Jungle Justice by Ikorodu residents will take innocent lives

A society that can't protect its citizens will resort to anarchy sooner than later.

This is the case of Ikorodu area in Lagos state. For the better part of a year, residents of the area located in the North-East of Lagos have been victims of the bloodthirsty gang of killers known as Badoo.

Since mid-2016 there have been several killings in this area. Badoo has wiped out families, mutilated people, taken body parts obviously for ritual purposes. To say they have left a thick trail of blood in their wake is an understatement.

Residents of Ikorodu were helpless against these ritual squad of killers. The police have been inept at tracking members of Badoo. They have chased shadows as the murder rate increased.

Tired of the police's inefficiency, residents of Ikorodu have taken it upon themselves to deal with Badoo. Last weekend, three suspected Badoo killers were burnt to death in Ikorodu.

Please note that these men were 'suspected' members of Badoo. There was no concrete evidence that they belonged to the deadly group.

The jungle justice approach by Ikorodu residents turns sadder. An up and coming comedian Chinedu Paul who was popularly called Think Twice was reportedly lynched to death by residents of Ikorodu after he was mistaken for a member of Badoo.

You can't really blame people of Ikorodu. When their protectors have gone to sleep, they have hit the streets to protect themselves. Unfortunately, this jungle justice will lead to the death of innocent people.

Now, the Nigerian Police have swung into action finally and have arrested 100 suspected members of Badoo. We sincerely hope that this is not another smoke and mirrors exercise where innocent people would be arrested and paraded in front of the media. After the PR stunt, all things go back to the same. Anarchy.

We hope the Nigerian Police Force gets it right this time. If they don't, innocent people will lose their lives.