Recently in Lagos, a vibrant young accountant in a reputable private school in Ikeja, was going home from work one fateful evening when he got into a very tight traffic, he rendered a helping hand so that there will be free flow for all including himself of course, but miscreants descended on him like wild fire, while he was trying to help. He got mobbed by these boys until another good Nigerian came to his rescue and with the help of some police men, the situation was arrested. Unfortunately for the young accountant, he died in his house the following morning from injuries undetected.

This vibrant young man who was snatched away by death with the aid of these miscreants was a good Nigerian; he must have been a good father to his children and a good husband to his wife. He could have been my brother, my uncle, my friend or even my husband. He could have been yours too. He was somebody’s colleague at work. He was somebody’s neighbor at home. He was a Nigerian only trying to help a situation he could have ignored.

My questions are: why were those boys on the street in the first place? Do they constitute the traffic wardens on that location? Why would miscreants pounce on him if he was trying to help in directing the free flow of traffic? Where were the security agents in that location? I mean the police that ought to be in that zone. How come the beating took so long before he got helped? At what time did this incident take place? Did they beat the deceased with clubs and weapons as though he was a mere robber? Why was he not helped by the people around? Was he taken to the hospital for check up after the whole saga? And if he was rushed to the hospital, which hospital was he taken to? Who discharged him from the hospital? According to the report, he died in his house the next morning and not in the hospital?

Men mobbing a man

From the little l know about school dismissal, the deceased couldn’t have been on his way home by 12 am, it must have been early night, say 7 pm or thereabout, which means it was too early in the evening for these boys to be on the streets for whatever reason except that there were no police in that location. The area we are talking about is not just any place, but the state capital and according to the report, it was a tight traffic. This means there were lots of people around. If he was only helping, how come he couldn’t get help from people he was trying to help? I think we have gotten to a stage in Nigeria where we shouldn’t be isolated in what we do. We should always bear in mind that the man on the street is our brother and we should be our brother’s keeper. The hand you use in serving others will be the exact hands that will serve you.