Metro
Revellers, Poachers Beware: There’s an Animal kingdom
By Frank Meke
He stands tall and majestic. He’s six years old and matured, lives in a world of its own, not troubled but protected by Park Rangers in Okomu National Park biosphere in Edostate.
This male antelope has no name but I gave him a name, a baptism of sort, done without water and fanfare, just a naming ceremony, from a heart, full of love and compassion to a voiceless being, freed from merciless hunters and poachers.
He bears henceforth, Meke 3, yes, Meke 3, and goes into history as sharing a surname with me. There are many of his likes, threatened daily in our forests, many not lucky to escape human scrouge and cruelty.
Unknown to many people, Nigerians in particular, our forests ecosystems are sadly threatened, with the floras and fauna resources endangered.
The very sad case of our forest beings will bring tears our generally simplic population, 200 million people, whose cultural and traditional beliefs drives the extinction of our wildlife resources.
A drive through our major highways ,inter City and village connectivity routes, reveals the massive growing markets and shoplets, where all manner of Bush meats, Antelopes, monkeys, snakes, crocodiles, gorillas, lions, leopards and even giant forest lizards are on display for sale.
My guy and name sake, the Antelope Meke 3 at Okomu National Park, which is Nigeria’s home to endangered white throated monkeys, lives on today, because government cares,through its conservation agency, National Park service.
I really do not wish to discuss our very dysfunctional national forests management architecture, with almost all the states and local governments green biosphere structures wiped out, leaving only federal government managed protected areas structures overburdened.
From kaduna to kebbi, sokoto to Enugu, all the forests and games reserves, are all yesterdays story lines, with heavy environmental conservation consequences Stirring us in the face.
Our knowledge of trees and the various medicinal values are gone, same for avian and fauna resources, vegetations critical to our future survival cruelly cut down, an unmitigated destruction and invasion of our natural resources ecosystem, which has defined our desertification and erosion challenges.
Certainly and significantly, the federal government deemed it wise to float ecological funds to help both the states and local governments recover lost vast areas from the impact of climate risk factors, but sadly, the funds ends up misappropriated and misapplied, and gave vent to all manner of unavoidable natural disasters. Does the recent massive flooding make meanings to us?
My friend, Antelope, Meke 3, reminds me and many other Nigerians that we owe it a duty to preserve and protect these forest beings, time audit our forests space.
To possibly test our knowledge and responsibility to protecting these beings from the poaching and burning pots of revellers of Bush meats. I recently posted the pictures of Antelope Meke 3, on my Facebook page and oh dear, my friends, and other respondents, bayed like hungry lions for the poor Antelope.
It was indeed missed feelings for me as a natural resources developmental writer and tourism journalism influencer. The fear for other Antelopes in our forests, unprotected, those found in abandoned states and local governments game reserves , left me worried.
I felt sad for many of our fauna resources that ends up in pots of soups at marriage ceremonies, ritual dedication and atonement engagements to malevolent spirits, family gods and palm wine drinking bars.
It does not matter to us that those cultural and traditional ceremonies leaves us behind in the quest to join the rest of the world to keep and preserve these beings for scientific, educational and recreation purposes, for our generation yet unborn.
Oh yes, Nigerians, may not be vegetarians but to eat up both our forests and marine resources, just to satisfy mere cultural cravings, leaves much to be desired.
A detailed check list of our indigenous fauna resources, tells of a people and nation, far from global reality to animals ( in the wild) protection and preservation.
Our conservation protection legislations are weak, and an open window to encouraging illegal smuggling and poaching our earth resources without let.
Over time, the leadership of National Park service, has put some of these legislations to test, taking hordes of fulani cattle grazers and herders, poachers and illegal loggers before the courts, and in seconds, many were left off the hook due to very timid legal entrapment.
Most natural resources protection and preservation law breakers, comes to court, fully aware that the courts will only give an option of fine, most of the process ,not punitive enough to serve as deterrent to the invasion of our forests and the cruel poaching of fauna resources.
The endangered Species , control of international trade and Traffic Act, Animal Diseases Control Act, to criminal code Act, may have drawn attention to the need to criminalise cruel attitudes to animals in captivity, they are however not enough deterrent.
Similarly sections 450, 456 and 495 of the criminal code Act, 1990, and few others related to protection and prohibition of keeping certain species of animals in captivity without licence, bears little or no relief to serious efforts to penalise cruelty against animals in the forest or even outside of secured enclosure.
To have Antelope Meke 3, living today, including few others in Nigeria’s protected areas, as strategically sustained by Nigeria Park service, brings some measures of hope and faith in our tomorrow’s conservation economy. What happens to those animals outside this conservation architecture , can best be imagined and we can, help, keep our animal kingdom safe, secured and reverse the risk pictures.
However a serious interrogation and review of the various Acts against cruelty of the silent forest beings must be addressed. It won’t be too much to ask that a certain percentage of ecological funds be allocated to national Park service to protect and preserve both marine and forests species.
The ongoing depletion of our forests covers through illegal logging and even senseless plundering of flora resources by some state forestry racketeering actors, trades goose pimples in the lives few people who frowns at what’s can be described as Nigeria’s aemagedon to nature resources conservation.
The Zion Prayer Movement Outreach (ZPMOM) has announced that its annual “Odeshi” programme would be held in Lagos from Friday, December 13, to Sunday, December 15, 2024.
Evangelist Chukwuebuka Anozie Obi, the Spiritual Director of the ministry, who disclosed this over the weekend, said the programme would be held at Zion ground, Agor, Okota, Lagos, beginning at 10 a.m. each day.
“Odeshi”, which literally means “Does not leak or penetrate”, is a spiritual fortification prayer and fasting programme which officially marks the end-of-the-year activities for the ministry.
Evangelist Ebuka explained that the programme is to seek for divine protection for all those who would be travelling during the Christmas and New Year celebrations as well as to prepare followers of the ministry at Zion City as well as millions who follow online for God’s special blessings and favour for 2025.
With increase in cases of accidents and crime during the festive season, it is important for people to seek for divine protection as they travel within the country and from different parts of the world to visit families and loved ones, Ebuka noted.
On the expectations for this year’s programme, the Evangelist expressed optimism that the 2024 Odeshi would record thousands of people giving up their lives to Christ, outstanding miracles and healings, deliverance from bondage and salvation of souls. “This is the experience we had in previous years, and we expect even more of similar experiences,” he added.
Apart from mind-boggling testimonies and pin-point prophecies with solutions recorded at Zion, Ebuka is increasingly growing popular for conversion of native doctors, cultists and prostitutes, saving marriages on the brink of collapse, charity works of his Seraphic Foundation, free treatment for indigent families at Seraphic Hospital and giving out money to reconciled couples and converted people to enable them to start up decent businesses.
The Police Service Commission (PSC) has dismissed 19 senior officers from the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) for alleged misconduct.
PSC spokesperson, Ikechukwu Ani said in a statement on Friday, that the commission took the decision at its plenary.
Ani said the commission deliberated on 110 pending disciplinary matters, 23 appeals and petitions, and 13 court judgments.
He added that the commission also approved the reduction in ranks of 19 officers.
“The commission, after rigorous consideration of the pending disciplinary matters, approved the dismissal of nineteen (19) senior police officers which comprised ten assistant superintendents, six deputy superintendents, two chief superintendents and one superintendent,” the statement reads.
“The commission also approved the reduction in ranks of nineteen other senior police officers, one assistant commissioner of police, one chief superintendent, two superintendents, two deputy superintendents and thirteen assistant superintendents.
“Two assistant inspectors general of police also received some punishments, one, punishment of reprimand for refusal to carry out lawful instructions and the other, letter of warning for negligence.
“Several other officers found culpable received different punishments including, severe Reprimand, Reprimand and letter of warning.”
The PSC spokesperson said Hashimu Argungu, chairman of the commission, warned officers against indulging in civil matters.
TheCable
The Nigerian Police Force has said that most cases of missing young ladies and girls being used for ritual purposes in Nigeria are connected to the prevalent hookup culture sweeping across the country.
The Public Relations Officer, Ogun State Command, Omolola Odutola, who was a special guest on Channels Television’s Morning Brief on Wednesday, to discuss the topic ‘Hookup Culture: Impact on Youth Values and Relationships’, said young girls and ladies within the age range of 20 and 32 fall victim of the menace.
The Hookup culture encourages and accepts casual sexual encounters, such as one-night stands, without necessarily involving emotional bonding or long-term commitment.
The idea of casual, non-romantic sexual encounters has been around since the 1920s.
Some social critics argue that hooking up is a feminist achievement, while others worry that it is a step backwards for healthy, intimate relationships.
The hookup culture can also be gendered, with women being judged by a different standard than men. For example, women who hook up with too many people or go too far in the first hook-up are often judged by terms like “hoe”.
“This particular menace is very serious and I would like a lot of young people to understand the danger in the hookup culture.
“Today, we have lots of reports of missing persons. By the time we start an investigation, not less than 10 young girls and ladies go missing daily.
“In-depth investigations also reveal that those cases are not by accidents. Most of them are connected to hookup channels and apps. They fall victim to strangers who causally invite them to unknown places, and eventually fall victim to being used for ritual purposes,” she said.
She added that most young persons, especially males believe that ritual killings can make them get rich.
‘Most cases of missing girls and ritual killings occurring in Ogun state of recent, I would like to say that it is not new. But as much as possible, the Ogun state commissioner of police has been able to tame these ugly incidents.
It stems from the ugly perspective of young persons who believe that ritual killing could enrich them. We have some of these unscrupulous elements who deceive young people to get human skulls or human body parts, which they use for some kind of concoction to get them rich.
“That is why we are having advocacy and sensitization, to enlighten young persons to make them understand that engaging in ritual killings does not in any way make them rich,” she said.
According to her, the police command is working closely with the Women Affairs Commission of the state to stem the menace in the tide.
“The Ogun State government, particularly the Women Affairs Commission works in tandem with the police command by providing counselling sessions.
“Apart from that, whenever we have cases such as this if per adventure the girls escape the rituals, we also have a proper way of helping them go through the distress of mental health and anxiety they might have felt during the incident.
“The hookup culture is prevalent among young girls between the ages of 20 to about 32 years. The reason they get involved in this menace is because they feel they don’t get enough from their parents, and then the get-rich syndrome,” she said.
A Development expert, Dorothy Njemanze who also joined the conversation from Abuja, urged the Nigerian Police to provide full security and encourage the reporting culture to deal with the crime.
“A lot of the predatory trends that we see have existed in the society all along. But instead of tackling them headlong, we make excuses and try to guilt-trip people. If you stay in your house, harm can happen to you. You go out, harm can happen to you. A lot of healthy marriages in Nigeria happen through hookups. We are expected to meet people irrespective of how it happened, especially when we are adults.
“But my concern is that the predation system extends to children. A lot of children are being lured through the predation system. Every state needs to have a mandatory reporting system so that when suspicious movements are seen, such activities can be reported. And then for law enforcement, when people report things to you, and you are lax and expect people to write petitions and ply certain routes before you can take action, then there is a problem.
“The proactiveness of law enforcement agencies is what we bank on.
Bad people plan very well, to gain the trust of who they want to harm to minimise chances of their victims raising alarm for them to be caught.
“I heard the policewoman talking about people going to parties. And I also read about a lady killed by her pastor in the church. So it could be anybody.
“Whatever the dimension that bad people choose to operate, the law enforcement should be able to ready to swoop in and ensure that there is minimal to no damage done, and then the mandatory reporting culture of the society is one thing that can help to minimise these things.
“As long as we can’t control what adults do among each other, we can minimize such occurrences because the hookup culture affects both men and women, but more among the women. There is more pressure on men to have resources that can make them look like big men. But make sure as much as possible whenever you are going out, somebody knows where you are going,” she said.
