Families and colleagues of the 16 hunters who were killed in Uromi, Edo State, by a mob, have warned that they would revenge their deaths if the government fails to arrest and prosecute the perpetrators of the crime.

The victims were travelling from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to Kano for the Sallah celebration when they were intercepted and lynched by some vigilantes on the suspicion that they were kidnappers.

The incident generated outrage across the country.

Most of the slain hunters hailed from Toranke in Bunkure Local Government Area of Kano State.

In separate interviews with Saturday PUNCH, the friends and families of the victims said only justice would assuage their hurt.

A community leader and hunter from Toranke, Alhaji Musa Dogo, said the government must bring the killers to book.

He said, ?We cannot allow this to go unanswered. The hunters that were killed were our brothers. We trained together, fought criminals together, and protected our communities together. If the government does not arrest and publicly prosecute those responsible, we will take matters into our own hands. We know how to track down those who commit evil, and we will not hesitate if justice is not served,? he stated.

His companion, Bala Danburan, who sat with him, nodded in agreement.

Danburan said, ?We know how to sneak into Uromi and take revenge ourselves if justice is not served. This is not a threat; it is a promise. We have buried too many of our own, and we cannot continue like this. We are hunters, not cowards. If the government refuses to act, we will do what is necessary.?

The hunters also demanded that the case be transferred to a Kano State court, citing a past case where the Kano State Government handed over a suspect, Yunusa Yellow, to the Bayelsa State Government over an alleged kidnapping.

?This is not just about us. If they could request for a case to be handled in their state, why can?t we demand the same? This is a matter of fairness. We want the case brought here, where we can follow it closely and ensure that it is not swept under the carpet. The Edo government must cooperate if they want peace,? Dogo said.

A hunter and resident of Bunkure, Alhaji Usman Bako, expressed anger over the killing of the 16 hunters.

According to him, the hunters were ambushed while returning to the north for the Sallah celebration.

Bako criticised the government for neglecting hunters and other local security outfits who risked their lives in the fight against banditry and kidnapping.

Alhaji Bako said, ?If the government refuses to fish out and punish those behind this massacre and continues to ignore us, then they are pushing us to the wall. We may be forced to withdraw from joint operations. We will not continue to die in silence.?

He concluded by calling on the authorities to recognise hunters as frontline defenders of local communities.

Also speaking, a resident, Malam Sani Umar, said his younger brother, Yahaya Umar, was among those killed.

According to him, Yahaya left behind four children and a wife.

He said, ?Yahaya was a man of courage, always willing to sacrifice himself for the safety of others. He believed in justice, and now he has been killed unjustly. We have been left with nothing but pain, and those who did this are still walking free. How can we accept this? How can we sleep knowing that the government has not acted??

Fighting back tears, Hafsat Ibrahim, who lost her son, Nasiru, said, ?Nasiru was the backbone of our family. Now, who will take care of us? He worked hard to ensure that his younger siblings attended school and that I never went hungry at the table.

?He was a man of dignity, a fearless hunter who sought only to protect his people. But now, he is gone, and we are left in darkness. We demand justice! The killers must be punished according to Islamic rites, and the government should compensate our families. That is the only way to show us that our loved ones did not die in vain.?

Acknowledging a recent condolence visit by the governors of Edo and Kano states, Umar said, ?It gave us some relief knowing that they care about our plight.

?But a visit alone is not enough. We need real action. We need to see arrests. We need to see these people prosecuted and punished for what they did. If the government does not act swiftly, it means they are encouraging more of such killings. We are not just mourning our loved ones, we are demanding justice, and we will not stop until it is given.?

Tension in Sokoto

Meanwhile, there was palpable tension in Sokoto State on Friday over reports of protest over the killing of the hunters.

Our correspondent, who monitored the situation, gathered that most business areas occupied by non-indigenes, especially the Igbo, were locked up.

Most shops in Igbo-dominated areas in the metropolis, including Bello Way, Emir Yahya, Sahara, and Aliyu Jodi, were shut when Saturday PUNCH visited.

A shop owner, who identified himself simply as Chinedu, said the fear of attack forced him to lock up his shop.

He said, ?We heard of the rumour of possible protest and attack by some youths in the state after Friday prayer, and we decided to take precautionary measures.

?One should not wait till something happens before we arrange ourselves, so we decided to close our shop.?

Also speaking on the closure, an Igbo man selling tyres in Sahara said the fear of looters made people close their shops immediately they heard of a possible attack.

The man, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said his people decided to be proactive to avoid losing their goods to looters.

He said, ?The last time they protested during late Deborah (Christian girl lynched for blasphemy) issue, they used the opportunity to attack and loot our goods, so we decided to be proactive this time.?

But the police reaffirmed readiness to ensure the safety of lives and property of the people in the state.

The spokesman for the Sokoto command, Ahmed Rufai, while speaking with our correspondent, said the command had deployed men in every part of the metropolis to maintain law and order in the state.

Community deserted

As of Friday, the area where the lynching took place, Goodwill Junction, along Old Ilushi Road, Uromi, was still deserted as residents were afraid of being arrested by the police.

Saturday PUNCH gathered that most commercial motorcyclists avoided the area, just as shops, churches and residential buildings in the area remained locked.

A middle-aged man who gave his name as John said the area had been deserted since the killing took place, stating that residents were afraid of being arrested by the police or facing reprisal.

He said, ?This area has been deserted. You can see that all the houses are shut as no one wants to risk being arrested by the police. I hear the case has now been transferred to Abuja, so those arrested are being taken to Abuja.

?The killing is unfortunate, but what kidnappers and killer herders are doing to indigenes is evil. Imagine getting killed on your farm; hoodlums kidnapping you in the presence of your wife and children.

?I hope the government will use the same zeal and determination it is employing to fish out killers of the travellers to go into the forest and expel killer herders and kidnappers who have turned Edo forest to their permanent residence.?

The Chief Press Secretary to the state governor, Fred Itua, said Governor Monday Okpehbolo was working hard to ensure that all the security challenges he inherited would soon become a thing of the past.

Itua noted that the amount to be paid as compensation to families of the hunters would be made public when finalised. (Saturday PUNCH)

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