By Samuel Udofia
A mother of three in Benin, Edo State, Mrs. Martina Ikhide, is heart-broken. She betrayed emotion as she narrated how one of her sons, Omonfomam Gabriel Ikhide, was lured into initiation, beaten, bruised and manhandled by a cult group in Benin. She said: “That we are still alive up till now is a miracle. What was Gabriel’s offence? Why was he beaten like a common criminal?
“My son refused to join one of the cult groups rampaging over every part of our country that used to be a safe haven when I was growing up.
“One of Gabriel’s friends usually visited my son in the house and, sometimes, drives him to football training at Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium and brings him back home. Even when Gabriel had official games, he was always there to support him as a big fan. Gabriel played good football.
“I never thought that my son’s friend, who didn’t talk much and was very calm, that showered Gabriel with such love could ever be a member of any secret cult. But now I can tell you that the man, who is older than Gabriel, is a green snake in green grass.
“He lured my son out one fateful day to meet with another cultist, where they fixed a date to initiate him into their cult group, only for my son to come back shaking in fear. He said they warned him that if he reported to the police, the sect will find out because their confraternity is a national cult that has their men all over the system.
“My son said they promised to come after him and his family, if we try to report to the police. Gabriel came back from that outing that day trembling in fear. He was so frightened that the following morning he started isolating himself from our family morning prayer altar.
“That was when I probed into what was wrong only to find out what my son was going through. Everyone in the family, including him, rejected such initiation plans.
“The initiation date came and passed and my son didn’t go for it. We were happy as we thought we had won the battle that the enemy set before us.
“A few days later, I was told that my son’s friend invited him into his car for discussion as they drove out. He found out later that there were two other people in the car while other members followed them in another car to an unknown destination.
“When I was called in and I saw my son, Gabriel’s broken right shoulder, bruises and blood stains on him, I was unconscious and didn’t know how I ended up at the ISTH (Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital), Edo State, where God used the doctors to revive me.”
Gabriel’s mother, Martina, further disclosed that “on several occasions, my family has been receiving death threats from unknown persons and warning us from going to the police. All of us live in fear now and my mother has been diagnosed with high blood pressure.”
She went further to remember how she was told: “Your son must be one of us or risk being wasted.” Many months passed and she didn’t hear from her son.
She further said: “I thought they had succeeded in killing him as they threatened. I mourned my son everyday for many months, yet they didn’t stop threatening my family and that really panicked and confused us to the extent that I became very sick.
“One day after some months, a miracle happened in my life. I received a phone call that kept me alive up till now.
“I received my son’s phone voice message, assuring me that all was well and he was in a safe place now. My son, Gabriel, warned me to be discreet with his location. He said I should not let non-immediate family members know about it because nobody can tell who their members are.
“I was happy but the BP that I developed as a result of the incident is still very much with me.”