One person has been killed and four others injured when gunmen suspected to be political thugs attacked some residents in Ebonyi State in south-east Nigeria.
The incident happened on Sunday in Ekoli Edda, a community in Edda Local Government Area of the state.
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Residents of the community told PREMIUM TIMES that houses and other properties were also destroyed in the attack.
This newspaper understands that two rival political groups have been engaged in supremacy battle in the community in recent times.
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Several people have been killed and properties worth millions of naira destroyed in the battle.
How the latest attack happened
Residents told PREMIUM TIMES that the suspected thugs targeted supporters of a former chairperson of Edda Local Government Area of the state, Chima Eni
The thugs who carried out the attacks were said to be over 10 in number.
A member of the community, Chima Oko, said the gunmen first attacked the community around 10 a.m. and killed a resident, Okoro Obasi of Ndibom village in the community.
The victim’s body was later taken to the mortuary.
Mr Oko alleged that the children of the deceased and their friends were also attacked and machete cuts inflicted on them.
He said the thugs later ambushed and attacked Mr Eni at Mgborokuma, an area in the community.
Mr Eni was said to be returning from an inspection of the destroyed houses when he was ambushed.
Ndem Nnachi, another witness, narrated how the attack happened.
“We were at Mgborokuma when ‘Catcham boys’ came there and started shooting at us. Three people nearly lost their lives.
“They have been attacking us since our members returned from prison following the amnesty granted them by our dear governor, Francis Nwifuru,” Mr Nnachi said.
“Our people are not happy, and we are waiting to see how the government will handle this sad incident.”
The resident warned that the community might rise up in self-defence if nothing was done immediately to address the situation.
Ex-council chairperson speaks
Mr Eni confirmed the attack and killing, adding that the victim was his relative.
“I was called from Ekoli-Edda this morning (Sunday) and informed about the death of my uncle, Mr Okoro Obasi of Ndibom village, Ekoli-Edda.
“The deceased was attacked by thugs known in the village as Catcham boys. The deceased sustained internal bleeding and died this morning at his house.
“The offence he committed against his killers is that his son was involved in the amnesty programme, and the man is related to me,” he said.
The former council chairperson said upon receiving the report, he quickly left Abakaliki for his Ekoli-Edda Community to de-escalate the tension already brewing in the area.
“After depositing the body (in a morgue), I inspected damages done to people’s property and calmed them down. I went to inspect a house set ablaze by the thugs, and while coming out from the scene, they launched a shooting attack on me and people with me.
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“They shattered the windows of my Prado SUV and injured three persons in the process, by name: Chinoyerem Ikwor, Uka Anya Egwu and Udu Uche. They sustained varying degrees of bullet wounds and are receiving treatments in the hospital as we speak,” he said.
Mr Eni asked security agencies to arrest all those involved in the attacks in the interest of law and order.
“If the community rises up in self-defence, the community will still be tagged as violent and heartless. They have been provoking them since they were granted amnesty by His Excellency, the governor, in March.
“And those my supporters have been enduring a lot from them. There is a limit to the test of their patience, and I want the government and the whole world to know this before the people run out of patience,” he said.
Police speak
The police spokesperson in Ebonyi State, Joshua Ukandu, has confirmed the incident.
Mr Ukandu, a deputy superintendent of police, said he does not have details of the incident.
The spokesperson, however, confirmed that the police command deployed its operatives to restore normalcy in the area.
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