Obituary: Micheal Hill

Untenable criminality

No outrage can be better expressed than to condemn with the strongest words and the heaviest hand of the law the kidnapping/ransom vicious cycle that has become the norm in the Niger Delta Region in Nigeria.

News has been haemorrhaging out of the area and one cannot count the number of sons, daughters, mothers and relations of prominent people who have become pawns in the despicable activities of assumed activists for liberation who are just brigands, criminals, thieves and societal vermin.

Kidnaps are the norm

Just 5 weeks ago, these events reached a new low when the Anglo/Nigerian 3-year old daughter of long-term expatriate was captured at violent gunpoint from a seemingly benign school-run and held for 7 days.

My view was that the people involved should be hunted down and exterminated that rat poison on vermin would be considered more humane. I just could not see how any cause on earth regardless of the grievance could be justified by the kidnapping of a child – a madness had entered this scheme, no negotiation can be complete until these criminals see the searing edge of justice decapitate them with mob applause.

As they held the poor girl for 4 days, they were negotiating for the girl’s father to exchange places with his daughter, which he was quite willing to do, but better judgement prevailed against this, because it probably would have escalated into an untenable situation.

When the girl was released we all breathed a collective sigh of relief as the family refused to be intimidated by these activities or consider leaving Nigeria and kidnappings have continued without abatement.

The toll of the ordeal

Little could we know that these events had dealt an irreversible death knell on the family, the stress of knowing your daughter is in the hands of hoodlums who would do anything for money is hard enough and it appears that might have contributed to this sad event.

On August the 8^th 2007, Michael Hill, 60, the father of the girl died of a heart attack which many would say was exacerbated by that rotten ordeal he had to go through a month before.

Michael Hill would be buried in Port Harcourt where he moved to 10 years ago for professional reasons as the Operations Director of Lone Star an US Oil company and ran a karaoke bar.

Saddened, really saddened

My heart goes out to Margaret Hill, his daughter and Oluchi his wife who must be inconsolable regarding this loss along with family over in County Durham that survives him.

Mr. Hill was one of the many expatriates who consciously took the decision to make Nigeria a liveable place by settling there and planting deep roots as locals are baling out for deteriorating circumstances – this episode becomes another blot on the security, safety and liveable index of adopting Nigeria as a home.

The government should do well to rid the Niger Delta Region and other cities of these untrammelled miscreants, it is a duty to all Nigerians and most especially those who have died just going about their lives but inadvertently ambassadors of what is good about Nigeria.

Rest in peace, Michael Hill and may Margaret and Oluchi receive strength and fortitude to bear the loss, more so, if there is anything that can be organised to help the family, I hope the company, the government and community are stepping forward.

References

Child in Niger Delta Kidnapping and Death Threat

Reasoning out the girl's kidnap

Margaret Hill - Home with parents

Margaret Hill - Home with parents

Debunking my scepticism

Earlier this evening, I viewed with healthy scepticism the assurance from the Governor of Rivers State in Nigeria that the 3-year old Margaret Hill would be released to her parents by the morning.

The news also said the police knew of where the girl was being held - I said a silent prayer hoping the police don't do something silly and endanger the life of the girl.

So, it is with great relief that we have now been informed that Margaret Hill has been released and been reunited with her parents with no ransom paid.

The release is really good news and one can only say let the process of healing begin from the trauma of being kidnapped at gunpoint and hosted in some hostile environment being fed plain bread and water.

We can only hope that she would mercifully be spared the nightmares of her ordeal and even forget the episode as the love and care of her family and relations overflow in comforting her and help her recover.

Handsome ransom?

The story of no ransom being paid does leave me a bit unconvinced; I once had to sign a release form for my employees' release from police custody saying I had paid nothing when in fact I had paid a large amount of cash to secure their release to the police.

The quest for money is an unquenchable pursuit that feeds the madness of this mendicancy, men who have sold their souls to perpetrate despicable evil purveying menace for monetary gain through unwarranted duress, it beggars belief that those brigands and criminals would part with their captive without something in the bargain considering the reckless abominable activity they indulged in.

Capture, censure and condemn them

This should not be the end of the matter, the story should not end with the good news of the girl's release; all the people who were involved in this criminal act should and must be brought to book.

It reads with great discomfort that it has taken the abduction of a British/Nigerian girl to highlight the fact that this is the third child kidnapped for ransom in the same locality - we need the firm hand of the law to deal a complete blow to this intolerable and unacceptable development.

Just like Jesus was minded to have a millstone put round the neck of any offender of children before they are thrown in a lake; I can made the exception of the death penalty being visited on these condemned and damned people - a mediaeval torture chamber is too good for these people and the sooner they are removed from society the sooner we can get back to tackling the real issues in the Niger Delta region.

At this time of good news for one family, I remember Madeleine McCann, hope she is safe and alive and pray that her parents can receive such good news - the finding and reuniting - as the Hills have had this weekend.

Other Related Blogs

Child in Niger Delta Kidnapping and Death Threat

Reasoning out the girl's kidnap

Reasoning out the girl's kidnap

Irrational vengefulness

I stopped over at the African Shop on my way home this evening when I ran into another patron who had a view of the 3-year old girl's kidnapping in Port Harcourt, Nigeria I could not countenance.

As far as I am concerned, there is nothing that can justify the kidnapping of a child no matter how aggrieved you might be.

His view was that there might be mitigating factors that we do not know of that would have lead to the girl's kidnapping and what we all should be wary of, is situations where we cause offence to others leading the offended to react or seek revenge in an extremely irrational way.

He went on to say that if he was one of the people apprehended at the Grand Café and summarily deported as some were; any Caucasian he meets back in Nigeria would definitely bear the wrath of the actions in Amsterdam to their harm. That is definitely irrational.

I then said, if ever this kidnapping issue gets resolved in some amicable way, would the kidnappers be able to present their case in court to justify the kidnapping of the girl? I doubt it.

Prevent through restraint

But our man was more concerned with the mantra - "prevention is better than the cure" or later "to obey is better than sacrifice" - now what is preventable is probably preventable, but how do you prevent a situation where a deal, a business, an agreement or even indifference leads to your child being kidnapped violently at gunpoint?

I was exasperated and perplexed; I want to believe I live in a better world than one that accommodates that kind of view.

For instance, the same analogy could be extended to say, after I was beaten up by three drunken Moroccan guys, I get a gun and shoot any Moroccan in sight - No; the human race has really come a long way from that kind of unpersuadable and intemperate attitude.

Accepting the unacceptable

Unfortunately, there are some who would welcome that view as trying to see beyond the prevailing circumstances to understand the motivation for such actions - I see this in one of two shades, black or white.

Nothing and nothing ever can justify the kidnapping of a 3-year old at gun point - not in a jungle where cannibals and savages thrive, not in highly civilized societies and not in the Niger Delta region where criminals rule as laws unto themselves answerable to no formal authority.

We parted ways agreeing to disagree - I cannot convince myself more of the fact that this thinking must not be tolerated and for all the prevention and sacrifice; if you have been so aggrieved to the point of uncontrollable anger and seething for pay back, revenge and having the biggest last laugh - the Good Book says - Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord.

What you plan to do would probably be criminal and the law would not be sympathetic to the wrongs you feel you have suffered. How did I get embroiled in such a conversation?