Combating Witch hunts and Ritual Attacks

Ondo State has been in the news for some wrong reasons: witch hunts and ritual attacks. And it has become pertinent to situate these reports, identify underlying factors and drivers of these abuses, and explore ways of addressing them. Here are a few examples. In 2016, the police rescued a four-year-old girl caged by her parents for witchcraft. The foster parents claimed that she was possessed.

They tied her hands, forced her inside a cage, and flogged her in an attempt to exorcise or subdue the evil spirit. In a related development in 2019, some youths prevented the police from arresting a couple who allegedly beat their four-year-old daughter to death for being a witch. The couple fled and took refuge at the palace of the king. It was not clear why the youths prevented the police from arresting the couple. Probably, they wanted the king, not the police, to resolve the matter. In 2024, a 45-year-old woman, Abiodun, accused her mother of witchcraft and subsequently set her ablaze. Abiodun told the police that she went to someone for prayers. The person said that her mother was behind her problems and those problems would not go away until the mother died. So she went and got some petrol, poured it on her, and set her ablaze. The woman later died as a result of the burns that she sustained from the incident. Unfortunately, there has been no news about the current status of the case, that is if the suspect has been charged in court. 

From the cases mentioned above, belief in demonic possession motivates people to accuse and abuse people for witchcraft. Witches are believed to embody and personify evil. People, who believe that their children or relatives are possessed by demons, treat such persons without mercy; they subject them to torture and inhuman and degrading treatment. Also, those who go to prayer houses, consult pastors, prophets and prophetesses, diviners or native doctors tend to accuse people and persecute alleged witches because these godmen and women incite them to commit violence; they make them tackle suspected witches in families and communities. Pastors and prophets claim to have spiritual powers and insights into people’s existential problems; they proffer ‘solutions’ and ‘remedies’ including identifying the occult agents behind misfortunes. Identified witches, as in these cases, are attacked, tortured, or murdered in cold blood.

Furthermore, Ondo has been in the news for ritual attacks. People believe in the potency of ritual sacrifice of animal and human body parts. Traditional, Christian, and Islamic religions sanction and sanctify these beliefs and practices. There have been reports of ritual killings in different parts of the state. Police have reportedly arrested some suspected ritualists and most of them are youths, young persons in their 30s or below. Some people call them Yahoo Boys and their ritual scheme, Yahoo Plus. 

Last year, the police arrested a 31-year-old man, Yusuf, with eight human skulls and some human flesh in the Isua-Akoko area of the state. He claimed he had gotten involved in the ritual business to raise money to pay for her mother’s treatment hospital bills. The police have also arrested a 30-year-old man, Olaniyi, with fresh human parts in Ondo town. He was caught with a bag containing two human hands and legs in the Sabo area of the city. Other ritual incidents include those of a self-acclaimed cleric, Tunde Olayiwola who was arrested with a fresh human head, and Dolapo Babalola who allegedly murdered his intimate friend and five other persons for rituals.

As in the case of witch hunting, ignorance, and misconceptions motivate ritual killings and sacrifice of humans or their body parts. Many people believe ritual sacrifice could make them rich. Incidentally, there is no evidence that ritual sacrifice of humans or their body parts yields money, good fortune, or success in business as shown in home movies or Nollywood films. There is no evidence that people can harm others through magical or occult means. These beliefs are superstitious and have no basis in reason, science, or reality. People who attack and kill other humans for rituals murder these persons for nothing. Those who indulge in witch hunts end up killing or abusing innocent people. As the cases have shown, witch hunters and ritualists end up being arrested by the police and then prosecuted and jailed.  

Ondo state authorities should take measures to address abuses linked to witchcraft beliefs and ritual attacks because the few cases that have been reported in the media are only the tip of the iceberg. Most of the cases happen in rural areas and go unreported. In a few instances, the police intervene; they arrest suspects but these suspects are briefly detained and later released. So perpetrators are seldom punished. Ritualists and witch hunters should be made to pay for their crimes.

Meanwhile, there is a need for public education and enlightenment in schools and communities. Public awareness programs would help change mindsets and attitudes. Public sensitization will reorient people’s beliefs and outlooks. Witch hunts and ritual attacks persist because of educational failures, because schools teach science but do not encourage scientific literacy and critical thinking. The facility to apply scientific knowledge to everyday experiences is limited. Most people use magical thinking and superstitions to process their day-to-day problems. So the government should ensure that the people of Ondo abandon superstition and embrace science and critical thinking. 

Leo Igwe directs the Advocacy for Alleged Witches