Nigerian Traditional Rulers summoned to apologize for slave trade

A human right activist organization, Civil Right Congress has summoned the Traditional Rulers of Nigeria to apologies for their role in the act slave trade during the era of the colonial masters in the early 13th Century.

The poaching of the innocent and defenseless Africans, in the name of slavery started in the 13th century when Africans continent was rampaged and plundered by European and American slave raiders who forcefully snatched energetic men and women to work in plantations and factories.

Regrettably, most of the African traditional rulers participated by collaborating and colluding with the slave raiders (after a bribe of firearms or gun powers) for the enslavement of their fellow Africans in Nigeria.

While speaking with the President of Civil Right Congress, Comrade Shehu Sani, whom made it known that traditional rulers acquired an inglorious reputation of engaging in the act of slave trade, helping to systematically raid the and kidnap in the neighboring weak and defenseless communities or villages and then trading them off with European, American along with other collaborators.

“During the era of slave trade in Nigeria, characterized by brutality, cruelty, and an untold human sufferings inflicted upon innocent and helpless Nigerians and other Africans would have not been possible without the aid of the traditional ruler.

“The impact of slavery led to a permanent demographic changes, irreversible and painful displacement, and perpetual dislocation of closely bended families, which had lived for as long as evolution and that’s why we want the traditional rulers to admit their mistakes and apologize to Nigerians and Africa.”

The Human right activist organization has written a letter to the Chairman of Council of Traditional Rulers in Nigeria which was signed by Comrade Shehu Sani; demanding apologies for the fundamental injustice, cruelty, brutality and inhumanity of slavery and Jim Crow Laws which was indirectly or directly aided by them, also to recognize the transatlantic slavery as a crime against humanity.

The letter which stated that the act of slave trade has done a lot of harm to Africa, apart from slowing down social reforms and innovations in statecrafts in the kingdom of Africa. It equally contributed to the deculturalization and force foreign values and beliefs of Africans, promoted unending wars, chaos in African continent, and heightens sense of inferiority in Africans.

The page 3 of the letter also states that Africans cannot continue to blame the white man as the traditional rulers whom was meant to protect them  breached the trust of their people  and betrayed them for a bottle of vine or a gun power, the traditional rulers should also be held accountable.

“We cannot continue to blame white man (Slave Raiders) as Africans particularly the traditional rulers (as Chiefs, Obas, Obis, emirs, Ezes or Kings) are not blameless in their involvement in slave trade.”

While concluding, Sani called on the Sultan of Sokoto, Alh. Abubarkar Sa’ad to without delay or hesitation apologize to the families of the descendants of victims of slave trade on behalf of Northern Nigeria for the roles of his fore bearers in the trans on Sahara slave trade, also called on the Oba of Benin, Obong of Calabar, Ooni of Ife and Oba of Lagos to without delay and hesitation apologize.