Claim a facebook user had labeled Ogun State as the home of ritual killing in Nigeria
INTRODUCTION
Ogun State, situated in the southwestern region of Nigeria, is a land of rich history, diverse culture, and vibrant economic potential. Known as the “Gateway to Nigeria’s South-West,” Ogun State serves as a vital link between the country’s commercial hub, Lagos, and the rest of the region.
The scourge of ritual murders is spreading alarmingly across Nigeria, with a disturbing twist of young people, increasingly involved. What was once considered the domain of hardened criminals has now become a haunting reality among teenagers and young adults, including secondary school students, who in a haste to ‘get-rich-quickly’, run with the belief that money ritual involving human sacrifices is a thing.
It is of note that Nigerian states like Ogun, Oyo, and Rivers have witnessed alarming rates of ritual killings, with women and girls as primary targets.
These heinous crimes are often orchestrated by acquaintances who betray their victims’ trust, setting them up for brutal mutilation in pursuit of wealth through ritual practices.
The allure of quick riches and nighttime revelries has created a fertile ground for ritual murderers and their accomplices to exploit vulnerable youth. Naive and impressionable, many young people are enticed by promises of easy wealth, only to find themselves in mortal danger.
This trend, which has advanced beyond what was initially known as ‘Yahoo-Yahoo’, before it metamorphosed into ‘Yahoo-Plus’ is deeply troubling, highlighting the erosion of moral values and the desperation among Nigeria’s youth.
Perhaps, the frequent reporting of the number of arrests of suspected ritualists in Ogun state on various media platforms has necessitated the labeling of the state as the home of ritual killings in Nigeria.
Verification
According to research by an NGO, the West African Network for Peace Building, Nigeria recorded 185 ritual-related deaths between January 2021 and January 2022. These tracked incidences occurred in 43 women, and 30 children in 80 cases across 20 states.
Though, there are no data available to either justify or discredit his claim after a rigorous search on google but a content analysis conducted using newspaper review in Yoruba Language on various Radio Stations in Abeokuta like Ajimuna on Sweet FM 107.1, tifun tedo on Splash FM 106.7 Abeokuta, o ko siso on Fresh FM 107.9 and ajaabale on Paramount FM, Abeokuta, revealed that Ogun State top the chart in the reported cases of ritual killings.
Recently, the Commissioner of Police in Ogun State, Lanre Ogunlowo revealed a disturbing trend in the state’s crime statistics, with murder cases being reported on a daily basis.
Mr Ogunlowo had during a visit to the secretariat of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Abeokuta, lamented that there is hardly a day the police command in the state won’t record a case of murder.
Ogunlowo said, “I think Ogun State is the most industrialized state in Nigeria today. If you look at the activities going on between here and the interchange, and that comes with a price. That means the highest number of people you will see crisscrossing the state are youths. They are mobile; they are versatile.
“There is hardly one day that we don’t record a case of murder. But for something like cultism, I’m sure you know more than I do because you get the news before us.
CONCLUSION
The claim that Ogun State is the home of Ritual killings is true considering the number of stories that are reviewed during newspaper review in Yoruba on some selected radio stations in Abeokuta.
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