Adapted from TV by Faruk Shuaibu
It had been a stressful day for Fatima Ishaya (not real name) and she could not wait for 5pm to go home and take a rest from the hustle and bustle in the shop she works as a salesgirl in the heart of Yola, the Adamawa State capital. But as she waited, she scrolled through her phone to help her forget her troubles. For years, the phone has been her gateway to the world.
Fatima’s reverie, however, turned to a nightmare as she was soon attacked by the Shilla cult boys, who dispossessed her of all valuables.
“I was attacked around 7pm, just a few minutes before getting into the house. There was nobody on the street to save me from their onslaught, as six of them, young boys, descended on me. Since what they wanted was my property, I didn’t resist. I gave them everything, including my phone. I knew resistance could have caused me more harm,” she narrated.
“Shilla Boys” is the name of a group of youths between the ages of 8 and 25 who engage in criminality in both rural and urban areas of Adamawa State.
Often perpetrating crime in groups, members of the gang have been accused of robbery, looting and sometimes raping their victims. Their activities have instilled fear in the minds of the populace.
According to the Adamawa State Police Command, the Shilla Boys came into existence when politicians engaged thugs as a political weapon to scare opponents and win elections in 1999.
The police said after the politicians dumped the monster they created after winning the elections, the thuggery transmuted into full-blown criminality as the boys tried to fend for themselves via illegal means, and that the few members of the gang began recruiting other boys for their criminal activities.
“Members of the gangs were first used during the 1999 elections as political thugs to cow voters and political opponents. Their neglect by politicians who had used them in the past made them go wild, and over the span of 20 years, they have recruited thousands of youngsters in what seems to be the fastest growing terror gang in the North East,” the police said.
But as their criminal activities continue to fester and their tentacles grow, social analysts who spoke with Daily Trust blamed lack of employment opportunities and bad parental upbringing for the development.
Ibrahim Adama described his encounter with the group as “bitter”, recalling that: “I was with a friend when she received a call. She brought out the phone from her purse, and I think that was what drew their attention to us. When they got to us, I was hit with a cutlass on my back by one of them.
“Four of them alighted from a tricycle and ordered us to bring all our phones; they were also interested in my wallet and her purse.”
The use of commercial tricycles which has become a popular means of transportation in the state and most of Northern Nigeria also serves the group in perpetrating crime. Those who legitimately engage in the tricycle business are not spared from the atrocities of the hoodlums.
On how the gang has been able to carry out attacks without getting apprehended despite the trade unions in the state, a tricycle rider explained that the boys often used new tricycles without licence plates.
“I believe they get the tricycles from their bosses who collect part of what they get from the criminal activities. I think their sponsors are highly placed individuals, so when the boys rob they also benefit from it,” the rider said.
How the situation can be remedied
Dr Lionel Rawlins, a former US Marine and Assistant Vice President (Security and Safety) at the American University of Nigeria (AUN), Yola, said the issue was considered petty stealing when it started.
“The issue of the Shilla Boys, when it started, was seen as petty stealing. It got to a point that they started invading homes, and when they conducted such an operation no one came out to confront them despite the fact that they were few in number.
“It was so frustrating that young men and women would be robed by five Shilla Boys without a fight, and that emboldened them to continue their criminality.”
He berated parents who refused to take action when their wards from the age of 10 come home with valuables that they cannot account for.
He said as the children got deeper into crime, parents still refused to report them to the authorities to help remedy the situation.
He, however, noted that the “read and feed” programme was helping as it equipped youngsters with tools necessary to survive without engaging in crime.
‘‘If the young lads who are part of the Shilla group had enrolled in the programme at the age they chose crime, we would have protected and modelled them to be good and proper citizens,’’ he said.
In the same vein, a social affairs analyst, Dr Agoso Bamaiyi, who hosts a radio show, blamed the development on failure of the family system and society, as well as poor governance.
“These are young people who under normal circumstances should be handled by their parents. But these days it appears as if parents have lost control over their children,’’ he said.
Dr Bamaiyi added that the problem could be solved if all stakeholders in the state worked together.
However, he noted that solving the problem would take years and beyond the lifetime of a political administration.
“This is because it is a cult and they swear allegiance to whatever it is. There is blood involved at the oath taking. So, it is going to be a lifetime commitment for them. If we are to deal with it, we have to have strategies with short- and long-term considerations,” he said.
Dr Jude Momodu, Director, Centre of Peace and Security Studies at the Moddibo Adama University of Technology (MAUTECH), Yola, urged government to be very creative in dealing with the issue.
He further suggested that since they were young, government should educate them and disincentivise what was making them go into crime.
How we are curbing Shilla Boys’ criminal activities
– Police
To put a stop to the crimes of the gang, the Adamawa State Police Command established the Anti-Shilla Squad to raid and arrest members of the group.
Though the squad has been doing its work, the activities of the group are still being felt in the state as Daily Trust gathered that the boys at times get information of raids by the police in advance.
The spokesman of the command, DSP Suleiman Nguroje, explained that it came up with a sensitisation programme for communities to understand what was needed to curb the activities of the Shilla Boys.
“We have given a mandate to report activities of the gang to the police. The command is sensitising security agencies to operate within the context of the law with much respect to human rights. So when the criminals are apprehended, we hasten our investigation, charge them to court and follow it up and ensure that justice is given to those who deserve it.
“We are able to achieve that through police community engagement,” he said.
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