Do Nigerian Lives Matter?

By Benjamin Obiajulu Aduba

 The leadership and followership of Americans stood up when some Black Americans were killed and asserted that Black Lives matter. It came from the pulpits of both Catholic and Protestant churches, from mosques, from temples and from political parties. GOP’s response was tame but it is on record. Not everybody believed that the killers’ stand were wrong but all agreed that killing was not the solution. As President Assad is killing his people, the world arose in anger as they did when Saddam and Gadhafi did the same things. Initial condemnation came from Syrians, Libyans, Iraqis.

How different is Nigeria’s. Nobody in Nigeria is speaking out as President Buhari is killing peaceful demonstrators at first in Port Harcourt and now in Onitsha. At PH two citizens were killed and in Onitsha nine others were killed by. In both cases PMB’s troops shot and killed unarmed demonstrators bringing the total Buhari killings to eleven in five months of his administration. Since the demonstrations have not stopped the civilian killings by the “man of God” is bound to rise.

If a president killing his people is bad what about the reactions of politicians, business leaders, religious leaders, civil rights advocates, internet warriors, etc.? The reaction is a deafening silence. Not a word from Iman’s, bishops, “men of God”; nothing from the Senate or the House; nothing from Human Rights groups, Nothing from governors, etc. Nothing but silence.

The question becomes: why this silence?

I offer these guesses: