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From Aloysius Attah, Onitsha
Last Sunday night’s attack on the convoy of Ifeanyi Ubah, the senator representing Anambra South in the National Assembly, has unsettled the political landscape of Anambra State and indeed, the South East, barely five months to next year’s general elections.
The bloody attack has further heightened apprehension and fear in the region that has been under the clutches of criminals who have been unleashing orgies of insecurity there. None of the five states of the zone is excluded in the mindless kidnappings and killings in the past one year.
No fewer than ten persons, including security agents and aides of the senator died in the unfortunate incident which has sent shock waves across the country.
Prelude to the November 6, 2021, governorship election in Anambra State, the state came literally under the siege of those now referred to as ‘unknown gunmen’ who unleashed violence in different parts of the state, leaving in their trail, tales of tears, blood and sorrow.
The gun-wielding, non-state actors nearly truncated the governorship election arrangements, having created an atmosphere of fear among the citizens, killing and maiming people randomly.
Economic activities have continued to suffer in the state as the actors also ensured that the Monday sit-at-home order earlier implemented but later cancelled by the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB), was sustained against the will of the majority in the state.
But at his inauguration on March 17, 2022, Governor Chukwuma Soludo, after appealing to the conscience of the non-state actors to drop their guns and embrace peace and love, later went full blast and launched an onslaught on the criminal elements. The state-backed joint security task force went after the gunmen in their hideouts and camps across many communities, mostly in Anambra South senatorial zone.
The state was already regaining its full groove as the bulk of the criminal gangs had been decimated until the unfortunate incident that happened last Sunday.
Expectedly, various theories have trailed the event. Media Assistant to Ubah, Ogbonna Kamen, a survivor of the attack, told Saturday Sun that the incident was not the random activity of the ‘unknown gunmen’ but a carefully planned assassination attempt.
Kamen recalled how those in the convoy met face to face with death that night and eventually lost some trusted, long serving aides of the senator and other dedicated security agents. He said retiring to Awka after an eventful day when the incident happened.
“To me, this was a pure assassination attempt. The firepower of the gunmen was so heavy and the very point that they unleashed the heat was not a random stuff. The attackers chose the place, Nkwo Enugu-Ukwu Junction because of their exit point. From that junction, take left and you are on the expressway. They came in principally for the action and I think they might have monitored our movement for some days because for the past three days, we normally took the route to retire to Awka after our day’s activities. It was on the fourth day that they attacked us there,” he said.
Kamen said the attack cannot be termed a mistake because when the dust settled, they saw a gunshot mark directly on the roof of the senator’s bullet proof car above the driver’s head which pointedly meant that a sniper might have been hired for the killer shot in the operation.
Giving further details, the senator’s aide said some of those who fired gunshots wore what looked like police uniform and that was the reason Ubah’s security details were taken unawares during the attack.
“On approaching that junction, we saw some supposed policemen standing. One was clearing the road; two were standing by. Then suddenly, the one who pretended to be clearing the road started firing at the pilot vehicle. At that instant, other armed men surfaced immediately at the scene and everywhere was enveloped in a staccato of gunfire. The gunman firing at the bulletproof car wore a red skirt and he fired consistently on target.
“Pandemonium set in immediately because at that point that the pilot car was hit with bullets, the driver pulled the brake and the follow up car jammed it while our own vehicle- the bullet proof got very close to jamming that one while the one behind us jammed us too but the driver of the senator’s bullet proof car was very clever as he pulled back, pressing the car behind and also pushing the car in front before pulling out of the scene to escape. But during all the back and forth movements, the car was under continuous bombardment by the gunmen. It was a terrible experience,” he narrated.
Kamen said though the senator’s office was not preempting police investigations into the incident, the attackers might have laid in wait for the senator’s convoy to get to the Nkwo Enugu-Ukwu axis for them to strike. He also noted that they might have been working on information.
He said the kind of shots fired at the scene of the attack was above the firepower of the so-called ‘unknown gunmen’ because sophisticated weapons were used in the attack thereby tilting towards the conviction that the attackers were hired assassins.
No, it was not assassination-Community leader
Among those killed in the attack was the Onowu (Traditional Prime Minister) of Nri town in Anaocha Local Government Area of the state, Chief Onyeka Nnoli. Another perspective to the attack had it that Nnoli, a Lagos-based businessman and clearing agent was actually the one being trailed by the gunmen before Senator Ubah’s convoy ran into them and all hell was let loose.
This position was alluded to by former President General of Enugwu-Ukwu Community Development Union (ECDU), Comrade Bonny Nkwuaku. Nkwuaku told Saturday Sun that he expected that the police would have given a concise update on their preliminary investigations into the incident by now. He, however, noted that some witnesses at the scene confirmed that the gunmen crossed and blocked Nnoli’s vehicle at the Nkwo Enugwu-Ukwu market intersection, and took him captive, ostensibly for a ransom.
“It’s a pity that people are making this look like it was an assassination attempt on the distinguished senator. But the eyewitnesses told us that they saw the gunmen drive from the Agukwu Nri side, that it was the man from Agukwu that was their actual target.
“That immediately the man dropped someone at the junction in his black SUV and wanted to turn, they double-crossed him firing shots and were forcing him into their own vehicle when Ifeanyi Ubah’s convoy ran into them and shootings escalated.
“Instantly, the spot became a war-like zone as bullets flew from virtually all directions but I think we should wait for police to come out with their investigations before any conclusion,” he said.
How cameraman miraculously survived
The senator’s media aide, Kanem, in a treatise captioned: “The beauty of walking with God,” narrated how more people, including Ubah would have died in the attack if not for the mighty hand of God who showed His miraculous powers. Kamen recalled that the team’s last event for the day before the attack was an Anglican synod event in Ozubulu where the senator sang joyful praises to God. He said that viewing the whole scenario now in retrospect, including two revelations from sources before the day, warning the senator to be more prayerful and cautious to avert a looming danger, one could now see clearly see that God’s hand was made manifest in the whole incident.
“Another miracle that clearly shows that God moves in mysterious ways is the story of Toochukwu Justice, our cameraman who was lying trapped on the floor of the third row seat of the bullet riddled Toyota Sequia SUV tearfully clutching and praying his Rosary while the shooters kept firing at the two colleagues of mine that were also lying on the second row, clearly oblivious of his presence directly behind them.
“When he heard the voices of the villagers and climbed out from the seat behind the two of our already killed colleagues, people started screaming in disbelief. How he wasn’t hit by stray bullet despite the back windscreen and boot of the vehicle being shattered with gunshots is a marvel and clear indication that our God indeed works in mysterious ways,” he disclosed.
Outrage over attack
President Muhammadu Buhari and several prominent Nigerians have spoken in condemnation of the attack on Senator Ubah and the armed shooting in Anambra State.
Buhari in a statement by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu described the act as “barbaric and condemnable.” Praying for the early return of peace and security in Anambra and all other areas, the President said the government was deeply concerned about the activities of armed groups in the region and in other parts of the country.
“We are closely monitoring the situation and waiting for further details on the response to the worrisome situation by the police, the military and other security agencies. The nation has lost four brave policemen and other aides of the senator.
“On behalf of the government and the people. I pay homage to these security men and the aides who were brutally murdered. Our thoughts and prayers are with their families at this difficult time,” Buhari stated.
Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar and his Labour Party counterpart, Peter Obi also condemned the act.
Others including the senator representing Anambra Central, Uche Ekwunife; the member representing Nnewi South, Nnewi South, Ekwusigo Federal Constituency, Chris Azubogu and former governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Senator Andy Uba, all called on Soludo to swiftly ensure the arrest of the culprits. Anambra State Governor in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Christian Aburime, also decried the attack, assuring that the state would give security agencies all the support to ensure that the place was totally rid of criminals.
Soludo said all security agencies were already on full alert to fish out the perpetrators of the heinous attack, saying they would be made to face the full wrath of the law. Even as police investigations were ongoing, speculations have been the game while anxiety gripped the people especially politicians ahead of the general elections. Many commentators said the fear of insecurity was the beginning of wisdom as the campaigns kick-off in a matter of days.
Meanwhile, Enugwu-Ukwu community where the attack happened has declared three days of fasting and prayers.
Clem Nwafor, Deputy Traditional Prime Minister, who spoke on behalf of Eze Enugwu-Ukwu na Igwe Umunri, condoled with families of those affected in the attack. He said the community has intensified efforts in prayers for divine intervention even as he called on the security agencies and government to get to the root of the matter and bring the perpetrators to book.
Activist and community leader, Ebelechukwu Ngini cautioned against politicisation of the attack while Police Public Relations Officer in the state, Ikenga Tochi said further developments on the incident would be released to the public in due course.
