What is your definition of crime? Corruption, bribery, cultism, kidnapping?
Most of us live our days committing crimes and have accepted WRONG as RIGHT.
Imagine walking down the streets of Lagos after a long day at work or an evening hangout with friends, and suddenly there is chaos and you are surrounded by unknown people shouting “Naim! Naim!! Naim!!!
Tyres and gasoline are next, followed by matches and even more gasoline. We call it petrol in Nigeria. Oh, did you say God forbid or olorun maje (in D’banj’s voice)?
Let me walk you through three major crimes that most Nigerian citizens ignore from Lagos to other parts of the West African country.
These are offenses that would ordinarily earn you a return ticket to jail. In some cases, it is a one-way trip to prison. Yes, life imprisonment.
- Jungle Justice
“Throw a tire at his head, Fuel!” “Oya light am!” yelled the mob. Catching up to the enraged mob, flares, smoke, and the stench of death could be smelled in the air.
Death did indeed appear! A young boy in flames shouting in agonizing tears and pain was a sight to behold.
I said to myself, “What an inhumane act.” My heart broke to see him go through the burning fire and hear his scream. At this point it didn’t matter what his crime was.
According to a Daily Trust newspaper report, nearly 200 people died in reported cases of “jungle justice” in Nigeria between 2020 and 2021. This is alarming!
This figure documents only cases that have been reported in the media. This means there could be over 1,000 cases or more not recorded or happening in remote towns and cities.
According to the laws of Nigeria, anyone found guilty of such mob action, the killing of an innocent or perceived guilty person, is liable to imprisonment not exceeding 5 years, a fine not exceeding N100,000, or both. Think about it.
- Child Abuse
Over some weeks ago, I was at a church event where the MC talked about how he encountered a woman twice on different occasions on the street with a kid, begging for money to get an inhaler for the elder brother of the kid with her.
The first time, the speaker said he had sympathy for the woman and gave her some money.
The second time he saw her, the woman came with the same story and the same kid – he recognized the woman, but she didn’t recognize him.
Compelled to dig more, the potential customer narrated how he bent down to ask the kid she was holding some questions, and the following conversation ensued:
Do you have a brother? The boy answered yes.
Is your brother at home? He replied, “Yes.”
Is your brother sick? He responded, “No.”
Before he looked up to talk to the woman, he saw her walking away.
These are one of many ways some parents use their children to beg for money.
As of August 2021, the Commissioner for Youth and Social Development, Segun Dawodu, stated that anyone caught using children to beg risks being jailed for 10 years.
- Noise Pollution
Imagine yourself returning home from a stressful day out. All you want to do is take off your clothes, crawl into bed, and sleep.
But all of a sudden, you heard a loud sound. “Shey you dey whine!”, and that sound disrupted your sleep and your quiet time. Because you didn’t know where that sound came from, you hissed and struggled back to sleep.
This might seem sensitive because the most regular culprits here are not just the music shops and owambe party planners but religious organisations whose programmes always have to be an outreach.
From our early morning megaphone calls for prayers, to our all-night prayer and music vigils, our activities are many times a menace to other people.
You might wonder if this is a crime. Yes, it is.
According to the Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency (LASEPA), the standard approved noise level in residential areas should not exceed 55 decibels during the day and 45 decibels at night.
During the day, the standard-approved noise level in industrial areas should not exceed 90 decibels.
To file a noise complaint in your area, click here: https://www.lasepa.gov.ng/contact-us/
Before we fall on the wrong side of the law, it might be better to view things from the angle of humanity and simply show love to our neighbours by being considerate.
These are just some of the crimes that citizens commit every day, unaware of the punishments that await them when they get caught. We will bring you some more soon.
Since you have read this article to the end, please ask yourself if you’re guilty of these or other crimes and make adjustments. Also, feel free to let us know if there are other crimes we should highlight in the next article of this series.
