*Enugu market attacked, Police operational vehicle burnt
*Nollywood's Osita Iheme's brother killed, Uruala main market set on fire
In what appears to be an effort to force residents of Enugu to obey the five day- sit-at-home order given by, Mr. Simon Ekpa, the self-acclaimed disciple of IPOB leader, gunmen on Saturday morning attacked and burnt a police patrol vehicle at the New Market area of Enugu metropolis.
An eyewitness who spoke to the Daily Post on conditions of anonymity disclosed that 2 persons were shot dead during the attack.
A viral video circulating online showed two yet-to-be-identified victims lying lifeless in front of the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, Parklane. Some others were shot at the New Market area, Daily Post said.
The gunmen numbering more than 10 arrived in the New Market area around 6 am probably to shut down the market but on sighting some police officers deployed there, they attacked the officers, setting the Police patrol vehicle ablaze.
Some traders who witnessed the incident recounted that the shooting forced traders who arrived early at the market for their daily business to run for safety, abandoning their goods.
According to SaharaReporters, an eyewitness, Mike Ezeh said, "I saw a group of boys around 6 am this morning shouting at traders coming to market to go home. They were shouting; don't you know there's sit-at-home? Why are you disobeying it?
"Shortly, I saw a police patrol vehicle coming, and immediately, they engaged them in a shootout. I left my goods and ran to safety. After the shooting stopped I came out and saw they had set ablaze the police patrol vehicle in front of the Colliery hospital," Ezeh said.
Police reaction
CP Ahmed Ammani
Meanwhile, the Police Commissioner, Enugu State Command Ahmed Ammani, in a statement on Saturday said
that normalcy had returned to the New Market area and Police operatives deployed there to hunt down the armed hoodlums, who caused the breach of public peace in the area.
He said that Area Commanders, Divisional Police Officers, and Commanders of all the Tactical/Operational Units have been ordered to ensure that they deploy maximally the intelligence and operational resources at their disposal.
The Command also directed officers to effectively patrol and fish out hooligans who may want to disturb public peace and security and disrupt the businesses and other activities of law-abiding citizens, under the guise of enforcing an illegal sit-at-home order.
The CP said that the Command is collaborating with other security agencies and law-abiding citizens to ensure that the lives and properties of the citizenry are protected against the undesirable activities of criminals who are determined to cause unnecessary destruction to fellow citizens.
Ejimakor's community attacked
Image:Vanguard
Similarly, yet-to-be-identified gunmen invaded the Uruala community in Ideato North Local Government Area of Imo State on Friday, attacking the villagers and setting their major market on fire.
Confirming the incident to Vanguard on Saturday, the Special Counsel to IPOB leader, Aloy Ejimakor, a native of Uruala noted that the criminals whose identity is unknown to him attacked his kinsmen and vandalized their properties.
He said, “Today (Friday), 9th December 2022, several armed men invaded my hometown, attacked my relatives, vandalized their properties, and set fire to our main market, five minutes away from my house.
“It’s a day that will forever live in infamy. I’m very upset; my people are very upset,"Ejimakor said.
Osita Iheme’s brother killed
Rampaging gunmen also on Friday killed Prince Iheme, the elder brother of a popular Nollywood actor, Osita Iheme
and wounded the state Commissioner for Solid Minerals, Martin Eke
during their attacks on Owerri, the Imo state capital, Mbaitoli, and other places.
An eyewitness who asked to be anonymous said, “This attack is politically motivated. We just finished at one campaign rally ground and were heading to Ubommiri. Our convoy was attacked at Amawuihe before Ubommiri.
“Prince Iheme (Osita Iheme’s brother) was riding in the same vehicle with the Commissioner for Solid Minerals. Prince Iheme who is Pawpaw’s elder brother was killed on the spot. The commissioner who was sworn in two weeks ago was cut badly. He has just been rushed to a hospital. They were driving in a Ford SUV. I pray he makes it.”
The gunmen who rode in Tundra operational vehicles shot sporadically forcing people to flee and commercial activities to abruptly close.
Residents of Oji, a neighboring community to Owerri were also attacked by gunmen dressed in black clothes who assaulted passers-by and security agents as well, Vanguard reports.
“They just killed a policeman now. They opened fire on them and were shouting, ‘There is a sit-at-home. We have asked you to go home. Stay indoors," a resident said.
Residents of the Southeast on Friday ignored the five-day-sit-at-home order issued by the Finland-based Simon Ekpa, following IPOB's declaration that it has nothing to do with the order for people to sit at home for five days.
IPOB also directed residents of the Southeast to go about their businesses without fear of molestation.
“Our people should be prepared and ready to confront any fool who dares to enforce such wicked sit-at-home. Moreso, ESN operatives and IPOB volunteers will be out on these dates to protect our people and the markets,” IPOB said in a statement.
Other pro-Biafra groups also tackled Simon Ekpa for issuing such an order.
The apex Igbo socio-cultural group in its reaction called on political and traditional leaders in Ohaukwu area and Ebonyi state where Ekpa comes from to rein him in.
"They should remind Ekpa that the world has never recorded a freedom fighter that faces the barrel of the gun inwards.
"Elementary logic questions the rationale for a young man to wake up and begin to suffocate the very people he claims to protect.
"When the Igbo are undergoing excruciating hardship arising from orchestrated injustice, a young man or rather a self-styled hero will be busy crippling the Igbo economy thereby adding salt to injury,” Ohanaeze said.
Crime
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