It was a shame of the nation that people gathered in Owo, Ondo State, and could not worship in peace. A band of bandits who strode to the St. Francis Catholic Church on June 5 donned the guise of fellow worshippers. In fact, they gave the impression that they were first-time visitors. But in the lull of acceptance, the true members of the church fell to their deaths as the church was surrounded, and the interlopers killed dozens.

At the time of writing, the clear number of the dead was hazy. Some said it was 35 persons, and others raised it as high as 50 or even 60. What is without doubt was the picture of a ghastly church that looked like an abattoir, with citizens of this country laying on the church floor among pews. Blood splattered on the floor. Where they called on their God and sang in ecstasy, some of them breathed their last. They walked in without knowing that they would leave as corpses.

The tragedy was different from many we have seen, gory and brutal acts of savages as they were. The criminals chose Owo town, the home of the governor, Rotimi Akeredolu. The governor has been in the forefront in the vanguard of federalism, especially in insisting that the marauders who claim to be harmless herdsmen should not get a free pass.

He sparred with elements of the Federal Government who invoked the right to free movement across the country when he insisted that some forests were sanctuaries that forbade anyone to trespass. He was asserting states’ rights in a federal system.

That idea caught fire and southern governors across the political parties ruled against herdsmen moving unchecked in the south. Governor Akeredolu set up surveillance in the forests and equipped the Amotekun in the state. There have been reports of the exploits of the regional defence force, including intercepting vehicles conveying arms accompanied by hoodlums.

We can only see the symbolism of the choice of place as the hoodlums taking vengeance on the stance of the governor against their marauding violence. It is disturbing. They have served as though they are troops to actualise the evil arguments of the anti-federalists. This is the danger of politicians turning out their ideas without realising the consequences. The positions of otherwise harmless men in power have been instrumentalised for tragedy by these men of the underworld. In the final analysis, the deaths of the dozens of Owo citizens cannot but be perceived as political.

We hope that we shall not see this as a routine in our national life. Just about a week ago, Methodist Prelate, Samuel Kanu-Uche, was kidnapped and recounted his tale in the hands of the hoodlums. It took, by his own confession, N100 million before he was released. But the Ondo act did not ask for money. They only wanted blood and, like vampire, they compelled dozens of humans to supply their savage thirst.

How long shall we have citizens who want to move around the country without fear of what is ahead or what is just behind them? We live as sojourners in fear. Gone are the days when people can wake up and eye the highway for a trip. Yet, the dead in Ondo were at home, at a place of worship, sedentary and kneeling, no trip ahead. But the criminals came bearing arms and bombs, detonating tragedy.

We can only say that it is a failure of the Federal Government. For such tragedy as this to continue without let, and nothing has stopped them, calls for citizenry to seek ways to secure themselves.

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