Bode Olanitori who was former Plateau state correspondent in Jos for The Punch Newspaper recalls his narrow escape while covering killings in Jos, Plateau State in his contribution to OUR PUNCH YEARS book by 38 former staff of the newspaper
A time came when I was transferred to Jos as the Plateau State Correspondent. Jos, the capital of the state, used to be the most peaceful part of the North. Unfortunately, the myth surrounding the peace in Jos was broken in the latter part of the year 2001, when a crisis erupted, leading to the death of thousands of people.
Three weeks before the crisis, I travelled to Lagos to bring my wife and children to spend their holiday with me in serene Jos. Two weeks after I brought my family, the crisis broke out. Our survival remains a miracle.
From September 7 to 13, 2001, Jos, the Capital of Plateau State; became the scene of mass killing and destruction. Hundreds of people were killed and tens of thousands were displaced in less than one week.
I initially took cover in a police station with my wife and children, but we fled when hoodlums invaded and took over the station. While we were fleeing to a guest house heavily guarded by soldiers, I saw an act of man inhumanity to man and wickedness of the highest order when hoodlums performed a manual surgical operation on a pregnant woman with knives, swords, and cutlasses to forcefully expel a baby from the woman’s womb. Some journalists fled to Rukuba Barracks for safety.
When soldiers eventually deployed to the city, I finally found leeway to return my wife and children to Lagos. By that time, the whole of Jos had been deserted; no commercial vehicles were travelling to Lagos. I just bought a car then, which I did not know how to drive properly. My mechanic was the one who drove with me to Lagos to pick up my wife and children. Due to the crisis, the man had fled to Ogbomosho, his hometown, in faraway Oyo State. I was left with no alternative but to drive the car myself. I did. As a novice driver that I was, when it became dark, I did not even know what button to press to turn on the car’s headlamp. Somehow, I managed to reach Ondo State with the dim light of the car. I slept in Owo that night. The following day, I reached Lagos. I was able to return to Jos on the third day. In all, I covered about 1,040 kilometres from Jos to Lagos and 1,040 kilometres from Lagos to Jos –about 2,080 kilometres of a journey. I did not know how I managed to escape an accident, traversing from the North to the South and back to the North without a single scratch, and without falling into the hands of the ethnic gladiators hunting for easy prey throughout Jos and beyond.
To read his full story and that of 37 others, contact me to get a copy of the book on 08050498530 (Whatsapp)
Taye Obateru
