Also in Ghana, the Volta Region office of the Department of Children under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), in collaboration with Plan International, Ghana, celebrated this year’s African Union Day of the African Child.
Mr Seth Kwasi Agbi, the District Chief Executive for South Tongu, in a keynote address, condemned all harmful acts such as child trafficking, child labour, and ritualistic murders which also victimize children. (webmaster FVDK)
NHRC advocates strong mechanisms to fight harmful practices against children
Published: June 17, 2022 By: Michael Olugbode, This Day – Nigeria
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has reiterated the need to devise and strengthen national accountability mechanisms that will deter harmful practices against children, so as to enable them to attain all-around development in life.
The Executive Secretary of the commission, Chief Tony Ojukwu, stated this in his welcome remarks at the commemoration of the 2022 Day of the African Child (DAC).
He noted that the celebration was an opportunity to take stock of what has been done with regards to the adoption of policies and practices targeted at eliminating harmful practices affecting children in Nigeria.
Ojukwu, who was represented at the event by the Director of Monitoring Department, Mr. Benedict Agu, said the 2022 theme of the celebration: ‘Eliminating Harmful Practices Affecting Children: Progress on Policy and Practice since 2013’, is appropriate as it seeks to address the peculiar human rights challenges affecting children.
He noted that these challenges, are negative harmful practices such as early/forced marriage, female genital mutilation, child trafficking among others.
He stated that against this background, the commission’s role in advancing the campaign to end harmful practices affecting children is hinged on its mandate to promote, protect and enforce the rights of all persons in Nigeria.
According to him, “Notably, the commission was a critical partner in the advocacy for the passage of the Child’s Rights Act 2003, and has been involved in continued advocacy for its adoption into Child Rights Laws of about 26 states of the federation.
“It is also a member of the State Child Rights Implementation Committee of several states in Nigeria and has continued to advocate for the mainstreaming of children’s rights in relevant policies of the government.”
Ojukwu stated that the commission has further prioritised Child Rights in its work through the creation of the Department of Women and Children, and the thematic team on the Rights of the Child, which have enabled it to take action against pervasive child rights abuses such as child marriage, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), Sexual and Gender-based Violence (SGBV), infanticide, child trafficking among others.
In her key message, a member of the African Committee of Experts on the Rights and Welfare of the Child, Ms. Aver She said the commemoration of DAC is an opportunity to sensitise duty bearers on the importance of engaging children in their own issues and promoting participation as well as inclusion in line with the principles of child participation.
Gavar, who is also the director of Human Rights Education and Promotion in the commission, said the focus of the DAC 2022 is also to respond to the high prevalence of harmful practices affecting children in different parts of Africa, including rape, FGM, child marriage, infanticide among others.
She urged the government to strengthen its child protection system through increased budgetary lines across sectors dealing with child rights implementation and through the establishment of one-step centres for integrated response to child survivors of rape, child marriage, FGM and all forms of violence against children.
In her remarks, the Minister of Women Affairs, Dame Pauline Tallen, disclosed that the ministry has made progress in spearheading a range of policy documents to address harmful cultural practices, like the implementation of the Child’s Rights Act (CRA) 2003, National Guidelines on Establishment of Child Care Institutions, and National Strategy on Elimination of Child Marriage.
The Volta Region office of the Department of Children under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MoGCSP), in collaboration with Plan International, Ghana, have celebrated this year’s African Union Day of the African Child with a call to end harmful practices affecting children.
In an address, Mr Israel Akrobortu, the Volta Regional Director of the Department of Children, said some traditional customs and practices conflicted with children’s rights and were harmful to their development.
“Child marriage and Female Genital Mutilation are two of the most discriminatory harmful cultural practices that have been committed regularly over long periods that some communities and societies have come to accept,” he said.
Mr Akrobotu called on duty bearers to take urgent steps to stop such negative practices, which were affecting children, especially female genital cutting, to protect the vulnerable, especially girls from all unnecessary and dangerous practices.
Mr Seth Kwasi Agbi, the District Chief Executive for South Tongu, in a keynote address, said it was important to focus on the vital efforts of communities and child rights activists working on policies and practices to eliminate “these harmful practices affecting children on the continent.”
He explained that the acts, such as child trafficking, child labour, ritual murder, and defilement, if not curbed and eventually eliminated, would be detrimental to the growth and development of the continent.
Mr Alfred Dzikunoo, Programmes Coordinator, and a representative from Plan International, Ghana, said Plan Ghana had made many contributions to end the canker against the Ghanaian Child.
The interventions include empowering girls with life skills, knowledge and networks to become empowered agents of change in their own lives, engagement of duty-bearers such as GHS, DOVVSU, and DSW to improve education on child marriage FGM, and child labour.
Torgbi Atsugah Sogah Il, a Divisional chief from Fieve Traditional Area, implored participating students to be good ambassadors and serve as role models for other children in their communities as well as cultivate the habit of championing the right to education.
The 2022 celebration was on the theme: “Eliminating Harmful Practices Affecting Children: Progress on Policy and Practices since 2013.”
Comboni Senior High Technical School garnered 18 points against 15 by Sogakope Senior High School (SOGASCO) to win the debate on the topic: “Has the policies on harmful socio-cultural practices affecting children since 2013 curbed the menace,?”
The “Day of the African Child” dates back to 1991 when the African Union (AU) initiated a remembrance of the children who lost their lives in a peaceful protest in Soweto, South Africa, in 1976.
The event attracted school children, officials from the South Tongu District Education Directorate, teachers, local government staff, and traditional rulers within the South Tongu District.
I am flabbergasted after reading this investigative report of a courageous reporter who posed as a desperate internet fraudster who wants to ‘get-rich-quick’ by contacting herbalists tracked online. Her experiences are recommended reading!
It is hard to believe this happens in real life. Judge for yourself. (webmaster FVDK)
Inside the world of Nigeria’s deadly money ritualists where human parts are traded like commodities (Part II)
Collage of Promise Oyewole’s (Ifa Tunde) BVN image and image obtained during WhatsApp callM
The craze for getting stupendously rich through the senseless killing of humans for rituals has reached an alarming crescendo in Nigeria. The phenomenon has thrown families of victims into untold anguish. For two months, posing as a desperate internet fraudster searching for mystical means to acquire wealth, our correspondent using the pseudonym, SEGUN ADESINA, met with herbalists tracked online for help
Published: May 14, 2022 By: Special reporters – Punch, Nigeria
Ifatunde’s identity unveiled
That same day, our correspondent set out for the agreed meeting point after receiving several calls from someone that claimed to be Promise, Ifatunde’s son.
At Ipeba, for safety reasons, our correspondent waited for Promise inside the commercial bus that conveyed him there, as he had yet to arrive. This move was pre-arranged with the bus driver before leaving the park.
After a while, a young man descended from a bike and moved toward the bus after scanning his surroundings suspiciously.
After locating our correspondent through repeated calls, he introduced himself as a 19-year-old Promise and demanded N20,000.
With his facial expression changing from that of shock to confusion when our correspondent refused to give him the money, he quickly hopped on the bike that brought him, which all the while was parked at a relatively safe distance and disappeared into a bush track. A frustrated Ifatunde would later call to ask why the money was not given to his son. He was told that the money would only be sent if the herbalist revealed his face via a WhatsApp video call.
Desperate to collect the last tranche of payment, Ifatunde agreed but insisted that our correspondent’s camera must be switched off.
At the agreed time, as soon as our correspondent initiated the video call and Ifatunde’s face became visible, a screenshot was quickly obtained.
When PUNCH Investigations compared the face captured with the one obtained from a source that carried out an independent background check on the Bank Verification Number of the account provided for the transaction, it was a match.
The 19-year-old Promise Oyewole, whom the old herbalist claimed was his son, was the manipulative voice behind the scene all the while.
When confronted with PUNCH Investigation’s findings, Ifatunde, still pretending to be an old man, vehemently denied being the same person and curiously asked, “How did you get the picture of my son?”
When he was told to refund the N30,000 paid for the money ritual or risk being arrested by the police, he went into an angry tirade and said, “I didn’t force you to bring the money. Even when we got to the police station, they would ask if I came to your house to collect it. They will also ask what you paid for. I am sure you can’t tell them you wanted to do money rituals.
“If you want to collect your money, I will send it, but you will have to be patient until I get another customer that needs the same ingredients.”
As of the time this report was published, Ifatunde had yet to make any refund and refused to pick up our correspondent’s calls.
Yet another
Still wanting to explore the murky waters of money rituals, PUNCH Investigations approached Fayemi Fafunke, another Facebook user posing as a herbalist.
Like others, he advertised his skilled ability at money-making rituals and was deft at using proverbs. He also sounded like an old man when a call was sent to him with a number found on his post. After our correspondent told him about his experiences with the two other herbalists, he was quick to condemn their actions.
However, PUNCH Investigations would later discover that he was no different.
When asked how much it would cost to prepare the ‘Osole Gbigbona’ money ritual, Fafunke said, “We have different types, and they range from N20,000 to N100,000. It depends on you.
“The one that would be prepared with human parts will cost you N100, 000. You will get a good result within a week. You can ask for a refund if nothing happens.”
When told that the amount available for the money ritual was N30, 000, Fafunke grudgingly accepted the amount.
It was agreed that an initial deposit of N10,000 would be paid to procure the items needed for the charm. At the same time, the balance of N20,000 would be brought by our correspondent to Ilaka, an area in Oyo State, to collect the charm.
Surprisingly, not long after N10,000 was transferred into a bank account provided by Fafunke, he called the next day to demand another N10,000.
Items bought by Ifatunde for the money-making ritual
“Things are now very expensive,” he claimed, adding, “In fact, when I got to where I would get the human parts, I was charged N18,000. You have to send N10, 000.”
When reminded of his earlier promise not to demand any additional money, Fafunke became furious and told our correspondent to send his account details for a refund.
An hour after the account details were forwarded, the herbalist called back and, in a calm tone, requested N5,000.
Fafunke said, “I want to help, and it’s for your own good. You can send N5,000. I am still in the market,” he said.
When our correspondent insisted on a refund, Fafunke claimed he had purchased some items already.
“So, what do you want me to do with what I have bought,” he asked and disconnected the call.
Since then, every attempt to reach the herbalist has proved abortive, and no refund has been made.
Human lives and sanctity violated
These encounters are just a glimpse into how individuals violate the sanctity and sacredness of human lives to carry out money rituals for an alarmingly increasing number of people (majorly young) possessed by a get-rich-quick syndrome.
Based on widespread reports, such adventures always have sad endings.
Despite dire consequences known to be associated with such actions, which include sudden loss of senses, loss of lives, including that of loved ones, loss of limbs, blindness, sleeplessness, and loss of properties, among other things, they are undeterred.
No week passes without the media reeling out graphic, horrifying activities of those caught with fresh or decomposing human parts or of mutilated bodies discovered in hotels or dismembered, with most victims being declared missing earlier.
While there has been glaring evidence and confessional statements from those arrested in possession of human parts or involved in the actual killing, linking their intent to ritual purposes, some victims have been suspected of being killed due to circumstances surrounding their demise for such purpose.
Distressing statistics
The menace, going by reports, is not peculiar to any region of the country, even though some have gained notoriety lately.
A report by the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta revealed that an estimated150 women and girls were killed for ritual purposes between January 2018 and December 2021 in the Niger Delta region of the country.
“Recent incidents also indicate an upsurge in targeted killings of women and girls for ritual purposes in the region, particularly in Cross River, Delta, and Imo States. In January 2022, for example, more than 10 girls were reportedly killed for rituals in Ogoja town, Cross River State. Some vital organs of the victims were allegedly harvested,” it stated.
The report, among other cases highlighted, revealed an attempt by a young man to kill his mother for ritual purposes in Owerri, the Imo State capital, and the killing of an 80-year old woman who had her body parts harvested for ritual purposes in Olomoro town, Isoko South Local Government Area, Delta State on February 7, 2022.
Hotbeds for ritual killings
Although the data only captured states in the Niger Delta, media reports indicated that the phenomenon had become endemic in states such as Oyo, Ogun, and Lagos.
Recall that several drainage tunnels were discovered to be used by ritualists in Lagos, while in Oyo State, the activities of ritual killers became known in March 2014, when a slaughter slab was uncovered in Soka, a few metres from the popular Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
The abandoned building was initially a traditional treatment centre for mentally ill people.
A raid on the den by the Oyo State Police Command led to the rescue of malnourished victims meant for the slaughter slab and uncovered mutilated body parts of victims and decaying corpses.
Eight years after the sordid discovery, the business of abducting, killing, harvesting, and selling human parts for ritual purposes still thrives in Ibadan, PUNCH Investigations revealed.
This claim was mainly validated with the conversation and aborted transaction with Oladipupo, the Ibadan-based herbalist.
Money-making charms strange
While speaking with PUNCH Investigations, Dr Ajibola Olosun, a traditionalist, decried the alarming trend. The sexagenarian, who said he succeeded his father, Baba Olosun of Osogbo, in 1977, revealed that young internet fraudsters usually approach him with mouth-watering offers for money rituals but that he always declines.
“These Yahoo boys are not ashamed and don’t hide what they do. I am surprised because these recent developments are strange. Our forefathers don’t bequeath charms to just anybody. My father, the late Olosun of Osogbo, warned us against preparing charms for fraudsters and robbers,” he said.
On the rising use of human parts for money rituals, Ajibola, who is also a law student, told our correspondent at the Ifetedo campus of the Osun State University, where he is studying, that those killing for money rituals were not traditionalists.
“Those killing for money rituals are not traditionalists because the tradition has ethics and taboos. Ifa asks us to pray every day, how then do you do evil and keep praying? Yoruba tradition does not support such evil,” he said.
He, however, said, “Sometimes, we can use bones of the dead for rituals, but it’s not fresh ones. Maybe when you see a human bone after erosion must have washed it to the surface, you can pick it up and keep it for use. In fact, we are not allowed to exhume dead bodies.”
In the background of claims by Ifatunde, the Ibadan-based herbalist who said that traditionalists preparing money charms are not meant to meet with a client, Ajibola said in Yoruba tradition, transactions must be transparent.
“Why would he not meet with his client? I have not heard it in my life. You have to know the person you are dealing with when it involves money.
“Some taboos associated with such charm might be that a woman should not touch it or that the charm must not touch the ground. Others might require a naira note to be placed underneath,” he clarified.
All money rituals have dire consequences
The traditionalist warned that money rituals have rebounding consequences.
“My fear is that some of these things have repercussions. Some of these Yahoo boys run mad because Osole Gbigbona, requires sacrifices, and it has an expiry date. When it expires, no one can predict the repercussions. It’s like a give and take arrangement,” he warned.
Ajibola said it might be difficult to curb the excesses of individuals like Oladipupo because they are not under any recognised body.
He then advocated education as a viable tool to curb ritual killings and money rituals.
A country’s weak fight against money ritual
Embarrassed by the global outcry over the rising trend in Nigeria, especially with enthusiasts, mostly teenagers, claiming to have carried out ritual murder or taken an interest in money rituals after watching a series of trending videos online, the Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said steps would be taken to ensure the responsible use of social media. He also said national awareness would be raised against the scourge.
He said, “For those who may still be in doubt, ritual killings have assumed a worrisome dimension in recent years. Recently, in Ogun State, four young men, one of whom is 18 years old, murdered their 20-year-old female friend for money rituals.
“One of them said they learnt about using human parts for money rituals from social media. Of course, you are also aware of a case involving a female student of the University of Jos, allegedly killed by her boyfriend for ritual purposes. These killings have been widely reported by the media.”
However, based on PUNCH Investigation’s findings, nothing beyond the categorical statement had been done by the Federal Government.
Five ritual cases reported in six months —Police
The spokesperson for the Nigerian Police Force, Muyiwa Adejobi, while speaking with PUNCH Investigations, revealed that cases of money rituals were rampant in the South West.
He said, “In other parts of the county, we just have some isolated cases. In the South West, the state that has recorded the highest number is Ogun. Within six months, we recorded almost five cases in the region. Fifteen suspects were arrested, and almost all of them confessed to the crime. They have been charged to court.”
Adejobi advised parents not to entrust their children to strangers or estranged friends, adding that the police had embarked on enlightenment programmes, especially in schools to curb the menace.
“Be careful. Don’t just keep your children in neighbours’ hands,” he warned.
How ritual killers operate —Amotekun
The Oyo State Commandant, Western Nigeria Security Network, code named Amotekun, Col. Olayinka Olayanju (retd), revealed that three groups involved in human parts sales were arrested within two years of its operation.
He revealed that those into money rituals had targets and could trail their victims for some time.
“They know the identity of their victims and sometimes can trace the body of a dead victim to the burial site and have it exhumed to remove the part needed or take the whole body.
“Some will kill physically and extract the part they want for ritual purposes. As for those that sell, some people patronise them, but I don’t know much about that. They will only tell you they have lots of clients.”
PUNCH Investigations gathered from the retired military chief that most of those patronising body parts merchants are affluent.
“People now call it Yahoo Plus, no longer Yahoo Yahoo. It’s purely money rituals and what they use are human parts,” he added.
Slow justice system
On the challenges faced by the outfit in arresting and prosecuting suspected ritual killers, Olayinka complained about the slow justice system and the friction with the police.
The Amotekun boss said that while some were being tried by the police, others were prosecuted by the Oyo State Directorate of Public Prosecution.
“We arrested a suspect and handed him over to the police, but he was returned to us. The police claimed that we didn’t follow proper procedure. We approached the DPP and threatened to release the suspect.
“He (suspect) actually killed a 73-year-old man. The DPP took it up, and he has been remanded in Abolongo prison pending when the case would be charged to court,” he said.
Olayinka called for better synergy between the police and Amotekun corps to succeed in the fight against ritual killings.
Oyo State upholds prosecution –Oyo AG
The Oyo State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Prof. Oyelowo Oyewo, said the state upholds the law when it comes to prosecuting ritual killers, adding that the DPP has not failed to wield prosecutorial powers when necessary.
“Investigations and prosecution are not the sole prerogatives of the Ministry of Justice. It is the police that will arrest, and we will write a legal opinion on whether there is enough evidence,” he added.
Our members not ritualists —OPC reacts
When contacted, the Chairman, Oodua People’s Congress, Oyo State chapter, Rotimi Olumo, denied the alleged involvement of its members in ritual killings or human body parts sales.
“The OPC, led by Iba Gani Adams, is only concerned about the security of the people,” he told our correspondent.
Psychologist harps on empowerment
A clinical psychologist, Olawumi Oluwatosin, attributed the trend to unpleasant childhood or life experiences, peer pressure, and mid-life expectations.
She recommended that empowerment programmes should be part of incentives through which the government can curb the menace.
Oluwatosin stated, “It might be difficult to convince a person already exposed to large amounts of money, rituals, and other bad things, except to replace the pleasure, which is money, with something else. But it can be done by probably providing an alternative source of livelihood like empowerment programmes.”
I am flabbergasted after reading this investigative report of a courageous reporter who posed as a desperate internet fraudster who wants to ‘get-rich-quick’ by contacting herbalists tracked online. Her experiences are amazing!
It is hard to believe this happens in real life. Judge for yourself. (webmaster FVDK)
Inside the world of Nigeria’s deadly money ritualists where human parts are traded like commodities (Part I)
From the left: Initial preparation as sent by Ifatunde; Ifatunde preparing the money-making charm and Oladipupo
Published: May 13, 2022 By: Segun Adesina – Punch, Nigeria
The craze for getting stupendously rich through the senseless killing of humans for rituals has reached an alarming crescendo in Nigeria. The phenomenon has thrown families of victims into untold anguish. For two months, posing as a desperate internet fraudster searching for mystical means to acquire wealth, our reporter, using the pseudo name, SEGUN ADESINA, met with herbalists tracked online for help
What was uncovered was a frightening, sadistic romance involving young men, voodoo, and traditionalists that are ready markets for booming human parts harvesters.
Oladipupo Olalere looked remarkably fresh for an herbalist. His eyes were fixated on a book of mystics propped on his lap. Not even the presence of a potential customer could distract him. He only managed to nod his head to acknowledge the presence of our correspondent, pointed to a weather-beaten wooden bench and went on to flip through the pages of the book, mumbling inanities.
The 30-year-old plies his trade somewhere inside the densely populated area of Oja-Oba in Ibadan, Oyo State. His shrine is a ramshackle building sandwiched between two old structures with brown corrugated iron sheets. His dimly lit room was littered with fetish objects, mostly wrapped in red cloth. While some were displayed on wooden tables, others thickly coated with dust, hung loosely on the dirt-stained wall. Inside the room, which was crammed with other odd-looking objects, was an area demarcated with a cream cloth.
Staring at the space generated an eerie feeling as it oozed secrecy. From all indications, it was not meant for prying eyes. Before the visit, our correspondent had been in talks with the herbalist, who has over four thousand followers “liking and sharing” his fetish suggestions.
Known as Ifatunde Ifayemi on Facebook, his timeline is littered with adverts beckoning on individuals interested in all manner of charms, especially those that hold great promises for individuals seeking avenues to get rich mysteriously.
With his page, a beehive of interactions, he constantly fed fans with content that boasts his mystical powers and deep-rooted traditional beliefs. With flagrant disregard for identity protection, he flaunts his clients as a way to prove his success rate as a money-ritual guru.
It was from one of his posts that our correspondent got his phone number and began a negotiation that, with time, led to a face-to-face meeting.
Initially, when the conversation was initiated, the picture painted by our correspondent to Oladipupo was one of a frustrated Yahoo boy (Internet fraudster) faced with a life of struggle and lack, and was ready to stake his neck to hit the goldmine through money ritual.
Oladipupo flanked on both sides by two clients
A journey into the mysterious
Excited by the call from not only a new client but one ready to go the whole hog, Oladipupo, with-no-holds barred, revealed and explained coded traditional terminologies, which he said were only known by money ritual underdogs.
PUNCH Investigations gathered from him that various types of money rituals had their attached consequences. Oladipupo said the two in high demand were ‘Osole Gbigbona,’ which required human parts, and ‘Osole Tutu,’ the one prepared with animal parts.
Following promises by our correspondent to ensure a huge return after hitting it big and sensing his desperation, the herbalist voluntarily opted to prepare the ‘Osole Gbigbona’ money ritual.
While still marketing the extraordinary potency of this particular charm, he warned that it would cost quite a lump sum of money. Still, he refused to divulge the amount on the phone. Oladipupo later gave our correspondent an address in Ibadan for a physical meeting to finalise the arrangement.
Meeting days later, Oladipupo ranted about popularly held perceptions on the potency of money rituals and boasted about a sizeable number of Nigerians he had made stupendously rich. The conversation, which was more of a self-advertisement, appeared to be a mind-playing gimmick meant to mentally prepare our correspondent for what was ahead.
He said, “Osole Gbigbona is real. Some are more potent and effective than others. I have done so many money rituals. From Abuja to Abakaliki, I transfer the charms. I have clients abroad and send the charms through courier,” he boasted with a glint in his eyes.
Oladipupo said he relocated to Ibadan from Ogun State because of the huge patronage he enjoys from mostly young Internet fraudsters.
He said, “I have more customers in Ibadan than Ijebu Ode. You know that a prophet is not respected in his own town. I have customers that sometimes lodge in hotels for weeks, and when it’s time to eat the concoction made for them or to collect the charms, they will come to my place. Two friends came to me from Abuja and another from Abakaliki. I posted about them on my timeline,” he said.
A vivid description of the individuals matched some uploaded pictures discovered on his Facebook page by PUNCH Investigations.
The actual cost of money rituals made with human parts
Delving deeper into the mystery, Oladipupo explained what each money ritual entailed and asked our correspondent, “Do you want the one that will yield money immediately or that which would make people start rendering monetary favours to you?
“There is money-making soap that will be prepared for you with parts of a dead body. When bathing with it, the dead body will appear. You may not see the spirit, but you will hear words like ‘give me my head or give me my flesh,’ depending on the part used. The potion prepared with body parts is more potent than those made with the head of lizards or other animals.”
Our correspondent asked for the cost after Oladipupo’s earlier advice to go for the money ritual prepared with human parts due to its efficacy.
Ingredients for rituals bought by Ifatunde.
“Osole Gbigbona will cost you N250, 000. I am offering you this charm at a cheap price. If you can get me the money, you will have so much money within one week. You will see money and become afraid,” he blurted with accompanying incantations.
The herbalist further boasted that the charm prepared with human parts can last for three years, adding, “By the time it expires, you would have made more than enough money.”
Asked if there are accompanying repercussions, Oladipupo answered, “Since you are not the one that killed the person, there won’t be any problem.”
Pretending to be pleased and convinced, our correspondent asked Oladipupo for his bank details, promising to transfer the amount needed for the money ritual once he gets to Lagos.
Surprising ease of obtaining human parts
Before taking his leave, pretending to be worried, our correspondent asked the herbalist how he intended to source the human parts required for the money ritual.
He dismissively answered that he was unaware but later said it could be harvested from accident victims or dead bodies.
After a deep thought, he (herbalist) claimed to also source from herb sellers and “from old members of Oduduwa People Congress.”
In order not to arouse suspicion by probing further, our correspondent left with a promise to transfer the N250,000.
However, three days later, instead of returning with the money, our correspondent called to make an odd urgent request – to procure a human toe for personal reasons.
Without hesitating, Oladipupo promised to contact his supplier and revert back on the price and mode of delivery.
A few minutes later, he called back with the news that the toe could be delivered at any location. He (herbalist) was ready to act as a middle man to broker the deal.
He revealed that it would cost N50,000, but after negotiation, the duo settled for N40,000.
“Once you send money and it is confirmed, I will get it from the supplier and bring it to your place. If you send the money today, I will bring it to Lagos today. My delivery fee is N5,000,” he said.
PUNCH Investigations, however, aborted the mission by not contacting Oladipupo, as it was unclear where the toe would be sourced from.
It is worth noting that the transaction was hinged on an agreement of payment before the supplier would source for it.
After two weeks of silence, the herbalist sent a message to our correspondent to find out why he had yet to hear from him, but he got no response.
Enter Ifatunde, 19-year-old herbalist cum swindler
In Oyo State, Ifatunde, a 19-year-old, who hoodwinked our correspondent into believing he was in his 70s, held sway.
He was the second herbalist that PUNCH Investigations’ search unearthed on Facebook and was contacted via a number advertised on his posts. In what could pass as a veiled attempt to deceive desperate victims, Ifatunde had the ‘Odu Ifa Corpus’ symbol as his profile picture.
However, PUNCH Investigations stumbled on another of his Facebook accounts with another mystical symbol used as a display picture through a WhatsApp number given to our correspondent by the herbalist, which he claimed belonged to his son.
Findings showed that the first Facebook account had 2,140 friends, while the second had 1,000.
He spoke with an unadulterated Ibadan accent in a series of telephone conversations with our correspondent that spanned two weeks. He pretended to be a gruffly old man. He continuously referred to our correspondent as ‘Omo mi’ (my child).
Still sounding like a desperate Internet fraudster, our correspondent reeled out why he needed to become rich. Ifatunde wasted no time boasting that he possessed the ultimate mystical power to conjure wealth and success.
However, his bill was small compared to that of the Ibadan-based herbalist.
“Are you ready for it now?” he asked after days of back and forth on the phone with our correspondent.
“I will charge N95,000 for the one that needs human parts. Since you are 30 years old, there is no problem. If you are not up to a certain age, you cannot use it. Some people that are 19 and 20 years old have approached me, and they got what they wanted. Put your mind at rest,” he said.
After pleading with Ifatunde to reduce the fee, the amount was brought down to N40,000. It was agreed that the amount would be paid in two instalments of N20,000.
The herbalist explained that the deposit would be used to buy the human parts and other items needed to perform a particular sacrifice. At the same time, the balance of N20,000, would be paid once the charm was ready.
“I will do it for you. I hope you won’t be an ingrate because the N40,000 is too small. Do you have the money with you now,” he asked.
However, the money ritual came with a clause – no physical meeting between him and our correspondent until the charm is ready.
“Seeing me would render the charm useless,” he warned.
In what appeared to be a tactic to avoid being traced, Ifatunde requested that the money be transferred to a POS operator, claiming to have issues with his bank account but when our correspondent insisted on paying through a bank or back out, he agreed to send the bank details of his son.
He kept demanding more
After an account with the name Promise Oyewole was sent, the first instalment of N20,000 was paid. However, two days later, Ifa Tunde called to demand an additional N10,000 to purchase ‘essential materials’. He claimed the N20,000 was insufficient and highlighted the dangers of aborting the ritual halfway. The money was sent but with an agreement that only a balance of N10,000 would be paid when the charm was ready.
Surprisingly, the herbalist called the next day to demand another N20,000, to carry out another special sacrifice to fortify the money ritual. He said, “Something appeared to me last night, and I had to suspend the preparation. Before I finish the process, we need to make a sacrifice. I saw something with positive and negative side effects. If the sacrifice is made and you start using the charm, you will get results within three days, but if not, it won’t work.
“It seems that you have been using other charms before now, and they don’t work. I don’t want that to happen again. And you know that there is no way we can perform the sacrifice without money. N20,000 should be enough.”
At this point, it dawned on our correspondent that he could possibly be dealing with an Internet fraudster masquerading as an herbalist.
Our correspondent offered to bring the N20,000 to his shrine, pretending to play along. Still, Ifatunde refused and voiced fears that it portended danger.
He referred to an earlier discussion wherein he warned that the charm forbade any physical meeting with a client. Instead, he proposed sending his son, Promise.
“He would wait for you by the roadside at Ipeba to collect the money,” he said.
Findings by PUNCH Investigations showed that Ipeba is a remote village along the Ogbomoso-Oyo Road.
The President of Ogboni Agbaye (worldwide), Oba Akanji Adetoyese Abudu Olakisan, is not the only traditional leader to raise his voice against the wave of ritualistic activities including murder which terrorize the Nigerian population. He is to be commended for his brave position and being outspoken against these cruel practices which have no place in the 21st century. (webmaster FVDK)
Published: May 7, 2022 By: Sam Nwaoko – Nigerian Tribune
Oba Akanji Adetoyese Abudu Olakisan, is the President of Ogboni Agbaye (worldwide). He speaks with SAM NWAOKO on the widespread report of ritual killings in Nigeria and on how this affects the image of traditional worshippers in the society among other issues.
How does it make you feel when you hear the rampant reports of people killing others for money rituals?
I feel sad whenever I hear how people are being killed or slaughtered for money rituals in our country. I’ve always said that the major cause of all these is unemployment, most especially among our youths and government is to be blamed for this. That’s why entrepreneurship skill acquisition must be made compulsory right from the secondary schools so that youths could be engaged and become self-employed at the end of their education. Secondly, as the adage says ‘charity begins at home’, parents must teach their children morals and let them know the evil effects of engaging in criminalities because our creator frowns at every form of immoral act. Since the greatest sin that a man can commit in life that may attract the wrath of God is killing fellow human being, why can’t we run away from such sin and come back to God? So, the government should wake up to their responsibility by creating jobs for all our teeming youths either by encouraging them to be self-employed and give them a take-off grant or provide them with white collar jobs.
Do the reports affect what you do or how you are viewed in the society?
Of course, it has effect on what I do and want to believe it’s not only me but to every other law-abiding citizen of Nigeria. If you observe vividly, killings and other forms of insecurity have generally made our country unsafe for foreign investors. So this is to tell you that apart from me, every other Nigerian has equally been affected one way or the other. For example, people are no longer safe to even travel from one state to the other. Our economy has generally gone bad as a result of this insecurity and killing problems. Today, people are no longer safe in their houses, on the street, in the religion institutions, in the farms, in their places of work as well as while travelling from one place to another. So, since part of our government’s promise is to secure life and property of the citizenry, it is now time for them to have a rethink and wake up to their responsibilities
How would you advice a person who wants to do rituals for wealth?
My major advice for whoever that is planning it is to desist from such a dastardly act and never to go to it. Naturally if someone is very hard-working, focused, have trust and belief in God for the blessing of his handwork definitely, such a person will make it in life without making money rituals. Success in life is just a matter of obeying the principles of work and pray. Instead of money rituals, we should all wait for the time of God. It is only God that gives man wealth without adding stress to it. Though, it is good for someone to be wealthy because there is nothing we can do on this earth in the absence of money but one must not be too desperate for it. The love of money and desire to have it at all cost is responsible for all the criminalities and insecurity problem that we found ourselves in Nigeria today.
Sir, politicians are jostling for positions as preparations for the general election in Nigeria is heightening. What would be your message to the politicians and the electorate?
Our politicians must rule with the fear of God. Electioneering campaign should be centred on issues instead of personality. All elected representatives must not be self-centered but rather, the interest of Nigerians and the electorates must always be at their heart and they must make sure they fulfill all their electioneering campaign promises. Political violence and killings must be totally avoided in Nigeria if we really want Nigeria to continue to remain as one entity. Honestly speaking, God has even revealed to me that except we pray very well, and eschew crisis and violence, many of our political leaders may die before the 2023 general elections. God also told me in a dream that all the kidnappers, ritualist and human killers in Nigeria will meet their waterloo soun. and Nigeria will be a better place to live. You see, the major killer of our economy in this country is corruption. Therefore, our elected representative must eschew corruption for our economy to pick up again because corruption has now become a cankerworm that has eaten deep into the fabric of our society.
What solutions would you suggest to the government on the way out of the present bad economic and security situation we are facing in Nigeria?
I think the first step President Muhammadu Buhari’s government should take is to genuinely create jobs. Our government must make sure that all our teeming youths are usefully engaged. Though the government can’t provide all the needed white-coller jobs for everyone but they can encourage entrepreneurship skill acquisition among the youths by making it a compulsory course in our higher institutions of learning so that after their graduation, the government can make it a point of duty to provide them with materials/instruments as well as take off grant to start work.
If this can be done, our youths will not only be self employed but they will also become employers of labour and they will be able to utilize their God given talents positively for the socio/economic growth of the nation rather than using it in a negative way. So, all the nation’s money that our politicians are embezzling can be use positively to build and develop these youths. So therefore, all we just need to do now is to make sure that corruption is being totally eradicated so that this money can be utilize for the creation of job opportunity for our youths as well as provision of social amenities for the people.
In the area of economy that you talk about the other time, the solution is also very simple and that is diversification away from oil economy to agriculture and other sectors of economy. You see, our government has relied too much on the petroleum resources for our economic sustenance in Nigeria. Agriculture alone can create job opportunity for about one hundred millions of our youths in the country if our government can encourage agriculture. Secondly, it could help in boosting our economy by the time we are having excess of foodstuff and become exporters of agricultural produce rather importing them. Again through farming products, many industries can spring up where agricultural produce can be branded and packages into another thing.
I also want to use this medium to appeal to President Muhammadu Buhari to as matter of urgency find lasting solution to the high rate of fuel price in the country. You see, instead of importing our petroleum products, the government should try and repair all our refineries in Nigeria so that we won’t be taking our crude-oil to the outside Nigeria again to be refined and import back to us at the exorbitant price. So, I want to believe that if this can be done by the federal government, the current price of almost N200.00 per liter of petrol will be naturally drop to N50.00 per liter.
Talking security-wise again, Nigerians too should not leave the security issue to the governments hand alone but instead, we should all be security conscious by reporting whatever strange things we notice in our societies to the security agencies or any appropriate authorities as quickly as possible. Moral teachings and preaching’s should be encourage among us so that everybody can know the evil effects of engaging in criminalities and the consequence of it before our creator after we might have died. As the Yoruba adage use to say ‘charity begins at home’ every parents must try and educate their children on the importance of moral and the evil effect of engaging in criminalities. Again children should be taught on what will come out of whoever engage in criminal act and is caught by the security agencies, they should let the younger ones also know that killing of fellow human being for whatever reasons is a very great sin before our creator which could attract very serious punishment.
Parents should also train their children in the line of creativity and handwork as tools towards attaining success and greatness in life.
The article below contains a number of interesting views – from various points of view – which throw light on the why and how of ritualistic murders and associated activities in Nigeria, commonly referred to as ‘money rituals’. It also mentions a number of recent ritual murder cases, some of them have been included in previous posts.
Personally I find the statement of a Catholic priest, Fr. Oluoma, perhaps the most convincing, simple as it was. He said that, had killing for money rituals been proven to have any form of potency, juju priests would have been on the World’s Richest Peoples list. Hilarious, simple, and convincing.
But another expert spoken to, the Chief Priest of Aroh Deity in Abagana community, Njikoka Local Government Area, Dr Paul Anieto, said that logic alone cannot explain the whole of life, including the accumulation of wealth.
Without mincing his words he stated that money rituals work. Nevertheless, he was quick to point out that there are various kinds of rituals for wealth.
According to the Aroh Deity Priest, some rituals involve the use of human body parts while others don’t. (…)
The native doctor clearly stated that he does not engage in the kind of money ritual that involves human body parts or blood, because it is criminal. Moreover, he said, it has deadly consequences for everyone involved: the instigator, the perpetrator, and the juju priest who executes the ritual.
Let’s hope he was sincere. (webmaster FVDK)
What we know about ritual killings for money, Juju priests, Imams, Pastors, others speak
• Money ritual real but there are consequences —Aroh Deity Priest • If money rituals have potency, juju priests would be on Forbes’ rich list —Fr. Oluoma … •Faulty parenting, poor education, bad governance driving youths to money rituals —Rev. Hayab … •Money rituals promoted by materialistic clerics – Sheikh Nuru Khalid … •Killing for money rituals, haram in Islam —Shi’ite cleric
These days, reports of certain killings in Nigeria, where the human body is decapitated and sensitive parts harvested are believed to be for ritual purposes. In some instances, especially, if the motive remains unclear, some people assume they must have been about money-making.
However, other people, including Christian and Muslim clerics, don’t believe in the efficacy of money rituals. By that, they mean there is nowhere in the history of humankind where anybody has made real cash appear through the means of magic. They simply describe such an idea as a mirage.
But the belief in the efficacy of money ritual killings continues to be rife, especially in a society like the Nigerian context where religion and the supernatural appear to be the opium of the people due to bewildering economic hardship and widespread poverty.
Investigations reveal that the ritual killings heighten around December and the year before general elections, because people need money to spend during the annual yuletide celebrations and other financially draining pre-election meetings and rallies.
As the gap between the rich and the poor; the haves and the have-nots widen across the country, the desperation to overcome the expanding class divide propel many citizens, particularly the youth demography to turn to the dark sides of the supernatural with the hope there will be a wealth redistribution in their favour through unseen support.
Recall the recent tragic drama in Ogun State where a 20-year-old lady, Sofiat Kehinde, was gruesomely murdered and her head severed for money ritual by four teenager suspects; Soliu Majekodunmi; 18, Wariz Oladehinde, 18; Abdulgafar Lukman, 19, and Balogun Mustaqeem, 20.
They conspired to kill Kehinde and played different roles in her murder. Her skull was severed in her lover’s( Majekodunmi) room after a passionate round of love-making.
Fortunately, the teenagers were apprehended by security men after they got wind that the boys were engaging in something sinister in a building located at Isale-Ijade, Oke-Aregba area of the State.
That is the nature of the Nigerian society where people, including kids who should be minding their studies and dreaming of a glorious future for themselves are pre-occupied with looking for metaphysical explanations to clarify otherwise simple phenomena of pervasive poverty in the land.
However, while some traditional religion practitioners speak of some fetish rituals some embark on for money-making, religious leaders, especially in Christendom and Islam agree to an extent that although life in general is guided by faith in the invisible, those who pursue wealth through the execution of any form of violent homicide are under an illusion, from a spiritual standpoint, that genuine help will come to them.
One of such clerics is Rev. Fr. Oluoma Chinenye John, a priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Abuja who commands a following of 689,903 people on Facebook alone.
If money rituals have potency, juju priests would be on Forbes’ rich list — Fr. Oluoma
According to the Catholic priest, had killing for money rituals been proven to have any form of potency, juju priests would have been on the World’s Richest Peoples list.
In an exclusive chat with Saturday Vanguard, he blamed society’s emphasis on material prosperity for the pressure felt by those, particularly youths who resort to voodoo to make money.
Fr. Oluoma also chided fellow preachers who promote the perception that financial “seed-sowing” in religious houses would translate into miracle wealth.
“Two things I want to say are: First, ritual killing for money is an illusion, it doesn’t work. If it did, the Babalawo (juju priest) who is paid to do the rituals would have done it for himself and be living large. Even the governments would have been using prisoners condemned to death for money rituals instead of wasting their blood by hanging or firing squads. It (money rituals) is an illusion like magic.
“Secondly, preachers of the gospel should stop the prosperity gospel, they should teach people the values of honesty, diligence, generosity and hard work. The emphasis on material prosperity puts pressure on people who resort to any means to make it,” Fr. Oluoma, who shepherds a congregation at St. John Mary Vianney Catholic Church, Trademore Estate, Lugbe Abuja, said.
Faulty parenting, poor education, bad governance leading youths to money rituals —Rev. Hayab
For Rev. John Hayab, the Vice Chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in the 19 Northern States and the FCT, nowadays many people including minors seek supernatural solutions to basic economic issues that could be resolved through education and logic partly because of bad leadership and the faulty upbringing of children.
Speaking with Saturday Vanguard, the vocal preacher who is also the Country Director of Global Peace Foundation in Nigeria, also said people who traffic in stories of how supernatural power has prospered certain people do so largely to further mislead those who find it hard to accept that someone else can succeed through the ethics of hard work, prudence, and sheer ingenuity.
He said, “The way and manner many of our youths are deviating from moral values and embracing evil just to make money are dangerous for a peaceful future. There are many factors responsible for their going into ritual killings to make money instead of pursuing education that will lead them into researching and investing in science and technology.
“Other nations are doing well in these regard because they have laid a good solid foundation for both the educational, moral and spiritual growth of their nation and children.
“The Bible has admonished us to train a child in the way he should go so that when he grows old he will not depart from it (Prov 22: 6). So, what type of training and upbringing are many Nigerian children getting from parents, neighbors, and even leaders?
“Our society celebrates rich people without questioning the source of their wealth. Churches recognise the best-dressed worshippers and members with big cars not minding the source of all they flaunt around.
How will poorly brought-up children not think that money is everything and go after money anyhow just to be recognised and celebrated?
“Our society and our youths will reject the temptation of killing for money when parents bring them up in the fear of God and love for fellow human beings. Everyone should therefore take parenting seriously by helping to raised godly and responsible children.
“Also, the government must help to make sure our teeming youths have an equal opportunity like their counterparts around the world. A country where basic services are not available can make the youths who are not patient want to make money by all means just to afford some basic human needs.
“When you (government) give your youths poor education, they will use their half-baked knowledge to do wrong things. We should lead our youth by example.
“Likewise, faith leaders should preach sermons that will guide the young people right not misleading some of them with wrong definitions of prosperity. Prosperity is not just about having money. A healthy man, contented, and happy doing what he knows best for the glory of God and the good of all humanity even if he has not much cash in his account or pocket is a prosperous person.”
While there appears to be no logical link between wealth and rituals, the rising incidences of gory killings in our society by suspects who got into trouble with the law, because of their desperation for money are worrying and the society must be held to account for the phenomenon.
Money rituals promoted by materialistic clerics —Sheikh Nuru Khalid
The immediate past Chief Imam of the National Assembly Legislative Quarters’s Jum’mat Mosque, Apo, Abuja, Sheikh Muhammad Nuru Khalid who spoke to Saturday Vanguard from his location in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, where he is currently observing the lesser Hajj, said the society has lost its sense of value; thereby, placing materialism above spirituality.
He also said that the ultimate goal of some people who engage in gruesome murders for money was the acquisition of political power in the country; stressing that greed also forms the basis of such gory killings.
Sheikh Khalid maintained that greed was condemnable not only in Islam, but in other religions.
The Islamic scholar, who also commands a mass following of 138,266 people on Facebook, stated: “We have to acknowledge that our society is in trouble. Values are lost. Gradually, we are becoming a valueless society. We glorify money and other forms of materialism above spirituality which is increasingly becoming absent in the mosques and churches.
“Materialism is taking the place of spiritualism in our preaching and actions, because the Imams and Pastors are less concerned about spiritual things. If you have a lot of money, you can garner a lot of respect in the society.
“Other issues responsible for the mad rush for money rituals are corruption and the get-rich-quick deceit. Our political system is also one of the factors fueling criminality in the form of money rituals, because without money, you don’t have power. People want money to acquire power. So, they are desperate in search money to reach the political position of power.
“But, if you put all these things together, they will tell you why all the religions are against greed. There are many verses of the Qu’ran and Hadiths of the Holy Prophet, cautioning people to desist from greed. That is why Islam is against inhuman activities that endanger lives, dignity, and the wealth of the common man.
“Above all, we need to do more to bring back the society to its normal sense, because abnormalities are becoming norms in our society.”
There is a telling example of this odd trend of abnormality becoming the norm in the story of 33-year-old suspected ritualist, Afeez Odusanya, who was arrested by operatives of the Osun State Security Network, codenamed ‘Amotekun’ for extracting teeth of dead bodies at a burial ground.
Odusanya, who said he did it for a money ritual when he was paraded at Amotekun command, Sabo area, Osogbo, disclosed he started his quest for money ritual in 2016 but it failed twice after extracting teeth from two different bodies in Sagamu, Ogun State.
Rather than accept that what he set out to achieve is impossible, the suspected money ritualist doubled down on his exhumation of buried corpse believing it would ultimately succeed if he added this and that to the process.
People like Odusanya have never seen the rituals translate into money or success, but they still attempt it anyway. By killing people, they get drawn into the relatively profitable trade in human body parts. They do not need to see it work; they just need to believe and start relating to the phenomenon as true.
Killing for money rituals, haram in Islam —Shi’ite cleric
But, a leading Muslim cleric of the Shi’ite sect in Sokoto caliphate, Sheikh Sidi Munir, maintains that tampering with the human body for ritual purposes whether efficacious or not is inglorious in Islam.
He, however, noted that the more killing for money ritual is hyped, the more people believe that others participate in it because it is perceived to be efficacious, and the more those who benefit in the trading of human parts oil the demand and supply chain.
In an exclusive interview with Saturday Vanguard, the Islamic cleric said: “In Islam, human dignity is a right given by God to all humans, who are referred to in the Qur’ân as God’s vicegerents on earth.
“Islam grants certain rights to humans before they are even born and others after their death. Whether dead or alive, the human body, created by God in the perfect shape, must be given dignity and respect.
“So, money ritual is condemnable in Islam, and the use of human body parts for making medicine, charms and amulet for any reason is haram (forbidden). It is unlawful in Islam to tamper with a human body, and a Muslim who persists in committing these kinds of rituals will find himself on a path that will eventually lead him into becoming a non-Muslim.”
On how to turn the minds of people, especially the youths from killings for money rituals, Sheikh Munir alluded to one of the Hadiths (traditions) to buttress the need for clerics to keep preaching repentance messages from the pulpits.
He said, “In one of the Hadiths of the Prophet Mohammad (SAW), a man was in the habit of digging up graves to harvest human body parts.
One day, he met a woman in a grave and had sexual intercourse with her. Afterwards, a great calamity befell him. He went to a Mallam who told him he would burn in hell fire, because his predicament was a result of his evil deeds.
“The distressed man seized the Mallam and killed him. Then, he went to another Mallam who told him that if he would repent of his sins, the Almighty God will forgive him and take away his reproach. The evil man turned away from his evil ways and became a good Muslim. So, as clerics, we need to keep preaching repentance always.”
Money ritual is real, but… —Aroh Deity Priest
Meanwhile, the Chief Priest of Aroh Deity in Abagana community, Njikoka Local Government Area, Dr Paul Anieto, told Saturday Vanguard that logic alone cannot explain the whole of life, including the accumulation of wealth.
According to him, to say there is nothing like money rituals is to say there is nothing like mysticism in life. He said that to stretch the logic of that denial, implies that there is nothing like God, because many believe that there is a mystical side to the nature of God.
He explained that there are Christians who believe in the transubstantiation of substances i.e. the transformation of forms, for instance, of the water and the wine into the body and the blood of Jesus Christ once they are consumed in the Holy Communion.
Chief Anieto without mincing his words stated that money rituals work. Nevertheless, he was quick to point out that there are various kinds of rituals for wealth.
According to him, some rituals involve the use of human body parts while others don’t. However, the blood of certain animals like rams, bulls, and birds are required.
The native doctor clearly stated that he does not engage in the kind of money ritual that involves human body parts or blood, because it is not only criminal, but also has deadly repercussions for all the parties – the wealth seeker, his collaborators, and the juju priest who executed the ritual – involved.
Dr Anieto said: “Some ignorant juju priest make use of human beings as sacrificial materials for money rituals and lucky charms. But this is not what the African culture teaches.
“Rituals are basically an intercession between the mundane and the spiritual. It is unfortunate that what we see today are so many committing various forms of dangerous and inhuman acts in the name of money rituals.
“I don’t engage in human money rituals and you can never see any real adherent of Odinnani (Igbo traditional religion) engage in money ritual, because “Ani” forbids the shedding of human blood. Violating this taboo comes with devastating consequences, because all deities in Igbo culture requires tooth-for-tooth and blood-for-blood.
“To accumulate wealth requires hardwork and business acumen. This is what Odinaani teaches but it is unfortunate that today’s youths lack this important virtue. They want to succeed at all costs, not minding who gets hurt in the process. They are ready to kill and sacrifice human beings for money rituals without considering the consequences of their action.
“There is prosperity charm which does not require the use of human beings or human parts but you must first have a mundane source of income to make it work. Do not be deceived into believing that there is a spirit that brings money for anyone out of thin air without a mundane source of income even in odious money rituals where human blood and body parts are involved.”
Psychologist speaks
Above all, a professor of psychology at the University of Lagos (UNILAG), Oni Fagboungbe, said rituals for both money and success exist only in the perception of the people.
He explained that for those who do money ritual, it is their faith that makes the ritual for money work for them and not the incantation or the ritual itself.
To him, it is the law of perception that is at work in cases of successful money rituals. If you perceive a situation as real, it becomes real. That is it. It is not the ritual that brings money, it is their mind and the attachment they give to it.
Fagboungbe decried the spate of ritual killings for money among the youths, and said there are several psychological laws that explain these behaviours.
According to him, “There is the Destalk psychology that says the part can never be better than the whole. The children cannot do something that is not rampant in their country.
“There is also what is called observational learning. This is the most active form of learning. These youths observe what goes on and imbibe it.
“Additionally, the law of effect says any stimulus that brings pleasure will be maximised and the one that brings pain will be minimised. These youth see the society. They see politicians commit crimes and they also see them get out of them and all sort of things. They see how the society eulogise and applaud dubious characters.
“So, there are no deterrent variables available. People do as they like and get away with it. You will hear Yahoo boys say that if they give money to the police, they will be let off the hook.”
While Christian and Muslim religious leaders attempt to undermine the phenomenon of money rituals by appealing to reason and by pointing out how illogical such a belief is, some analysts say that both logic and the law are powerless to serve as the basis of dissuading those who would not be dissuaded from their culturally perception of life and their place in it, because the irrational often trumps the rational in the real world.
Legal prosecution of suspect may have the power to nip in the bud any attempt at senseless killing in the name of seeking wealth, but people will keep believing what they want to believe about the efficacy of money rituals.
Therefore, to effectively tackle the obnoxious practice of money rituals in the society, the government must entrench the practice of good governance and do all it would take to pull the economy out of the doldrums that has widened the gulf between the rich and the poor in the country.
Ritual killing is real, herbalist speaks too
Additional report
By Evelyn Usman
According to him: ‘ I inherited this trade from my late father. Before he died, he warned me never to indulge in any rituals that involves human blood. He told me that some of his professional colleagues died miserably because they practiced money rituals.
“He also told me one of them lost seven of his children after killing a virgin for money rituals. My job is to prepare concoctions with herbs and soap for cure of diseases that are planted into individuals by wicked people.
“Unfortunately, some of us who do legitimate business in this profession are not rich, when compared to those who are into money rituals. While they could be paid between N500,000 and N2 million naira depending on the outcome of the rituals, the legitimate herbalists may die without having N100,000 in bulk .
“Blood is potent for money ritual making. It has several types . But the only thing those patronizing herbalists who practice money rituals don’t know, is that one killing may never be enough. Killing of one person is just the introductory part. As long as the person wants to be rich, he would be sacrificing human beings to renew that evil covenant because the demon in charge of money always requires blood.
“Unfortunately, most people who patronize these herbalists don’t also know they are destined to be rich. These herbalists only demand human blood to fast track their predestined wealth”.
Some recent ritual killings —Lagos
A vivid instance was the murder of 24-year-old Precious Okeke, who just concluded her National Youth Service Corp. The unsuspecting lady had paid a visit to her fiancé ,Maxwell Njoku, at his Ajah , Lagos abode, only for her decomposing remains to be discovered in the apartment three weeks ago.
Report had it that her supposed fiancé allegedly killed her for money rituals, with an instruction by his herbalist to keep her body in the apartment for seven days, after which he would transform into a multimillionaire. Unfortunately, a curious neighbour traced the disturbing stench to the apartment before the expiration of the seven days .Another bizarre incident occurred at Araromi Street in the densely populated Oshodi area of Lagos, following the alleged killing of a mother of five by her husband for money rituals.
In this case, the suspect Sogei Jafairu, who hails from Etsako Central Local Government Area of Edo state, was suspected to have poisoned his wife’s food and mistakenly ate it. While his wife did not survive it, he did and reportedly opened up on his deed.
Again in Lagos, One Sherifat Bello was arrested by the Police after he confessed to killing his wife and burying her remains in a shallow grave, for money rituals .
Rivers state
This barbaric act assumed a cannibalistic dimension following the arrest of a suspected kidnapper alleged to have killed one of his victims and used his intestines to prepare pepper soup in River State.
The suspect, Roland Peter, according to the Police in River State , abducted his victim from his house and was at the verge of eating pepper soup and yam porridge prepared with parts of the body of his victim’s when the police swooped on him and some accomplices.
Ogun State
Ogun State seems to be taking the lead in the report on killings for money rituals. Recently, three teenagers were allegedly caught burning the head of a girl they killed for money ritual purposes at the Oke Aregba area of Abeokuta in Ogun State.
The teenagers: Wariz Oladehinde, 17, and Abdul Gafar Lukman, 19, and the 20-year-old, Mustakeem Balogun, confessed during interrogation that the victim identified simply as Rofiat, was the girlfriend of one of them who was lured into their apartment, where they cut off their heads .
On why teenagers engage in money rituals remains a riddle to unravel.
Other arrests made by the Police in Ogun State involved Pastors and Islamic clerics allegedly involved in killings for money rituals.
There had been several other cases of killings for money rituals in the state .
Enugu
In Enugu, the south-east region of Nigeria, the story is the same. A housewife, Mrs Ifebuchukwu Onyeishi narrated recently, how her husband, Chidi Onyeishi, a tricycle operator , in connivance with a nonagenarian Pastor, allegedly killed their seven-year-old son for a money ritual.
The list is endless, with the introduction of different devices to achieving the devilish act.
Clergyman speaks
Speaking with Saturday Vanguard, the General Overseer, Apply Praise Ministry International and Chairman, Christian Association of Nigeria, Jakande /Bungalow district of Ejigbo, Pastor Segun Olatunde , said killings for money ritual did not just begin today, adding that he met the ugly phenomenon while growing up as a child.
Asked if it worked , he replied affirmatively . According to him: “Yes, it works for them. Because if it isn’t, people will not be indulging it in the practice . It has been for a long time . I recall as a growing child , our parents warned us never to accept anything from strangers, especially when going to school.
Today, there are different versions of it. Some use human parts to prepare charms , while others use the parts to enhance their business. For some, it is to attract money and favour, to them. It is mysterious, just as money is mysterious and answers to blood.
“Recently some persons were arrested while they were burning some human parts to prepare charms for money rituals. I don’t know how they do it but those arrested said they were burning the human hand for money rituals. For some, the money must be spent in a day, for new ones to come and failure to finish it that day attracts dire consequences.
Killing humans does not guarantee being rich — Ifa Priest, Araba Ifayemi Elebuibon
By Shina Abubakar, Osogbo
A foremost traditionalist and Ifa priest, Araba Ifayemi Elebuibon has said that killing human does not guarantee being rich stressing that many spiritualists that embark on it are actually living a miserable life.
According to the renown Ifa Priest, “money ritual is in two ways, first, the popular gruesome killing of human with a view to using their body parts for money is more of magical than ritual. Over the years of my being a priest, I have never seen or heard any Ifa corpus about killing human for money rituals. It is not a certainty but magical. Many of the spiritualists involved in the illegality are themselves poor.
“If it is certain that once you kill someone and severe body part, mix it with certain things you start getting money, why are the herbalists still poor? Many of those caught after perpetrating the killings and used the body parts still complained that it didn’t work for them. So, it is not ritual but magic. Ritual is what you do regularly to sustain a level of flow of spirituality. In Yoruba tradition, the money ritual does not involve killing humans. It is called ‘Awure’, ‘Osole’. It involves mixing natural materials to enhance business and getting favours, it does not involve killing humans, it may involve using goats, pigeon etc. Those who are responsible for the act are mostly Muslim and Christian clerics. The records are always clear, most of those arrested by police and even paraded are either pastors of Church or Muslim clerics. “To stop the menace, parents must be responsible and train their children in the way of God. We must return to our values, placing integrity above materialism. Parents must be responsible for their children’s welfare and they should not be expecting their children to pay house rent and feed the family. Also, religious leaders must stop giving respect or title to those with questionable wealth. We must collectively eliminate the menace in our society. Killing humans does not guarantee being rich.
Ritualistic murders are no exception in Ogun State, Nigeria. That’s a mild way of saying that ritual murders are rife in this southwestern part of Africa’s most populated country. I have repeatedly drawn attention on reported cases of ‘money rituals’ which demand a human sacrifice, see my postings of murder cases in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and the current year 2022.
I have no doubt that many more ritual murders have been committed in Ogun State but, first of all, not all murders are being reported and investigated and, secondly, not all ritual killings are detected.
Recently, there have been increasing protests against these cruel crimes. On Sunday April 3, a preacher at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko, Abeokuta, Chief Francis Oluwole Ogunnusi raised his voice against ritual killings, lashing out at ‘money rituals’. Suddenly he slumped and he died on the spot causing consternation and confusion in the church.
It is not known whether deacon Francis Ogunnusi was suffering from any health related problem.
I haven’t run across a newspaper article mentioning the following suspicion, but I won’t be surprised if quite a large number of churchgoers and other ordinary people reacted on the news of the deacon’s sudden demise – albeit silently – with awe and conviction that a terrifying and powerful person who possessed an extra-ordinary strong ‘juju’ was responsible for the death of Chief Francis Oluwole Ogunnusi (webmaster FVDK).
Deacon dies while preaching against ritual killings in Ogun State
Deacon Francis Ogunnusi
Published: April 5, 2022 By: Adekunle Dada – Within Nigeria
A deacon at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Francis Ogunnusi, reportedly slumped and died while against the ‘get-rich-quick’ syndrome during a Sunday service.
The church was thrown into confusion when the Deacon, also said to be the Baale of Onikoko, a community, near the Panseke area suddenly slumped with a microphone in his hand.
According to Daily Trust, a viral video showed the Deacon alongside an interpreter, warning against the rising cases of money-making rituals.
Delivering his sermon in Yoruba, Ogunnusi said “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood; when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
However, when the interpreter was still trying to present the words in the English language, the man slumped and threw the church into commotion.
He was reportedly rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
The aforementioned publication reported that a congregant said, “The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, but he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared. Everything was disrupted. We just shared the grace and went home.”
The source could not confirm whether the deceased was battling any health challenges.
Deacon dies on pulpit while preaching against ritual killings + Video
Screenshot – To access the video, please click here
Published: April 5, 2022 By: The Eagle Online, Nigeria
A Deacon of the Evangelical Church Winning All, Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Francis Ogunnusi, has been confirmed dead after slumping while preaching during a service.
The incident occurred during the Sunday service on April 3 as the Deacon preached against “get-rich-quick” syndrome.
The church was thrown into confusion after the Deacon, who is also the Baale of Onikoko, a community near Panseke area in Abeokuta metropolis, suddenly slumped with a microphone in his hand.
Delivering his sermon in Yoruba, Ogunnusi said: “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood, when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
The interpreter was still trying to present the words in the English language when the Deacon slumped.
According to Daily Trust, the Deacon was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
A congregant told the publication: “The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder.
“He was the Baale of Onikoko.
“But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people.
“All of a sudden, he collapsed.
“He was rushed to the FMC, but he died.
“We don’t know what happened.
“I was very scared.
“Everything was disrupted.
“We just shared the grace and went home.”
It was however not clear if he had any health challenges.
The corpse of Chief Ogunnusi has been deposited in the mortuary.
Confusion as deacon dies while preaching against ritual killings in Ogun
Published: April 5, 2022 By: Peter Moses – Daily Trust, Nigeria
There was a commotion at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, when a Deacon, Francis Ogunnusi, reportedly slumped and died…
Our correspondent gathered that the incident occurred on Sunday when Ogunnusi was preaching against the ‘get-rich-quick’ syndrome.
There have been worrying cases of ritual killings in Ogun State and other parts of the country. No less than three cases of killings for money rituals were recorded in different parts of the state last month.
A viral video sighted by our correspondent showed the deacon alongside an interpreter, warning against the rising cases of money rituals.
Ogunnusi was also said to be the Baale of Onikoko, a community near the Panseke area in Abeokuta metropolis.
The church was thrown into confusion when the deacon suddenly slumped with a microphone in his hand.
Delivering his sermon in Yoruba, Ogunnusi said, “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood; when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
However, when the interpreter was still trying to present the words in the English language, the man slumped and threw the church into a commotion.
He was reportedly rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
A congregant said, “The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, but he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared. Everything was disrupted. We just shared the grace and went home.”
The source could not confirm whether the deceased was battling any health challenges.
It was gathered that the lifeless body of Ogunnusi had been deposited in the mortuary.
Ogun: ECWA ‘Pastor’ slumps, dies on pulpit while preaching against ‘Money Rituals’
Published: April 6, 2022 By: Olufemi Adediran, Abeokuta – New Telegraph, Nigeria
A Deacon at the Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA), Onikoko area of Abeokuta, Ogun State, has slumped and died while preaching in the church on Sunday.
The Deacon, identified as Chief Francis Oluwole Ogunnusi, was the Baale of Onikoko community, near Panseke area of Abeokuta.
It was gathered that, Ogunnusi was in the pulpit on Sunday preaching against the ‘get-rich-quick’ syndrome that has become rampant, especially among Nigerian youths when he suddenly slumped.
In a video sighted by our correspondent, the Deacon warned those killing people and drinking human blood to get rich, saying when they die, the money would be taken by another person. In the video that had since gone viral on Social Media, the community leader who was preaching in Yoruba said,
“The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood; when death comes, it will belong to another person.” However, when the interpreter was still trying to present the words in English language, the man suddenly fell heavily with the microphone in his hand.
This led to commotion in the church hall as people ran to carry him to the hospital. A member of the church, who did not want to be mentioned, said the man was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi-Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
“The man was not the pastor of that church, he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. But he was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday. “He was talking about death and people who make money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, but he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared.
Everything was disrupted. We just shared the grace and went home,” the worshipper said. The source said he would not know whether or not the man had any health challenge before his sudden death on Sunday, adding that the deceased preacher may be between age 60 and 70 years.
It was gathered that the church at Onikoko is the headquarters of ECWA in the state. The lifeless body of Chief Ogunnusi has been deposited in the mortuary, it was gathered.
Ogun Church Scatters As Preacher Dies During Sermon Against Ritualists
Published: April 6, 2022 By: Daud Olatunji – Punch, Nigeria
A deacon at the Evangelical Church Winning All, Onikoko, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Francis Ogunnusi, has died while preaching in the church on Sunday.
The late deacon was the Baale of Onikoko community, near the Panseke area of Abeokuta.
Our correspondent gathered that Ogunnusi was on the pulpit on Sunday preaching against the get-rich-quick syndrome that had become the order of the day in different parts of the country.
Our correspondent saw a video where the deceased was heard warning those killing others to get rich, saying when they died, the money would be taken by other people.
Ogunnusi, while preaching in Yoruba, said, “The money you make through unlawful means, killing people, sucking human blood, when death comes, it will belong to another person.”
However, as his interpreter was about presenting the words in English language, Ogunnusi fell with the microphone in his hand.
This led to commotion in the church hall, as people rushed him to a hospital.
A member of the church, who did not want to be identified, said the victim was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre, Idi Aba, Abeokuta, where he was pronounced dead.
The source said, “The man was not the pastor of that church; he was just an elder. He was the Baale of Onikoko. He was the one that delivered the sermon on Sunday.
“He was talking about death and people who made money by killing other people. All of a sudden, he collapsed. He was rushed to the FMC, where he died. We don’t know what happened. I was very scared. Everything was disrupted. We just said the grace and went home.”
The source could not tell if Ogunnusi had any health challenge before the incident, adding that the deceased was between 60 and 70 years old.
It was gathered that the church at Onikoko is the headquarters of ECWA in Ogun State.
The corpse was said to have been deposited in a mortuary.
Nigeria is in shock. Professor Wole Soyinka, the famous Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet, and essayist in the English language is in shock too. This is not a small thing. Wole Soyinka was born into a Yoruba family in Abeokuta, nowadays the state capital of Ogun State in southwest Nigeria. The now 87-year old Wole Soyinka was awarded the 1986 Nobel Prize for Literature, the first sub-Saharan African to be honored in that category.
Read below what this famous Nigerian has to tell, how he feels about his government, the state of the nation, in particular the widespread and at random killing for ritual purposes: ‘money rituals’.
I have nothing to add (FVDK).
Wole Soyinka: State of the Nation: I have been under shock over kidnappings, ritual killings
Professor Wole Soyinka, Nigerian novelist, poet and in 1986 winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature
Published: March 25, 2022 By: The Citizen, Nigeria
Nigerian playwright, Professor Wole Soyinka said that he has been under a state of shock for the kidnapping of Nigerian students and also described the state of the country as an unconcerned attitude of people and deliberation of the government.
Soyinka said this at a lecture, titled; ‘The Politics of Black Intellection and Creativity, at the University of Pennsylvania, United States on Tuesday.
The poet was asked some questions about the rate of banditry, kidnappings of Nigerian Students, and the current situation in Nigeria by Prof. Wale Adebamwi of the Department of African Studies, University of Pennsylvania.
Also speaking, Prof. Adebamwi said the people and the government have not given enough on the current challenges and he blamed both for the quagmire.
Soyinka said, “I have been under a state of shock for a couple of decades. So it was time I took my revenge and hopefully shock our people just for exchange.”
Soyinka also criticized the protests in Ile Ife about the appointment of the newly Vice-Chancellor of Obafemi Awolowo University, Prof. Adebayo Bamire who is not an indigene of the town.
In his words, he urged the government to deal with the people behind the protest at OAU and also stated that he never thought of what is happening in Nigeria.
“Things have been happening I never thought I would witness. Take for instance the kidnapping of those children under the guise of religion. More than 300 school pupils were kidnapped from a school, where we put them there to take their examination, going about our business, raise their school fees and they disappeared completely.
“People saw them going. They saw them being kidnapped. The lackadaisical response of the government at the time was a shocker. But it wasn’t just Boko Haram alone. It isn’t just ISWAP (Islamic State in West Africa Province, a splinter of Boko Haram – webmaster FVDK). It is what has been happening just among the generality of people – killing for ritual purposes.
He said, “you wake up, somebody has disappeared, the body is found, the vital organs removed. People kidnapping for ransom every day. Pick up the papers. This has been going on for decades. So, It’s been going on for a very long time. And we are pretending that this is not happening.” (italics mine – webmaster FVDK)
”I stated one time that anytime anybody is kidnapped in any state, let us shut down that state immediately until that person is recovered. It has reached that point that abnormal measures are imperative. It is no longer a choice. And yet the government continues to roll on.
He also asked that “what exactly is ideology all about? It is about humans. The human is at the basis of all ideologies. So this has been going on for a long time. It is overwhelmingly making one feel impotent useless, staining what one thinks one has been able to achieve in terms of contribution to humanity
“We have now to tackle that painful question: What is human? Somebody capable of taking another being, slaughtering that person because you want to make money, whatever the circumstances are. Is that human? (italics mine – webmaster FVDK)
“Let’s consider those who brutalize children, those who take children and sell them into slavery, which is what Boko Haram, ISWAP, and the others have been doing. Are these human? Isn’t it about time we taught all those souls about the human race?
“We better start investigating thoroughly that question: Just what is human? Once upon a time of course people tried to define it along with race, color, religion, gender, etc. No. Now we must really get down to basics and then when we have a sort of lowest common denominator of what constitutes humanity, we must be brave enough to know how to deal with those I have so identified If they are in a position of power,” Soyinka said.
The alarming increase in reported cases of ritual murders in the country – nothing less than human sacrifices – has inspired a number of muslim youth in Nigeria to start a campaign addressing the youth in secondary schools in Ibadan, Oyo State.
I have mixed feeling reading this news. On the one hand, it makes me feel good that people speak out against the crime of ritual murder – senseless, criminal, outrageous, unnecessary, based on greed for power, status or wealth – and take concrete action against it. The example deserves to be followed on a national level. On the other hand, it is sad that such a campaign is still necessary in the year 2022. We are living in the third millennium!
By the way, where are the nation’s rulers in all this, the government, the people’s representatives in parliament? It may be useful to recall a recent decision of the House of Representatives asking the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency on ritual killings in the country (see my February 11, 2022 post)? (FVDK)
A group of muslim youths under the aegis of Majlis Khuddam ul Ahmadiyya Nigeria (MKAN) has embarked on a sensitization campaign to secondary schools in Ibadan (Oyo State)
Appalled by the increasing rate of crime especially ritual killing in Nigeria, a group of muslim youths under the aegis of Majlis Khuddam ul Ahmadiyya Nigeria (Cocacola Dil’a) has embarked on sensitization campaign to secondary schools in Ibadan.
The focus is to enlighten the younger generations on the dangers ahead if the incessant ritual killings and other form of crimes is not abated.
Some of the school visited included Community grammar school Mokola Ibadan, Awotan / Araro community High School , Apete, Humani Alaga high school sango, Akufo High school among others.
They noted that ritual killing (human-based sacrifice) has been on the increase as the number of missing persons reportedly killed gruesomely for ritual purposes increases all over the country in the recent time.
The group also attributed the major cause of the menace to get-rich-quick syndrome among young adults in the country, i.e, the urge to get rich earlier has led lots of youths into engaging in money ritual activities.”
“Teenagers who are expected to be preparing themselves for the future have now began to think about owning exotic cars and houses. Many resort to internet fraud and other cyber crimes, and when that seems not to be working as expected, they engage in ritual to enhance their fraudulent activities and to maintain the affluent life they had begun to live.”
Recently, I posted on this site a large number of ritual murder cases in Nigeria. For this reason I wished to draw the readers’s attention to other African countries where similar crimes are being committed. However, these days Nigeria is making headlines which one cannot ignore. The number of ritual murders in Africa’s most populated country can no longer be counted – if that ever was the case. In my research and reporting on ‘money rituals’ in Nigeria – as ritualistic killings are commonly called in this West African country – I already experienced that I could hardly cope with the fast rising number of reported ritualistic murders committed by Yahoo boys, Yahoo Plus boys and whatever the names are that are given to these criminals who have no respect for a human life.
The below article by Hakim Jamiu is a cry to end these gruesome practices. She offers a grim insight in the recent spate in ritual murder cases in Nigeria, a devastating picture, and sketches a possible explanation for these practices which are based on superstition and fed by greed. I recognize a number of cases she mentions, some are notorious cases, whereas I am always unpleasantly surprised to learn about more ritual murder cases hitherto unknown. She does not have to dig deep to unveil ritual murder cases in nine states: Akwa Ibom, Ekiti, Kwara, Lagos, Plateau, Rivers, Ogun, Ondo, Osun. I can without much effort add nine more states. Also see my previous posts on Nigeria (click on the category African countries in the top bar and select Nigeria in the drop down menu thus appearing).
I have repeatedly mentioned on this site that Nigeria ranks Number One in ritual murder cases in Africa. The following article confirms this sad conclusion. (FVDK)
Nigeria: a harvest of ritual deaths
Published: March 17, 2022 By: Hakim Jamiu – The Cable, Nigeria
Nigeria is fast gaining notoriety as a country of ritualists with stories of ritual killings daily reported in the traditional and social media. The latest of this cannibalistic atrocity is the gruesome murder of 22-year-old Oluwabamise Ayankole who was abducted after boarding a Lagos state government-owned Bus Rapid Transport (BRT) bus and was later murdered and had parts of her body removed which confirmed the suspicion that she may have been killed for ritual purposes. Bamise, who was on her way home from work, was thereafter tossed out of the BRT Bus at Ebute Ero. Bamise, according to eyewitnesses, was still alive after she was tossed out of the vehicle at the Ebute Ero bridge but she gave up the ghost because she did not get help on time. Social media was awash with her last chat and video expressing fears for her safety inside the desolate BRT bus in which she and another lady and three men were the only occupants. As if she knew, her instinct warned her of the danger ahead but she was helpless. Murder in a BRT bus which is expected to be one of the safest means of transportation owned by the government of Lagos state is a sacrilege.
Bamise’s gruesome murder is only an addition to the harvest of deaths by ritualists in the last few weeks across Nigeria. While many Nigerians are yet to grapple with the shock of the gruesome beheading of Sofiat Kehinde, a 17-year-old girl in Abeokuta by four ritualists between ages 18 and 20, the murder of Bamise sent shock waves to all as anybody’s child, relative or friend could be the next victim. Late last year in Ado Ekiti, a seven-year-old girl, Demilade was sent on an errand by her mother four houses away but the little girl disappeared immediately and all efforts to find her proved abortive until her corpse was found in a pastor’s house the following day! Timothy Adegoke checked into a hotel in Ile-Ife to write his postgraduate examinations but he never came out alive as he was murdered overnight and buried some metres away from the hotel. The proprietor of the hotel is currently standing trial!
In Ogun state, a woman connived with her husband to kill her visiting friend and dismembered her. The remains of the victim were later found in a bucket in the couple’s room. A ritual killer, Timothy Odeniyi who was arrested by Amotekun Corps in Ondo state confessed that he used to harvest human parts at burial grounds which he sells to his clients. In Jos, 20-year-old Moses Oko killed Jennifer, a student of the University of Jos and removed some of her body parts. In Ikorodu, Lagos state, a suspected internet fraudster (Yahoo+), 32-year-old Afeez Olalore killed his younger brother for ritual purposes. In Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, Uduak Akpan, a serial ritual killer killed 20-year-old Iniobong Umoren, a job seeker and buried her in a shallow grave. In Ilorin, Kwara state, a next-door neighbour allegedly murdered a groom-to-be for ritual purposes.
In 2019, Nigerians were alarmed about the arrest of one of Nigeria’s notorious ritual killers called Gracious David West in Port Harcourt who confessed to having killed at least 15 women for ritual purposes. In November 2019, one-year-old boy Eniola Kolawole was declared missing at Sotitobire Miracle Centre, Akure, Ondo state and has not been found till today. Irate youths set the church ablaze but the pastor who had been on trial has since been discharged and acquitted. One Shakirat was murdered in Iwo, Osun state and her body was dumped behind her mother’s shop with some of her parts missing!
It is an understatement to say that Satan has taken over our affairs completely as cases of ritual killings keep rising by the day! The question now is, are rituals for money-making real? Perhaps this is why the Nigerian-American media scholar, newspaper columnist and activist, Farooq Kperogi while bemoaning the unending spate of ritual murders in Nigeria argued, “the only solution lies in the liberation of Nigerians from stupid, backward, unproductive and murderous superstitions. The witch doctors who tell people to bring the body parts of murdered people to make them rich are often one of the most wretched people you can find on earth. If money rituals were real, they would be wealthy and won’t let anybody in on the secret”. Not many people agree with the view of Kperogi because if money-making rituals do not exist, why is ritual killing on the increase across the country? There have been many unverifiable variants and anecdotes concerning how money rituals work especially among yahoo boys which is called Yahoo plus. There is a type whereby ebora (a spirit) will bring the money to the yahoo boy after necessary sacrifices with human parts have been done. There is another type that will make the victim, usually, a foreigner obey whatever the yahoo boy says including sending millions of dollars on request. There is yet another type that involves using the pant of a woman. The pant, as they say, will fetch the ritualist a lot of money. It is not only yahoo boys that are into the ritual killing but they may have influenced others who are not into internet fraudsters to kill for rituals because of the belief that it is working for them. Some yahoo boys even go to the extent of eating human faeces, having spiritual baths in broad daylight at a public place, appearing only in pants in broad daylight to withdraw money from ATMs and so many bizarre and silly things!
The question remains, how much is ritual killing giving those involved in it that is worth the desperation of taking the life of a fellow human being? Definitely, it cannot give billions because many of the Yahoo plus boys even get broke after about three to six months while some go mad! So what’s the need for ritual killing? Apart from Yahoo boys, there are reports of a well-organised clientele of ritual killers which means that not all who are involved in ritual killing directly use the human parts but they are agents of some powerful personalities who buy the parts from them. There are reports that human parts markets exist in some areas of Lagos. It is also ridiculous that human life has been so reduced to nothingness that a human head is sold for as low as N20,000. Research also shows that many people who seek power and wealth like politicians and businessmen also use human parts for charms for good fortune and for fortification against real and perceived enemies! I wish to remind this group of politicians and businessmen that the greatest fortification and blessings come from God who is the custodian of power and fortune.
The underlying factor responsible for the present malaise is desperation on the part of our young ones who are eager to get rich quick. There is unprecedented moral bankruptcy and total collapse of family values of hard work, honesty and integrity. We should go beyond lamentations and take drastic actions. We must dig into the root cause of this barbaric act and approach it from there. What we are seeing are symptoms rather than cause. Our society has been sold to the dogs and many souls sold to the devil, the result is what is confronting us. A 17-year-old wanting to ride the latest automobile sold for millions of naira, not through any work but by any means. Society celebrating any rich person not minding the source of his or her wealth is responsible for the present madness. Images of boys displaying wealth on social media and messages that all that matter is money and the message is sinking fast and spreading like wildfire!
In one of the videos that circulated on the social media, a boy was asked if he could use her mother for rituals, he didn’t hesitate before saying yes as long as he will be rich! That’s what our society has turned to! We are breeding monsters and heartless beings who would not mind going to any length just to be rich! A child who would not blink an eyelid before killing his own mother for rituals would kill anybody without thinking about it! It is such a pity! It is common these days to find human head in a cellophane bag carried by a teenager sitting next to you in a bus! Human parts have become very common like animal parts ! It is such a shame that we have become a cannibalistic society! It is now normal to suspect the man or woman sitting next to you in a public place as a ritualist! It is that bad!
Beyond lamentations that have not helped, we must all resolve to end this monster that is threatening to consume all of us. Nobody is immune from ritual death. Bamise and other victims of ritual killings must not die in vain. Now that the driver of the BRT bus and his cohorts have been apprehended, their trial must be swift and transparent. Cameras must be installed in all BRT buses that would be monitored at a base station and on no account must this be switched off by any BRT driver.
The national and state houses of assembly should begin to work on laws to empower special courts to try ritual murder cases with stiffer penalties. Everybody must be vigilant and we must de-emphasise material wealth in our society while the source of wealth of emergency millionaires and new kids on the block must be questioned and such characters ostracized by the rest of the society as it was the practice on the days of yore when there was sanity.
We must say no to ritual killings! We are neither animals nor vampires! Even animals don’t kill themselves senselessly as we are witnessing presently!
In most African countries, the position of people living with albinism is unfavorable. Rejected by society, mistrusted, discriminated, even living in fear as in many countries attacks on them are frequent. Widespread belief in the supernatural power of their organs or other body parts in combination with an unscrupulous, criminal mind of the perpetrator(s), has resulted in many ritual murders or unexplained disappearances of albino children and adults. Although some countries in Southern and Eastern Africa are notorious for these ugly practices – see my reporting – also in other African countries the position of people living with albinism leaves much to be desired, as the following article on Nigeria demonstrates. (FVDK)
Stop ritual killing of persons living with albinism – Jake Epelle
Published: March 13, 2022 By: NNN
Mr. Jake Epelle, founder of the Albino Foundation, has called on Nigerians and Africans to stop killing people living with albinism for ritual purposes.
Epelle made the appeal when he appeared on the Nigerian News Agency Forum special talk show on Sunday in Abuja.
He said “when the news got out that there were rituals coming out of all the African countries, Tanzania and all that; It is not only true, I have seen it with my own eyes.”
According to him, the country has seen its share of cases of people living with albinism killed for ritual purposes.
He said that in April 2014 he was about to be a victim but was able to escape from the driver who tried to take him to an unknown destination.
“These are issues surrounding albinism that have not been touched on,” he said.
Epelle added that the foundation had also done a lot to ensure the protection of people with disabilities in the country, including finding police hotlines.
He said, “I have gone to the police to ask for hotlines where my members can call or encourage our members to report cases that we need to pursue.
“The Disability Rights Fund once gave us money with which we train people with albinism on how to protect their rights, how to promote their rights, and how to prosecute those who violate their rights.”
He said that the Albino Foundation inaugurated ‘the champion of albinism’ and compiled manuals in different languages to correct some of the myths and superstitions about albinism.
Epelle therefore called on the public to grant people with disabilities compassion and fair treatment so that they can live their lives without fear of being raped.
Stop killing persons with albinism for ritual, Albino Foundation cries out
Founder of the Albino Foundation, Jake Epelle, says he’s a witness and was almost a victim of ritual killings.
Published: March 13, 2022 By: PG People’s Gazette
Jake Epelle, Founder of the Albino Foundation, has appealed to Nigerians and Africans to stop killing people living with albinism for ritual proposes.
Mr Epelle made the appeal when he featured on the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum special interview programme on Sunday in Abuja.
“When the news broke that there were rituals coming out of all African countries, Tanzania and all that; not only is it true, I have seen it with my eyes,” he said.
He said the country has witnessed its share of cases of persons with albinism being killed for ritual proposes, citing himself as an example.
He narrated how in April 2014, he was almost a victim when a driver tried to take him to an unknown destination.
“These are issues that surround albinism that have not been touched,” he said.
Mr Epelle added that the foundation had also done a lot to protect persons living with disabilities in the country, including seeking hotlines from the police.
He said, “I have gone to police to ask for hotlines where my members can call or encourage our members to report cases that we have to follow up.
“The Disability Rights Fund had once given us money with which we trained persons with albinism on how to protect their rights, how to promote their rights and how to prosecute those who violate their rights.”
He said that the Albino Foundation had inaugurated the ‘Albinism Champion’ and compiled handbooks in different languages to correct some of the myths and superstitions about albinism.
Mr Epelle appealed to the public to accord persons with disability compassion and fair treatment to enable them live their lives without fear of being violated.
