The rise of criminality among the Fulani tribe is indeed, a very recent phenomenon in the Country. In the recent past, and of course, much more before then, the ordinary Fulani is known for his “Polako”, a cultural norm that makes him unique in his dealings with others. The ordinary Hausa man will mock the Fulani man for being too shy, too introvert and too simplistic in his behaviours. However, the ordinary Fulani man is generally stern, rugged but pure and corrupt-free in his mind.
There’s a saying that if one lives long, one will witness a lot of changes in life. As late as the 1980s, no one ever thought the vices of armed robbery and kidnappings will penetrate the Northern part of the Country, much less perpetrated by any Northerner. The least tribe to expect involved in such crimes is the Fulani. Nonetheless, events lead from one circumstance to another. Here we are today, the most vicious of killers, ruthless kidnappers and robbers are found among the Fulani tribe.
There’s hardly any justification for committing crimes anywhere in the World. But today, kidnappers for ransom, killers at will and cattle-rustlers by choice are openly using our conventional media to try justifying their choice of mayhem on the innocent by claiming that lack of justice by authorities for their tribesmen is what pushed them into criminality. They claim that this is their way of forcing the government and the Society to reckon with them.
But then, I become worried that none of the gangs who rake billions in proceed from ransoms ever sank part of it in building even an ordinary water-well for the several hamlets of the Fulani scattered across the land. If they claim Robinhood, then it is only logical that they commit the illegal proceed back to the communities they claim they represent. But, no. Like the criminals they are, they spend it on drugs, Alcohol, Women and acquisition of more illegal arms and ammunitions.
Only in our country can such a misnomer happen and even get the attention of our “responsible” media. At this hour, those criminals need to be openly disowned by the Nigerian Fulani and their claims to be consistently denied and countered by the Fulani, as, indeed, it has the potentiality of gradually distancing the entire tribe away from their age-long brothers and sisters whom they are seen to have fused as one. Already, the Fulani have become increasingly a pariah in the Southern part of the country. It is a needless complacency allowing common criminals among them to gradually drag the entire tribe into mutual suspicion, anger and distrust between them and the only comfort they have as Nigerians.
