A man simply identified as Wellington has gone into hiding after surviving a deadly gun attack by angry youths in the Ogida axis of Benin City over his alleged involvement in bisexual practices, a behaviour seriously frowned upon by the Benis.
Wellington it was learnt was attacked on September 1, 2023 by a gang led by one Majek who is reportedly angered by Wellington’s illicit amorous relationship with his brother Allen.
Before the shooting, Majek was said to have orchestrated the gay partners secret affairs before the elders of the Medical, Okhoro community where he lived before relocating to Ogida where the elders had planned to strip and parade them naked round the community before he escaped.
The Ogida shooting incident it was learnt was to abduct Wellington and take him back to Medical, Okhoro to face the humiliation he had escaped, resulting in the shooting when he resisted them.
Eye witnesses said that Wellington was returning to his new home when he noticed a car was behind him. Upon sighting the people inside the car, he noticed that it was Majek and his friends.
Wellington was shocked, and they immediately came and asked him to get inside the car with them, and he refused. They tried unsuccessfully adopting him, but couldn’t. In the midst of the struggle, Majak brought out a gun and shot at him, leaving him for dead, the gang sped off the scene.
Wellington was lucky, the bullet struck his left elbow leaving now collateral damage to his body tissues before he was rushed to the hospital by concerned neighbours who also alerted the police.
News of the shooting devastated Wellington’s mother resulting in her slumbing and dying moments after owing to her HBP medical condition on September 3, 2023.
Wellington is said to still live in fear because Majek’s friends initially arrested by the police and later released for want of evidence to prosecute them because he couldn’t come out boldly to testify against them for fear of being arrested for gay offences, are still after his life for the same reasons.
Both the law and community aren’t protective of gay or bisexual rights of practitioners thus exposing them to attacks and other dehumanizing experiences including death through jungle justice by mob attacks.
Most communities abhor same sex relationship resulting in the criminalization of the practices in Nigeria under the Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act of 2013, prescribing prison terms of 14 years and below if offenders are found guilty.
