The "Moko Moko" (penis disappearance) by mere handshake story in Lagos years back, exposed many educated Lagosians including doctors, pharmacists, lawyers, teachers, etc. who believed in the farce to be very stupid. Even many policemen who should arrest the rumour mongers believed it.
Some indolent lousy broadcasters gave the lie a bite of truth on their programs broadcast thus entrenching the superstition in the people's psyche. In worship places, the prayer point was for the protection of "my penis" by men or "my husband's penis' by women. What a bad joke!
Major markets like Oshodi, Oyinbo and Idumota suddenly became a no-handshake zone. Walking with the hands firmly in their pockets became the trend by many men in order to avoid any unwanted handshake.
All it takes any demented soul or victim of this superstition to get his fellow citizen killed and roasted is just to shout: "Oko mi ti sa lo o" (my penis has disappeared o) after a handshake with a stranger or with an old friend not seen for long. Wahala wahala don come be that. With this call to kill shout, you can be sure that the volunteer anti-Moko Moko armed brigade of the senseless mob would sprout like gbure (water leaf) from everywhere to beat to stupor or kill and roast the alleged "Moko Moko" magical handshaker. For the prowling mob, like the recent Lagos governorship election xenophobic mob, it was needless to confirm the truth before pouncing on their victim.
One day I decided to engage some educated people at a rendezvous in Ikeja on this trending Moko Moko madness. It was shocking to see lawyers, teachers, civil servants believing such "magical organ harvesting" nonsensical story. I put simple questions to them which the most vocal of them couldn't answer with affirmation.
1. With our little knowledge of biology in secondary school, is it possible for a male sexual organ to disappear just like that physically or "spirituality" and the man will still be alive?
2. What fills up the cavity of the disappeared penis and which hospitals are handling any organ disappearance cases?
3. Have you witnessed or seen any man whose penis disappeared? If yes, what's his name, where it happened and what's the update on the case now?
4. Why is it that no single fake case of "organ harvesting was reported in Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Ikeja, and Allen Avenue but only Oshodi, Idumota, Oyingbo, and not reported in Abeokuta or Ibadan?
Alas! The gentlemen couldn't answer any of the questions beyond "it's spiritual," "dem say, dem say," "I saw the crowd beating a man accused of the crime in Oshodi," “Pray to God so that it won't happen to you". Laughable to think that educated people can saddle God with the business of penis protection.
There's really a thin line between a crowd and a mob of people. All mischievous people need to convert a crowd into a senseless mob is just a big lie like ethnic hatred, religious sentiment, fake news, or dangerous myth packaged as truth for the purpose of inciting or gaslighting the mob into a desired dangerous action because the mob has no sense or conscience and they will never ask the basic questions, Who said, When, Where?
Adeola Soetan