4 years ago, on this same date, Ugonna Obuzor, Toku Lloyd, Chiadika Biringa, and Tekena Elkanah, all students of the University of Port Harcourt were gruesomely murdered after they were falsely accused of robbery in Aluu, a small community in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

Apparently, 3 of them had escorted one of their friends to go settle a debt with someone who lived in the community. In the cause of settling the debt, a misunderstanding ensued which broke into a fight which later led to the false accusation of armed robbery after the alleged debtor raised the false alarm.

The vigilante group in the village immediately swooped on the boys, stripped them naked & tortured them to coma. Then in the presence of a large crowd, the boys were dragged through mud, had concrete slabs dropped on their heads, car tyres filled with petrol wrapped around their necks and burnt to death.

The worst shock of my life was when some Nigerians, after watching the video and seeing the pictures of the horrifying incident still maintained that the students deserved what they got. That right there was the point I knew we had lost sanity.

In the video, I saw people who actually stood aside and watched while 4 young students were murdered in the most barbaric way ever. Men and women, old and young, some women even had babies strapped to their backs while they watched other people’s children writhe in untold pains and eventually die in such a horrible way.

Where is our conscience in all of these? When did we become this terrible and unforgiving? What shall I say to that particular man who held that club and smashed their skulls and bones? What principle are the women who took their children to the horror sight setting for their offspring? Could this be illiteracy, hatred or wickedness? How could people stand and watch while someone smashed the skulls of those boys with that obviously heavy club? How do they sleep in Aluu village?

And of course, the degree of uselessness of our judicial system in Nigeria is unfathomable. From those who took the laws into their own hands to the custodians of the law who themselves have turned into accomplices of crime, it is a huge shame. When there is a total breakdown of law and order in a society where people don’t get justice, it’s just a matter of time before people resort to self-help and when self-help becomes the only feasible and viable way to get justice, we never can who is next in line to be handed jungle justice and of course, the innocent will always be caught up in the mix.

Till date, not a single person has been held responsible for the unfortunate incident. No prosecution, no conviction and everyone just moved on like #Aluu4 never happened.

Continue to rest in peace Ugonna, Lloyd, Chidi & Tekena. Nigeria really failed you.