Nigerian soldier “happy” as he flogs elderly man in Ikorodu
I was returning from work, on a bike home from Agric bus stop in Ikorodu, Lagos State. Usually at that time of the day when majority of residents are returning home, traffic is always tight. Coupled with the narrow Isawo road stretch, you can imagine!
So on this day, the traffic was tight as usual. Even the okadas (motorcycles or bike or motorbike) were having a hard time navigating. Suddenly, I saw a military vehicle coming the opposite direction. These dudes (the soldiers) were trying to force their way through the tight traffic; they were forcefully making way for their vehicle.
They didn’t have a siren or anything. One of them was on the road, harassing other road users out of the way for their own vehicle. Most of the okada men had to hurriedly move out of the way for them. A few collided with each other in their bid to run away from the soldiers.
The ones who were not fortunate to move away quickly, the soldier clearing the way wiped with his koboko (whip).
The okada I was on narrowly missed the whip; the one behind was not so fortunate. My okada rider kept chanting “Ori yo mi o! (I have been lucky)” But the okada behind him? This soldier whipped its rider with a koboko.
The bike was just behind me so I saw the incident quite vividly. Him hitting the okada rider with his whip was scary, but not as scary as the glee with which he did it. He ENJOYED it! That scared the s**t out of me. He actually ENJOYED inflicting pain on another man, a civilian for that matter.
I could see that the okada rider was way older than this soldier. He was an elderly man but the fear in his face as the koboko hit him was humbling. He didn’t even say a word; just hurriedly moved out of the way so the ogas (“bosses”) could pass. It was really a sorry sight.
I heard these soldiers were dispatched to the Isawo area to curb oil bunkering activities, but instead of doing their duties and leaving it at that, they are obviously “going the extra mile.”
The incident described above happened on Wednesday, November 25, 2015. This witness wants to remain anonymous..
