Whither campus cultism?

By 

Victor Gotevbe

The time has finally come to call a spade a spade, in this case, the spade is cultism. Currently, it has been on an upward increase in the country despite the clarion call for secret cult members to renounce their stand and efforts to uncover the hands teleguiding their activities. Sadly, instead, it has cast untold gloom over the educational sector. Our institutions have been infested by cultic practices. It is said that the youths are the leaders of tomorrow, but one wonders what future the youth hold for this country, which has some of her youths as secret cult members.

It has therefore become imperative to carefully redress the issue of cultism in our so-called citadels of higher learning where reason should champion over emotions. Truly, the issue has assumed horrendous proportions. The sad thing is that cultic violence is still being doctored by cultists. And it is shocking that random investigation has revealed that that more than 80% of secret cult members in our universities are teenagers from average and upper class families .

Furthermore, "the nation is bewildered, the government impotent, parents horrified and the violence goes on unabated. Statistics show that a minimum of 54 students were murdered in 1997 in campus cult wars, while several other hundreds were maimed or wounded. In 1996, the casualty list reveals 46 lives lost. It has been reported that over one hundred and forty six thousand (146,000) cult members had been initiated of which 63,000 are part of the nation’s workforce.

It has been said that cultism in Nigerian Universities has its origin in Professor Wole Soyinka’s initiative, in 1953. At that time, he had not gained much recognition. The foremost and publicized secret cult we know is the Pyrates Confraternity established by the Nobel Laureate. It has however been argued by some that his intention of founding the cult was to promote good citizenship, magnanimity and academic success. Well, time has proved his objective wrong. Perhaps, the 2^nd century B.C. Chinese philosopher, Huamanyi was right after all when he emphatically stated: "Time is that which goes away and becomes the past; that which arrives and becomes the present." I am afraid, if the ideal is still very much to be desired even before he will pass away.

Recently, the Federal Government gave an ultimatum to universities’ authority to eliminate secret cults or face the music. It is just like saying the Vice Chancellors are supposed to be the chief security officers of their various institutions. One thought the government would declare a state of emergency in campuses. We witnessed a handful of students coming out to renounce their evil deeds. Some of them were from the Black Axe, the Eiye Confraternity, the Buccaneer and Vikings, just to mention a few. These students cut across the Obafemi Awolowo University, Enugu State University of Technology, Nnamdi Azikiwe University and a host of others. Most of them seemed not to mind the consequences of their action. However, I want to state here that the renunciation exercise is only but a gimmick; a trick. Why on earth should a student be so audacious to renounce his belief without fear of being threatened or even killed by fellow cult members. I want to say it is only but an orchestrated gimmick, so as to divert our attention from substance to shadow. Indeed, it is not an exaggeration to say that these cultists thrive in violence no matter the sex involved -male or female. Also, one principal characteristics of these secret societies is the bond of unity that exists amongst them sealed in oath taking. As a matter of fact, these oaths are sometimes taken with the Bible, the Koran or some symbol, apparently employing your religious faith to pin you down.

Further still, once you are a member you dare not pull out or you will be pursued and eliminated for fear of revealing their ungodly or illicit dealings. Now, the activities of secret societies are not only giving the school authorities a night mare but also a "daylight mare". Their operation, devilish nocturnal meetings, killings and other mischievous practices have given rise to the clamour to identify the demons or godfathers responsible for these and who are people with high socio-economic and political status under whose auspices the secret cult members perpetuate their misdeeds.

To say that these cultists are only indulging in a renunciation gimmick is not an oversight. If indeed they really freely gave up their heinous deeds, why do they still enjoy sec? We cannot boast of security in the least sense much more from a panoramic view. The issue may not just be security. What about the possibility of these students using the renunciation as a strategy to carry out their underground atrocities? The other day somebody said to me that the Holy Ghost was cleansing the campuses of their unpleasant and unfortunate circumstances. I virtually laughed my head out. I knew right from the onset that these cultists would use the opportunity to outsmart the authorities in question. I wonder if the devil was and has ever been dethroned from the seat of authority in our institutions.

The idea of public renunciation is questionable. How possible is it for a cultist whose belief or covenant is rooted in mysticism or spiritisim without external pressure as such, wake up one morning and publicly denounce his hard-earned belief? As Africans, we do not have to go through any brain tournament to know that secret cults are fundamentally grounded in the devil. This is not a case of classical supernaturalism. The devil is real and it has gone a long way to steal, kill and to destroy. If this is true, then what are the implications of telling the devil "NO" and not embracing an alternative or higher kind of religion.

I am not implying that there have not been cases of genuine renunciation. Still more, lecturers are in no small way the benefactors or members if you like of some of these secret cults. Recently, we heard of another atrocity engineered by students alleged to be secret cult members in UNIBEN, leaving some casualties. It will not surprise me if some of the cultists have at one time indulged in the renunciation gimmick.

Gotevbe wrote in from Benin City, Edo State