Murphy Van- Anthony a.k.a. The Ultimate Murphy lived for more than two decades in Jos, the crisis ridden capital of Plateau State where he plied his trade as a musician.

Today, the man who until the crisis, was the Plateau state secretary of PMAN, has temporarily relocated to Lagos.

In this interview with our Entertainment Editor, Ogbonna Amadi, the Benin, Edo State born rastaman recounts his escape from Jos. H also narrates how some of the rioters raped and killed innocent female students of the University of Jos. It’s a heart touching stories, one that he sums up as a beastly executed religious war between Christians and Muslims.

Excerpt.
You were the former secretary of the Plateau State chapter of PMAN?

I’m still in office and in charge of the state.

Really? And what are you doing in Lagos when you should be in Jos?

I left Jos for two major reasons. One, I felt lonely and sad after the demise of my wife. So, my
coming to Lagos is to hang out with friends and perhaps that could help me wipe out the sad memories of the loss.

And the second reason is that I had to escape for my life following the crises that rocked Jos, the Plateau State capital.

Before we talk about the crisis, let’s talk about your wife? Did the crisis cause her demise?
No, she was involved in a ghastly motor accident and died seven days after, with a seven-month pregnancy.

It must have been painful. Do you have other children?

It was a sad experience. She died right in my hands at midnight. She died in 2007. But she left behind a little girl.

And the crisis had started then?

It was coming and going. Right now it’s still going on. They are still killing themselves.

As a musician, how did the crisis affect your business and night life in Jos?

It really affected us. It was made worse because of the curfew imposed in the city. And as you know our kind of business thrives in the night, the curfew made it impossible for anyone to go out in the night.

In Jos town, business activities were grounded because people couldn’t go out to do their business any more. Beer palours, hotels and restaurant businesses died.

Did you lose anything?

I didn’t because God was on my side. But so many of my friends and others I cannot count were killed and most of their properties burnt. I saw people being burnt alive. In my presence, two men were hacked to death and more than 500 hundred houses and cars burnt.

On Bauchi Road, I came across beheaded bodies. Even women were not spared. On the same Bauchi road, female students of the University of Jos who rented apartments were raped and set on fire. They were caught unaware right in their rooms, raped and dragged outside before they were killed and burnt.

In the first four days that the crisis began, I couldn’t find my younger brother and went in search of him. I found him in the Kwararafa area of the state.

Before I found him, I ran into the killers. But my dread-locks and my fame saved my life. You know the Northerners love the Rastaman and reggae. It was by the Grace of God. They let me go.

What genre of music do you play?

Christafarian. Gospel reggae music.

Did the Jos crisis experience force you to be born again ?

Yes. God spared my life. During the crisis I escaped not once, twice or even thrice from the rampaging rioters.

How do you mean?

During the crisis, those that hate you used the opportunity to settle scores with you. I was standing by a junction close to my house when someone shot at me. But God saved me. The bullet ripped through my jacket and went on to tear off another person’s ear.

It was an Igboman who witnessed the incident that told me who did it. And I found out that fellow was known to me. But he was not my friend.

The first time I had a bad experience with the rioters was at the beginning of the crisis. I was
going toward Hilltop Station Hotel when I ran into a road block. It was around 7pm. The guys manning the road block were armed with all manners of dangerous weapons.

And because the place I lived is isolated, I usually had packets of bangers (knock out) in the boot of my car. On this day, I had some in the front seat beside me.

I stopped and brought out my black Mercedes Benz jack, which looks like a gun. I advanced toward them shouting, scratching and throwing the bangers. The combination of the bangers’ explosion and the jack made them think I had a gun. They ran away

My brother if you want to die young please go to Jos. That is the most unpredictable city in the world today. Anything can happen there at anytime.

You have a house in Jos, was it burnt?

No. It is safe by God’s grace because only he could have done it.

What do you think could have caused the fracas?

The truth is not being told by both sides. The fight in Jos is between Christians and Muslim. If it’s a war between the indigenes and the Fulanis, then why are they killing Igbos, Yorubas and other ethnic tribes?

They are not honest. They are being economical with the truth.

…And you’ve left Jos finally?

I could go back when the tension comes down.

Now that you are in Lagos how, do you do survive?

I have so many projects I’m handling now. And as a Christian soldier I play music in the Church and Christ provides my meals.

But the most important thing is I am working on selling my new album titled Rasta for Jesus.

And why did you give it such title?

As a dread locked, I want to identify with Christ. Some people think Rastafarism is all about smoking Indian hemp. But my kind of Rasta is for Christ.

How many tracks do you have in the album?

It’s ten trackers. Apart from the title track ‘Rasta for Christ’ I have other tracks like ‘Living Stone’, ‘New life in Christ’, ‘Belief’, ‘The strength to rule my enemy’, ‘Jesus Time has come’, ‘Zion’, ‘Day by Day’, ‘Rasta for Jesus’, ‘New life instrumental’ and ‘Zion Instrumental’.

Where was the album produced?

I recorded in Heartbeat Studio in Benin, Jahkru studio, Lagos and the Izang studio owned by Alpha Blondie in Cote’d’ Voire . . .

And who produced it?

It was a joint effort between I, Daddy Ralph and Emma Jahkru.

Do you have a marketing company handling the album?

That is the area where I have a problem I’m still searching for one. In the interim, the music is released on my label, Zion Music Entertainment.

Video
There is a promotional video of the song Living Stone airing.