No fewer than 10 persons have been killed in Ukwuagba, Ngbo, Ohaukwu Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.
The incident happened on Saturday, even as four persons also got missing on their way to a burial ceremony in Effium community in the local government area.
The chairman, Ohaukwu Local Government Area, Barr. Clement Odah, while briefing the state’s deputy governor, Barr. Eric Kelechi Igwe during a stakeholders meeting over the incident at the council area, told the deputy governor that the four missing persons were on their way to a burial ceremony in Effium, on August 27, when they got missing.
According to him, they were in a party of 30 persons travelling for the burial ceremony when they had an accident at Rest House junction, on the Enugu-Abakaliki Expressway.
Odah noted that the men were conveyed to Ezzamgbo General Hospital for treatment before four of them who were in a hurry to get to the burial ceremony left without the others.
He said that when the other 26 left for the burial ceremony, they noticed a road block at Agbaesa in Mgbo where some youths tried to intercept them but they managed to bulldoze their way through the road block to get to the burial ceremony.
He added that the men have not been able to trace some of them.
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Odah, however, frowned that while the council and stakeholders were trying to investigate the matter in conjunction with security agencies, Ukwuagba community in Mgbo was also attacked on Saturday night.
“Yesterday, Ukwagba community in Mgbo was attacked and nine persons were killed and later another person died. They were massacred in their homes.
“There is a situation we were trying to manage; some persons who were our Ezza brothers were going to a burial ceremony at Effuim from Enugu State. They were 30 persons in number and on getting to Rest House in Ishielu LGA, they were involved in an accident and they were taken to Ezzimgbo General Hospital.
“While they were there, four persons left them and moved ahead of the 30 to attend the burial ceremony leaving the other 26 behind. Then when the other 26 reached the venue of the burial ceremony, they couldn’t find the other four persons who left them at the hospital,” he stated.
The deputy governor, however, frowned on the fresh killings and threatened to arrest and imprison anyone in the area found complicit in the matter.
He gave the stakeholders 24 hours to produce the killers of the nine persons and the missing four others in the area.
“I am very embittered in my spirit. The first civilian governor of this state and the grandfather of Ebonyi State is from this local government area. And right inside here, I can see about seven past local government area chairmen.
“It is a shame on all of you. We did not come to paint pictures or clap for you. Do not deceive the government. It is pure falsehood, you know what is happening to yourselves, you are killing yourselves.
“You should know people who are causing trouble in your domain. The traditional rulers should be able to fish out people who are causing trouble. We have not come with the message of comfort but to sound a note of warning.
“We are tired of hearing sentimental stories of what is happening in Ohaukwu. What we want is action. Some people wrote an undertaking to the government. Most of you are here and for those who are not part of it, we will make you part of it. Because they have agreed that if anything as tragic as this happens in Ohaukwu again, we should hold them responsible.
“All the people that signed that undertaking must produce those people that were killed and those that waylaid the people going to Effium. You can set up a vigilante to do that. Enough is enough. We must stop playing games”, he said.