How Justice For Mohbad Could Reopen Old Wounds From EndSARS
To many mourning the controversial demise of Nigerian fast-rising musician, Ilerioluwa ‘Mohbad’ Aloba, justice will entail a complete unveiling of the circumstances surrounding his death.
If Mohbad was killed, succor, many believe, will mean bringing those who were involved either directly or indirectly in the death of the ‘Ronaldo’ singer to account. Hence, it is not surprising that protests demanding #JusticeForMohbad have been witnessed in some parts of the country, including Lagos State.
There are plausible reasons why outrage has trailed Mohbad’s death on Tuesday, September 12, 2023.
Just hours after his death was confirmed, and he was hurriedly buried the next day, various versions of what could have caused the death began to circulate on social media. At the center of these variations, Mohbad’s former record label, Marlian Records, run by controversial musicians, Naira Marley and Sam Larry, allegedly associated with the label, was more prominent.
In a petition to the Nigerian police, dated June 27, 2023, Mohbad accused Sam Larry and Oba Elegushi of Eti-Osa, Lagos State, of threatening his life.
Less than three months later, Mohbad died and was exhumed after nine days for an autopsy, with bloodstains discovered inside his coffin that was allegedly too small for his body.
It begs the question: Why was Mohbad hurriedly buried and in such a shady manner that can’t help but raise suspicion?
While Joseph Aloba, the father of the 27-year-old artiste, said that “his corpse is not the kind to be kept when both of his parents are still alive,” this explanation, to many Nigerians, is not satisfactory.
From a candlelight procession to a protest at Lekki Toll Gate, where the Nigerian Police dispersed crowds with tear gas, with some allegedly sustaining injuries, Justice For Mohbad is taking a different but expected route – a protest against years of institutional failure not only by the Nigerian police but of bad governance.
October 20, 2023, will mark three years since the Nigerian military opened fire on peacefully seated protesters at the Lekki Toll Gate during the EndSARS Protest of 2020. But in all fairness, the EndSARS protest, which led to the massacre of unarmed Nigerian youths at the Toll Gate, was not just a protest to put an end to police brutality.
It is true that the extrajudicial killing of a young man in Ughelli in Delta State by the Police in Delta State sparked a nationwide protest against the killing and extortion of youths by the police. The EndSARS protest metamorphosed into a demand for good governance.
For various reasons, justice for Mohbad is not different.
First, many can argue that the Nigerian police failed in their duty to protect life, their primary assignment, when Mohbad reached out to them seeking protection. As such, when protesters gathered at the Lekki Toll Gate after the candlelight procession, the message is not so different from the one EndSARS Protesters sent three years ago.
It is not only Mohbad, whose calls for his life were neglected but also millions of young Nigerians who are being threatened by insecurity across the country.
In the call for justice, should we expect the youths to believe that the Nigerian Police will carry out an unbiased investigation and hold those found guilty accountable when three years after the EndSARS killings, those who ‘gave the order’ remain unknown and unharmed?
It is fair that those who are involved in Mohbad’s death are brought to book. But justice will be well served only when the Nigerian government wakes up to the demands of the people and makes it their priority to secure lives.
