Oluwafunke Idowu
On July 23, a 20-year-old lady, Maryam, held
Nigerians spellbound as she confessed to being an executioner for the Eiye
Confraternity at the IIasamaja area, Lagos State.
During her confessions, she admitted killing four
persons for her cult group. She allegedly killed them with a gun given to her
by the leader of the Eiye confraternity called Sodiq, she said.
While singing like a bird, she laughed, describing
her alleged modus operandi. Part of her confessions goes thus: “I have killed
four people. I’m paid N10, 000 anytime I kill. I wear white hijab to go for the
killings.”
Maryam, a secondary school dropout, added: “I ran
away from home in Lafenwa, Abeokuta, to Lagos State in search of a job. When I
got to Lagos, I met Mr. Sodiq, who took me to his house at Ilasamaja area where
he introduced me to the Eiye cult. He took me to an herbalist, who gave me a
black substance to eat. He told me that their work was about killing people. He
gave me a gun and taught me how to shoot. I learnt how to shoot by shooting at
a wall. Brother Sodiq gave three of us guns and pictures of persons to kill. He
trained the three of us -two boys and I. Brother Sodiq usually showed us the
target’s house. We go to the house at night. The two boys will scale the fence
and open the gate for me. We go straight to the apartment and shoot at the
target at close range. None of our targets survived. I killed a guy at Fadeyi
area of Lagos, another at Hassan area and one at Ajah area of Lagos. Each time
we killed someone, brother Sodiq would pay me ₦10,000, but he would pay others
₦20,000 each. I don’t feel bad after killing anyone because I see it as a job I
am being paid for.”
Sodiq and other members of the Eiye cult, who were
arrested along with Maryam, had denied knowing her. According to the said
Sodiq, no member of a cult group could be singing like a bird without taking a
breath or thinking twice.
When Sodiq confronted Maryam while being presented
to journalists by the police to explain what Eiye confraternity means, the lady
couldn’t say anything.
The question, however, is not whether Maryam is
acting out a script for some unknown reasons or singing the truth. The issue
right now is an increasing and alarming number of girls going into cultism.
It’s quite an aberration for one to find girls
getting involved in cultism, but these days, it is almost becoming the norm. Investigations,
however, showed that some of these girls were either coerced or tricked into
becoming members of these deadly groups. Only a few go into it willingly,
knowing all the dangers and legal consequences.
It has also been discovered that most female
cultists often abducted and forced into initiation.
The male cult groups, who had already carved a niche
in their cult world, usually whisked their female targets away from the public glare
and using threats, subdued them.
The story of this 15-year-old girl says it all; the
girl recounted: “Dare took me away from school with a gun and when we got to
the place at Agarawu, I was asked to kneel down by seven boys. They took me
away in a tricycle. Dare and Wakilu
covered my eyes with black handkerchief. They poured something on my body,
raped and initiated me into cultism. Dare slapped me three times and said that I
had been initiated."
The girl spoke after being arrested by the Lagos
Neighbourhood and Safety Corps (LNSC), near Agarawu, Lagos Island. The girl is
a Junior Secondary School (JSS3) student.
She further said: “The boys’ gang raped me for many
days and didn’t allow me to go home. They forced me into a room and ordered me
to pull off my clothes. They blindfolded me and poured something on my body
before I was repeatedly raped for days. They said they had initiated.”
It was learnt that after initiating their victims,
the boys would warn the victims not to reveal their encounter or initiation to
anyone.
The girl’s mother said: “On several occasions, we would
discover that she had gone missing. She would disappear from home for days. I
went to school to complain to the Principal but I was told that the cult boys
were after her. A few days after, one of the times that she went missing, we
found her at Lagos Island, near Agarawu. She never told anyone what happened or
what she had been going through. It was after we involved the LNSC officers that
she reluctantly revealed all that happened."
Another girl, 16-year-old, said that she was
initiated into cultism and lesbianism by her uncle’s wife younger sister, Tope,
who is 18-year-old.
The girl was caught, while attempting to sneak out
of the house with some items demanded by her cult members. Her parents almost
collapsed in shock when they listened to her confessions.
The girl, who completed her secondary education last
month, said: "It was Tope that introduced me into lesbianism and cultism. It
happened one Friday between 7pm and 8pm. I received a call from Tope that I
should bring my red jacket and a jack knife which were the cult’s items. Initially,
Tope forced me into becoming her lesbian partner. She threatened me that if I
failed to do it, my life was at stake. When I became her lover, we took a blood
oath. Tope used a blade to cut my hand and licked my blood. She also cut her
hand and asked me to lick the blood. She threatened that she must not see me
with anyone, male or female. She however, was free to go out with others as she
had other lovers. I have been her lover for over a year now. I became her lover
before I completed my secondary education. After Tope introduced me into
lesbianism, she forced me into their cult. On the night I was initiated into
the Aiye cult, I was blindfolded. Members of the cult gave me a gun to take an
oath, declaring that I would never reveal anything about the cult to anyone.
They said if I revealed anything about the cult to anyone, the same gun I used
to take the oath, would be used to take my life. Thereafter, about 20 of the
males present at the initiation had sex with me; one after another.
“Two month ago, I stole my father's N50, 000 and
gave to Tope. There was a time she gave me gun to keep for her. I kept the gun
in my book shelf for two days. She gave me the gun to take home because she
couldn’t take the gun home. Later, she gave the gun to another member of the
cult. I really didn't know what the weapons was used for. The red jacket was
given to me, which was the cult uniform. It was given to me by the cult leader
Segun. Since I became a member, I haven't been able to go anywhere with them
because of how difficult it was for me to leave the house. My parents wouldn’t
allow me to leave the house once it was 6pm. Most of their activities were
usually at night. There was a time they asked me to trail my elder brother
because they said he was arrogant.”
Another 16-year-old secondary school dropout, simply
identified Ifechukwu, allegedly had sex with over 52 young men inside a bush during
an initiation ceremony. She was being initiated into the Supreme Viking
Confraternity.
Ifechukwu, on her arrest, claimed she was forced to
sleep with every male member of the cult during her initiation.
The police were said to barge into the initiation
ground after receiving a tip-off. Some of the members, who were arrested, confirmed
that as part of their ritual, every male member of the cult would to have sex
with every prospective female member.
Ifechukwu claimed that she had to travel to Anambra State
from Abuja just to witness the initiation of new members.
She said: “I joined them three months ago and during
my initiation; I was forced to have sex with every registered male member of
the cult present that night. I was given sedatives so as not to feel what they
were doing. It was not easy, but I bore the pain. The day we were initiated, I
was the only girl in their midst. I was determined to be a successful member. I
was further convinced to stay because I discovered that they were more
honorable men than the other cult groups.”
She went further to say she never knew that it was a
crime to be a cult member.
A male member, Ugochukwu, said they are all
undergraduates of various institutions in Anambra. On the issue of rape,
Ugochukwu admitted that it only happened with female members.
His words: “A female intending member cannot undergo
the rigorous process during the initiation. So, our leaders suggested that the
best way to get them under oath is for every registered member to have sex with
her during initiation. She would be given sedatives during the process so that
she will not physically feel the pain. Ifechukwu’s case was better because we
were only 52 registered males present on the day of her initiation.”
A former commissioner of police, Mr Frank Odita, said
that idleness, peer pressure and poor parental upbringing were major issues
making girls to join cultism.
He added: “Parents should remind their children to
be good ambassadors of their families. And to think about their future, which
joining a cult group can destroy.”
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer
(PPRO), a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), Chike Oti said: “Females
joining cult groups are basically because they have a reason; like a story
attached to why they have joined this group. This reasons maybe either bad or
good. The unlawful society; the society that is against things that are good would
have played a major role in the female wanting to join the cult group. Power is
another key source that might encourage girls to join cultism. They would feel
that if they belong to such groups, they could control the world. They have a
saying, ‘we run things, and things don't run us.’ This is just a false belief. These are lies
that lure them into cult groups. Parents have an important role to play in
checking escalating involvement of girls into cultism.
“They should be vigilant about the kind of company
their children keep. Check their bags from time to time in order to know what
they keep. Parents should also learn to communicate with their children, which
is very important. Parents should cultivate the habit of allowing their
children to confide in them. Parents should learn the kind of problem their
children are facing and find ways to solve the issue.”
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