Sadly, Nigeria is once again in the news for another tragic and unfathomable action by a group of hoodlums who decided to mount an illegal check point, stopped, interrogated, hacked to death and burnt the corpses of 16 innocent fellow Nigerians for being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

The killing and burning of the corpses of 16 persons who were all said to be indigenes of Kano State travelling back home from Port Harcourt to celebrate the Eid-el-Fitr marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan will continue to haunt the nation and continue to raise the question of whether we have that human feeling for our fellow compatriots.

According to reports, the truck carrying the deceased was stopped at a check point mounted by a vigilante group at  Uromi in Esan North East Local Government Area of Edo State on Thursday, March 27, 2025. After identifying themselves as being hunters on their way home, they were accused of being bandits because dane guns were found in their possession. They were quickly hacked to death, one by one, and their bodies burnt. What made the scene more gruesome was that it was fully recorded on video as if to justify and warn others that could possibly come through the same road what could have awaited them.

According to the driver of the truck, who escaped being killed by the whiskers, the leader of the mob group even took him and two others to a police station to report that they were apprehended on suspicion of being bandits.

But one thing that stood clear from the incident is that the victims were simply meted this treatment just because of their identity- Muslims and Hausa by tribe.

Just because of that, the mob went on to “prosecute’” and passed death sentences on them.

We at Daily Trust note, with regret, that this was not an isolated incident. We recall that in May 2022, a pregnant woman, Harira Jubril, 32, and her four children were killed in cold blood at Orumba South Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Most recently in March this year, truck drivers in Plateau State staged a peaceful demonstration over what they called incessant killing of their colleagues and the burning of their vehicles by suspected separatist members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB).

According to the drivers , the most dangerous routes within the region include Enugu to Lopanta, Lopanta  to Okigwe, and Okigwe to Umuahia in Abia State.

Briefing journalists during the protest, Mahmud Jafar, who led the demonstrations  said that unprovoked attacks, intimidation, and harassment against them have become the order of the day in recent years, threatening to boycott transportation of goods to the South East for their safety and security if the situation persists.

“For the past eight years, truck drivers  from Northern Nigeria, have been consistently targeted, killed and had their trucks destroyed or burnt while transporting goods to the South East. We are still trying to understand what offence we have committed to deserve this kind of barbaric killing.

“The frequency and severity of these attacks have reached alarming levels, with over 50 drivers lost, many still missing and hundreds of trucks either burned, damaged, or forcefully taken away from drivers,” he had said.

It is gratifying that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in a statement on Friday, directed the police and other security agencies to conduct swift and thorough investigations and punish the latest suspected culprits in Uromi.

The president, who expressed shock at the dastardly act, commiserated with the families of the affected victims and assured them that the criminals would be brought to book.

“The president noted that jungle justice has no place in Nigeria, and all Nigerians have the freedom to move freely in any part of the country,” the statement read.

We also note that the Edo State government has banned the activities of vigilante groups in the state while suspending Commander of the Edo State Security Corps, CP. Friday Ibadin (retd.).

But we believe the issue goes beyond these. This is more pertinent given that similar incidents have happened and similar directives given with nothing to show. Nigerians, especially those residing in areas outside their states will continue to feel unsafe unless drastic action is taken against such unwholesome actions. Nothing short of seeing the perpetrators receiving the deserved punishment for their actions would make Nigerians feel safe outside their homes. This has been going on for long and it is time we put a stop to it.

More important is that this incident show stack reality that there is a deficit trust among Nigerians. This call for soul searching, especially by our political leaders who often rise on such mistrust to achieve their political aims. It is time for more efforts to bring unity among Nigerians if only we want a great nation.  It is counter-productive to engage in blame game or find a justification to such dastardly action wherever it happens.

Nigeria is at a cross road and the only way out is to act now.