In Ebonyi, it was a bloody New Year
The Ezza/Ezillo inter-communal crises broke out way back in 2008, claiming over 100 lives at that time. However, a 2010 episode is said to have been controlled following the arrest of 15 top citizens of Ezza land, including Senator Julius Ucha, Senator Igwe Nwagu (now representing Ebonyi Central in the Senate). Later, the suspects were […]
The Ezza/Ezillo inter-communal crises broke out way back in 2008, claiming over 100 lives at that time. However, a 2010 episode is said to have been controlled following the arrest of 15 top citizens of Ezza land, including Senator Julius Ucha, Senator Igwe Nwagu (now representing Ebonyi Central in the Senate). Later, the suspects were released and when the people thought peace was achieved, violence broke out again.
In the early hours of December 2011, a band of armed hoodlums came in droves and invaded Ezzillo, unleashing a deadly attack. Although no official statement has been made on the exact figure, Weekly Trust learnt that the number of casualties have exceeded 50. Witness said over 40 armed bandits swooped in on Ezzillo, slaughtering a Divisional Crime Officer (DCO) in charge of Ezzillo Police Station, five police officers, and over 50 civilians.
Up till the time of writing this report, no arrest has been made by security agencies in connection with the incident. The question many people are still asking is: how come armed security men at 13 different check points in the area did nothing to arrest the invaders. A reliable police source revealed that more than 50 policemen stationed at different locations within the entire community disappeared in the evening of December 30, 2011 thereby creating a “free passage zone” for the armed men to unleash mayhem.
“It is unfortunate that five of our men including the DCO of Ezzillo Police Division who were not away died in the attack,” said the police source.
Witnesses say the assailants, armed with lethal weapons sneaked into Ezillo at about 5:30am and after blocking the Enugu-Abakaliki highway with a trailer, they began shooting while at the same time setting houses and shops on fire.
One of the survivors, Mr. Jacob Okoro said the attackers killed three persons, while he and others narrowly escaped. “We were sleeping when they stormed our place and suddenly started shooting, but some of us managed to escape miraculously,” he narrated.
With tears dropping down his cheeks, Thompson Okoro, Jacob’s relation, corroborated the account, saying his entire family was wiped. He alleged that the hoodlums seemed to have been sponsored by the people of Ezza since, “Only Ezillo people were targeted and killed.”
Another victim, Ikechukwu Eze, claimed that security men stationed in Ezillo assured them of protection. But according to Eze, throughout the shooting and burning, no policeman was seen around the targeted area. This was regardless of the fact that the attackers first struck at Afor-Ezzillo market where more than 10 mobile policemen were on duty at the check-point.
The ever-busy Enugu-Abakaliki highway was not just deserted, but the road stained with caked human blood and spent shells from AK 47 assault rifles. As a result, motorists sought alternative routes, while policemen manning check-points at Ebonyi-Enugu boundary had all disappeared. Weekly Trust learnt that, shortly after the tragedy, youths in Ishielu local council mobilized and took over the security of the major roads leading to communities of Igbo-Asaa as the security men had earlier deserted the numerous check points in case of a possible reprisal by militia of other nearby communities.
It was reliably learnt that the invaders first entered Ezillo through Oshegbe community and later escaped through Okpoto, in spite of the fact that security men were manning check points along the route. The invaders reportedly destroyed the only power transformer near the Ezillo police station.
Sources revealed that the Ezza people claim that their Ezillo counterparts had started farming on their land, the one in prolonged dispute, which was deserted after the state government ordered them to relocate to another place and allegedly provoked the crisis in the early hours of December 31, 2011. There is a subsisting court case on the recurring matter. Interestingly, Governor Elechi accused some traditional rulers and politicians from Ezza community of sponsoring the massacre when they paid him a condolence visit. But the governor wasted no time in telling his visitors off. The governor stated that several efforts were made to settle the rift yet those who found themselves in privileged positions still caused confusion and instigated their people.
The traditional ruler of Ezzillo, Eze Chima Onyibe, claimed that almost 800 people from his area were still missing after the early morning raid. He said he narrowly escaped death in the hands of the attackers. He added that his sons were not lucky while his home, cars and other belongings were destroyed. Chima pleaded that no native of Ebonyi State should be included in the investigating team that would look into the matter, while recalling how some policemen posted to the place in the past allegedly collaborated with the invaders.
The Civil Liberties Organisation, (CLO) Southeast Zone condemned the killing of innocent Nigerians in Ebonyi State and called on the Federal Government to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to book. The CLO questioned the rationale behind the wanton killing of innocent citizens and wondered whether the federal road which passes through Ebonyi was part of the land in dispute.
The CLO’s statement continued: “It should be noted that in the last crisis in 2010, over 100 lives were lost in a day, but nothing was done up till date to bring the perpetrators to book as no single suspect was arraigned.”
Meanwhile, Assistant Inspector General of Police, (AIG) Zone 9 Command, Saidu Daya, has hinted that a MOPOL post would be erected at Ezillo, to put a permanent stop to the attacks from suspected Ezza militants trying to renew the hostilities of the Ezza/Ezillo communal crisis. Currently, the Ebonyi side of Enugu-Abakaliki highway which is part of the “war theatre” is being policed inch-by-inch by heavily armed security men.