of penis snatching hardly come to the hospital stated: “In my 20 years of medical practice, I have only seen one case that was just a mere lie that his penis was stolen.
“Those who shout and raise alarm of their penis being stolen should first be arrested and investigated.
How do we prove that such persons have penis before they were stolen, assuming penis is something that can be stolen.”
Worried by the trend, the National Association of Seadogs (Pyrates Confraternity) in collaboration with the Advocacy for Alleged Witches, (AfAW), organized a public enlightenment programme on alleged manhood disappearance in Benue State. The event took place on January 20,p at the High-Level Motor Park.
The State Director of AFAW, Dooyum Ingye, said it is the concern of the Advocacy for Alleged Witches and the National Association of Seadogs, to collaborate in enlightening the general public on alleged manhood disappearance.
Dooyum explain that such allegations is rooted in ignorance, lacking scientific evidence and foundation. He clarified that alleged manhood disappearance is often a sensation induced by high-stress situations.
“The belief in such disappearances is fueled by superstition and often leads to acts of violence. Unfortunately, individuals resort to using bitter kola, charcoal, and pins as forms of protection or immunity against such alleged disappearances.”
Dr. Samuel Adagba, who provided participants a detailed medical explanation of alleged manhood disappearance, emphasized the adoption of a medical approach to effectively manage this condition. He said it was importance to adopt a scientific and critical thinking approach, to solve the issue just as he harped on the need to challenge superstitions.
He also cited an example of a Federal Road Safety staff member in Kogi who received the Advocate of the Year award from the Advocacy for Alleged Witches (AfAW) for preventing the lynching of two accused persons and cautioned residents to desist from making such allegations and taking laws in their hands.
A senior member of the National Association of Seadogs expressed gratitude to the management of High Level Park for approving the venue. He also appreciated all the participants for their active involvement and requested their cooperation in spreading the message conveyed during the programme.
During the event, some of the participants took turns to appreciate the organizers for the enlightenment and made a commitment to promote science and critical thinking while shunning superstitious beliefs.
They also pledged to spread the information and knowledge gained during the programme to their communities.
The public enlightenment programme on alleged manhood disappearance in Benue State was successful in bringing attention to the baseless nature of these allegations and promoting the importance of science and critical thinking. The collaboration between the National Association of Seadogs and the Advocacy for Alleged Witches proved to be valuable in debunking superstitions and encouraging rational thought.