By Water-No-get-Enemy
Disclaimer: The story herein is a work of fiction. Names, characters, place, and incidents are the products of the writer’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Cynthia grasped the yelling Infinix phone that laid beside her on the bed. It appeared to her it was not the alarm that used to wake her up at the break of dawn. Aw! She exclaimed as she gazed down on the nameless number. Half asleep, she felt reluctant to pick the call. It might be one of those yahoo-boys that swindle at early hours, she thought. She was convinced now, as she tapped the green icon on the touchscreen. It turned out to be one of her faculty-mates.
“Hello, hello…” she said, trying to raise her voice. “Good morning, who is there?”
“Yah. Morning,” he began. “Can you recognise this voice?”
“Not really,” she replied.
“You didn’t save my number?” he asked with doubt.
“I am sorry for that, it was not deliberate,” she apologised.
“This is Tade Akinyele,” he said, “the guy you shared your number with at the faculty dinner.”
“Tade Akinyele, Tade Akinyele…” she rummaged her mind for couple of seconds, “Oh! Tade from Agronomy right?”
“Yap, yap,” he replied.
“I observed you have been offline for some days. I want to call your attention to what is trending on the Faculty WhatsApp Group. It will be good you come online,” he said and began to laugh mockingly.
“Can you gist me, what is trending on the group?” she asked anxiously. But Tade had pressed his red button. Hush fell on her, she had dialed and redialed Tade’s number but only to hear a voice saying the number is out of coverage.
She then began to wonder what could have transpired on the faculty WhatsApp group that could have spurred Tade to tell her to come online at this early morning. Could it be that the GES results have been released, no that could not be, ASUU is on strike. She thought again, now more broad, but still she could not figure out what was behind the urgent call and why Tade had laughed in such manner.
Now she tapped the WhatsApp icon and marvelled at her faculty group as it displayed more than two thousand messages. She imagined the last time she saw such bulky messages on the group. Now it came bare to her mind that her vow to keep social media at arm’s length had been broken but she felt this time she could not deny herself what await her and she could not afford not to catch a glimpse.
“No, no, oh no,” she began to protest, raucously shouting into the stillness of dawn. She had stumbled upon anonymous messages. The words scribbled in white appeared bold and glare on the purple background. Series of such images came to her as she scrolled up and down on the deserted group as no new message was adding to the number. Now she sprang out of the bed, with the urge to wail. She held the phone feebly on her quivering palm. Perspiration had begun to trickle down to her chest as she fixed her gaze on the afflictive messages. These messages stung her with pain that beyond the stings of a million wasps. She could not hold it to herself. The deep, sorrowful tears was now streaming down from her eyes. She then began to read aloud to herself.
“That slim girl called Cynthia Okafor in AERD is Olosho.”
Another one ran: “Cynthia Okafor, you thought you are Holier-than-thou. Oti cast. You may lie to us again that it is not that mad Jerry of Zoo department that dismantled you at Agbowo that night. Oti cast.”
“Cynthia Okafor they said you are a broken calabash. You have aborted 100 pregnancy, just in 100 level.” as she read this her phone slipped away from her palm, she picked it up and struck it against the wall. Wailing bitterly.
“Who on this earth,” she said, wailing while her chest heaving, “contrived these falsehoods to tarnish my life. The life I cherished. They have marred my precious image. What could I have done wrong? Why me! Why me! Wicked souls? You shattered, completely my noble personality on the useless thing you called internet. You, you evil humans, ah, ah!” She wailed heavily. Now she dashed to a corner of her room. She felt depressed and sick. She picked it up; it was a small container with an inscription: SNIPER INSECTICIDE. She loosed the lid. Then stared into the glowing daylight as she forced it down her throat. Now some voices were behind her door. Knocking and calling unto her. They were her parents and siblings who had heard her sudden, thunderous screams.
Cyber-bullying and the Lawless UI students
This fictional story of a university student who attempted to commit suicide due to depression, frustration, and low self-esteem she suffered as a result of cyber-bullying is forged out of reality.
However, as the world continues to battle with the pandemic disease that has come to plague human existence. The resultant effects of this raging virus called coronavirus or COVID-19 that has forced many countries of the world to resort to partial and complete lock down and which school activities are not exempted. However, the effects of this could be assumed to have begun to unveil itself in the characters of some Nigerian university students.
There is this proverb that says, “An idle hand is the devil’s workshop.” This proverb which best depicts the nature of some UI students as they begin to subscribe to Kubool- anonymous message, an interactive Dare game designed by Kubool web gives users the opportunity to conceal identity and to send or receive anonymous compliments to or from friends and keeping of privacy of the users safe.” However, these coterie of UI students have begun to engage in this ‘anonymous message’ to promote an unlawful act called Cyber-bullying or cyber harassment which they perhaps, believe is another type of fun.
Cyber-bullying, according to flutterwave.com “is the use of information and communication technology, for the harassment or mistreatment of another. Typically, it is carried out against a victim who is distant; although in some situations the perpetrator(s) may be proximate to the victim. Examples of cyber-bullying include posting repetitive offensive comments or photos on social media and or creating fake online profiles to belittle another person. It sometimes involves death threats and “doxing”.
Moreover, this website expressed further on Cyber-bullying under Nigeria Law. “As a means of dealing with a wide variety of technology-based threats, the National Assembly enacted an Act called The Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc.) Act 2015 Cybercrimes (” Cybercrimes Act”). The purpose of the Cybercrimes Act is to provide an effective and unified legal, regulatory and institutional framework for the prohibition, prevention, detection, prosecution and punishment of cybercrimes in Nigeria.”
Going by the same source, the penalty for cyber-stalking varies depending on the exact form committed. “The Cybercrimes Act provides that a defendant who does anything, which he is prohibited from doing, commits an offense and shall be liable on conviction to a fine of not more than N10,000,000 or imprisonment for a term of not more than 3 years or to both such fine and imprisonment. Finally, the court may also make an interim order for the protection of victim(s) from further exposure to the alleged offences.”
However, isn’t it imperative to educate and if necessary re-educate those who engage in this unlawful act (cyber-bullying)? There is a Latin maxim that says “Ignorantia juris non excusat,” which means “Ignorance of the law excuses not.” What turns out to be fun which many students perhaps use to ward off boredom in this trying time could kill, cause depression and tarnish forever the image of the victims. I believe if such unscrupulous messages find it way out of the threshold of these WhatsApp groups where this act is being carried out and dominate the internet, it could inflict psychological and emotional distress on victims and possibly cause insecurity of life as well as poses other threats.
