“If a lady is not putting on any undies and she is just wearing a skirt, anybody can access her anywhere…”
Paul Osuyi, Delta
When the news broke on the social media that many young ladies in Delta State had taken to going out without wearing their undies, it caused quite a stir and trended on many online platforms.
The ploy was to outwit the Yahoo-Plus boys, who had suddenly developed ‘crazy’ love for undies worn by ladies, which they attempted to steal after having intimacy sessions with them. In some instances, the ladies were simply accosted on the road at gunpoint and ordered to pull off and hand over their undies, which the Yahoo-Plus hoodlums turned around to use for rituals, to bolster their fraudulent Internet activities.
Failed magic
In the wake of this development, Sunday Sun spoke with a number of ladies in Delta State, to share their views.
Only ‘runs’ girls fall into the hands of Yahoo Yahoo men –Doris Amarachi Anumkwo
I don’t think it is fear on the part of the ladies not to wear pants because there are some ladies who do not wear pants naturally. Some are just scared because of recent happenings in the society, especially runs girls. Not putting on pant does not expose anybody to rape because if you don’t put on pant, nobody will know. How do you know a girl that is not wearing pants when they put on trousers and skirts? You can even wear tights without pants. If a man wants to rape a woman, even if she is putting on pant or not, if he is stronger, he will have his way. For me, it is necessary for a lady to wear pants, but it is not compulsory that it must be undies; the person could wear tights. The issue is actually complicated for me. My advice is that it is better for a girl to be on her own, work on her own. Some girls like flashy things, they want guys that buy them flashy things, and when they are after those material things, they will fall into the hands of the wrong guys – the Yahoo, Yahoo guys. So, it is better to work and earn money that will sustain you till you are married. It is not good for a girl to be materialistic.
Ladies that are usually caught for rituals are the greedy ones –Amalum Chidinma Edith
I heard G-Boys are now using charms to catch victims mostly females, either for power or to have more money. I heard they are collecting pants, but I have not seen any lady who has not been wearing pants because of this issue. I believe what they are hunting for is used pants that have not been washed, that is what they use for rituals because of the discharge. But a pant that has been washed and dried, I don’t think it will work if it is used for rituals. Not wearing pants has some implications because as a lady you need to cover yourself, particularly in that sensitive region, which is open to infection and can contact anything. So, a lady needs to put on pants. And I have not seen anyone that stopped putting on pants because of the activities of Y-Boys, instead you should stop keeping late nights. Whether pant or no pant, rape can still take place. In own opinion, it is the infection aspect of not putting on pants that has more implication for a lady. Change is within, I can advise, but you may not take the advice. Ladies should not stop putting on pants, but they should be careful and should not be greedy. Ladies that usually fall for rituals are those that are greedy. As you want more, they will use you to get more. You should watch how you move around.
We are really scared to go out with guys because you don’t know who is who –Evelyn Olivier
From the things that have been going on so far I feel the reason they call them Yahoo Boys is because they have some diabolic aspect of what they do. And there is this rumour that has been going on that they now pick ladies’ pants and sell for a huge amount of money, which now poses a security risk for ladies. If you look around Delta State, especially Asaba, we just feel as ladies that most of the guys are Yahoo guys. And then you ask who will you go out with? It is unsafe to go out. You are not sure of who to go out with and when to go out. So, it has a huge effect on our security mostly. I think generally, ladies should be more careful with who they hang out with in order to avoid things like this. We also heard that ladies are asked to surrender their pants at gunpoint, and that as such, some ladies no longer wear pants. For me, it is unhygienic for a lady not to put on her undies while walking around because the undies play a major role. Pants are normal things that we as ladies use to cover our bodies, especially the private part, it’s something you can’t just leave open, it needs to be covered. Besides, not putting on pants makes rape easy. If somebody stops you at gunpoint and wants to rape you, it is easily accessible, especially when the lady is just wearing skirt rather than a trouser. So, if a lady is not putting on any undies and she is just wearing a skirt, anybody can access her anywhere. She is even prone to more danger because some ladies are now like since they now do it at gunpoint, let them go without pants. If they now ask for your pants and you say you don’t have, they may have their way easily. Some ladies think that not putting on pants is the solution to what is going on, but it is not. I think being careful is the solution because we can’t say we know who is who. It is God that is protecting everybody. You can’t be too sure of anybody, anybody can change because of money. Even your brother who lives under the same roof with you can betray you. Someone could pay him to deliver your pants. So, not wearing pant is not the solution to what is going on, I think what we could do is just to pray, and then be more careful as ladies, to know what time we go out and whom we go out with.
Some ladies don’t like to wear pants because it disturbs them –Blessing Willie
Yahoo Boys and their activities is about influence because I see no reason a secondary school boy should have five cars and the parents say nothing about it. They feel so happy that a child still in secondary school has five cars, goes out to clubs, especially in Asaba, they see nothing wrong about it. Some ladies have become victims because they were looking for material things, especially female youth corps members, who normally go to places in town and want to feel among and live extravagant lifestyles, like furnishing their apartments. In the process of doing all that, the people are there to receive them, and give them what they want and have what they want from the victims. I don’t think that not wearing pants has any implication because right from time, some ladies don’t like to wear pants because it disturbs them. But I am not science-oriented, so, I would not know the implication of not putting on pants. I just feel that if you don’t put on pants you will always be free like fresh air. Also, I do not believe that not wearing pants will easily expose the lady to rape, except if she wore a gown or skirt. If she is not wearing pants, she will definitely be wearing tight. Then if you are wearing trousers, nobody can tell if you put on undies or not, except you tell someone. Generally, I want to advise that young ladies should be contented with what they have, and work to earn income to acquire whatever they want in life instead of looking for a quick means to get what they want.
Biologically, it’s not safe not to wear undies because the air is not very clean –Dew Wilson
It is actually very risky for ladies not to wear undies just because they are afraid that they might become victims of Yahoo boys. But be that as it may, I will encourage them to wear panties. Being a victim has to do with where you are at a particular time; we have to be very careful not to be out late, and even if we are out, we should be in company of people and not alone, especially when we know that the area is not safe. But again, I think that there might be other Yahoo boys, as it were, who could just be doing their own thing without getting involved in the ritual part of it. But you know when a thing is bad, it is generalized. Females should actually wear undies and be very careful. I also want the police to be on ground so that they do a check on them, they have their way of finding out. The security operatives, for instance, around the Okpanam axis, have been arresting the young boys all the time. If you are a lady and doing night shift in your place of work, it is not an excuse not to wear undies. It depends on the mindset, and one should be prayerful too. Biologically, it is not safe not to put on undies because the air is not very clean. So, it is advisable that they wear undies. They can have infections if they don’t put on undies. Panties are not just meant to cover you underneath; they also protect the private area. I think they should wear panties because of the health implications.