What manner of men, what manner of nation?

So here we are still trying to figure out what the national assembly and senate and GEJ (Goodluck Ebele Jonathan)and whoever else is concerned, will do under the present circumstances. We are still trying to get updates on YA (Yar' Adua) and daily we await some news in the hope that something new and refreshing may be happening. Everyone is concerned about the state of the nation. Well, almost everyone for its obvious that in the midst of all these, some nigerians have become completely overtaken by the demons of self enrichment and utter disregard for human life. I guess you must have seen it or heard about those men of the underworld who attacked passengers travelling on the Lagos-Benin expressway. Passengers that had money and valuables were robbed. The story should have ended there and the passengers would have been grateful to God for sparing their lives.

But it wasn't to be so for many of those on the ill-fated bus. Those who did not have money were ordered to lie face down in the middle of the road and the bus driver ordered, at gun, to run over them with the bus!!!. And all this happened, according to the report, in broad day light!!! What a way to die?!

Welcome to Nigeria.

The picture splashed on the front page of Leadership newspaper (friday, February 26, 2010) is best described as gory. Only the strongest among us can afford to take a second look at that picture. It brings all the contents of your stomach to your mouth. It is hard to believe that the pieces of 'things' lying in the road and crushed as if it were ground beef, were only a few hours before, brothers and sisters, husbands and wives, children and relatives of Nigerians. Only a few hours before, they were counted among the living.

These were ordinary Nigerians like you and I who left one destination in this country hoping to reach another. Their only crime on that day? They did not have money and valuables on them. Only yesterday, I saw David Mark and his colleagues hotly debating what should be done. The police boss and his men should be summoned, they suggested, the FRSC and the highway patrol as well. Do we have a functional police system in Nigeria. What the hell were they talking about? What for goodness sake happened to all the check points scattered along all the roads in Nigeria? Where were they when tax paying Nigerians were ground to death?

As I listened to them, my blood boiled within me. The powers that be may never come to such gruesome death. They travel mostly by air and when they travel by road,they always have money and security details with them.

I have no power to do anything and I usually don't subscribe to unnecessary calls for prayers. But this time, I want to say let us pray. Just for one thing: that those who were directly and indirectly involved in this crime will be brought to justice and very quickly too. Sadly, this is my world.