•Aku, Ikolo leaders trade tackles over attack on Ikolo
From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
Life for dwellers of Ikolo community in Igbo-Etiti Local Government, Enugu State, took a turn for the worse on Monday, November 27, 2023, when yet-to-be-identified hoodlums invaded the community in the dead of the night, leaving in their trail, tales of sorrow.
The vestiges of destruction were heartrending when Daily Sun visited the area. Two persons were still missing from the attack, while others recuperating in hospital. In addition, 17 houses with property worth millions of naira including certificates were burnt in the mindless attack alleged to have happened around 2:00am.
Ikolo leaders who took our reporter to the scene of the carnage accused their neighbours of Aku community of masterminding and perpetrating the attack. They alleged that such attack had become a routine following the age-long land dispute between them.
However, addressing a press conference in Enugu two days later, leaders of Aku acknowledged that there had been boundary-related friction between the two communities, but, insisted that they had no hand in the invasion of Ikolo.
Instead, they accused Ikolo people of being the aggressors, alleging that it was mercenaries hired by Ikolo people to destroy Aku houses in the past that turned around to burn their (Ikolo) houses over alleged abandonment.
Hours after the attack, Ikolo women trooped out and protested against the act. The women reeled in pain and rage as they waved green leaves, displaying placards with various inscriptions such as; “Is Aku more than Enugu State Government? Enugu Government save Ikolo from Ogbons Idike,” “Save our soul, our houses are burnt by Ogbons Idike;” Save us from Aku people.”
Their spokesperson, Florence Ekwueme, said many women in the community have been rendered homeless by the invaders, appealing to government to urgently intervene to save the community: “Why we are crying is that we were sleeping in our houses around 1am and 2am and we were hearing gunshots. When we woke up, we noticed that our buildings had been burnt down. We are calling on the government to come to our people.
“We are a small community, we don’t have people. They always attack us, beat up our youths and lock them up at the Police station. The certificates of our graduates have been burnt. We are calling on the state government to help us.”
Traditional ruler of Ikolo, Gabriel Ezugwu, said the communities have been locked in a protracted land dispute, which the government has failed to resolve. He said that every November, his people experienced severe attacks from their Aku neighbours:
“This had been happening before. It has been a constant attack. Every November, they come to attack us. It is sad that all these things are happening but the police have not made any arrests.
“Instead of arresting Aku people who are the aggressors, they will turn around and arrest our people. I called the neighbourhood watch and they were able to repel the attack. But before then, 12 houses were burnt down, while five houses were completely destroyed.
“This is a land issue. I have called the boundary committee to come and share the land but they have not done that. We have not lost any life but Ikolo people are suffering. They should come and share this land so that we will have peace.”
A victim, Chukwuma Ugwuanyi, who was still nursing injuries from an earlier attack said all his property had been raised by the attackers: “I was attacked by Aku people some days ago and my head was cut in five places. I was where I was receiving treatment when I got a call around 2am that my house was on fire.
“When I came here with my wife, I saw that my entire building had been burnt down. All my property is gone. Nothing is left. We could not remove anything because nobody was at home. I can’t quantify what I have lost.”
Ibe Anastasia, who was in tears told Daily Sun that she has lost hope as all she had laboured to save was burnt in one night: “We were hearing their voices from our hideout. We were sure from their dialect that they were from Aku.
“They made sure that everything was burnt down including three motorcycles and 10 drums of palm oil. Even the certificates of all my children were destroyed completely. Where do I start from again? I am finished.”
Another victim, Collins Ibe, said his great grandmother was missing, adding that his entire certificates including the NYSC discharge certificate were burnt during the attack.
Eze Grace, a widow with five children, said she was yet to find her last child after the attack. She added that her house together with her means of livelihood were burnt to ashes:
“They were banging on my door. Immediately I opened the door to see what was going on, one huge man slapped me in the face and I fell on the floor. You can see the mark on my face.
“I crawled to safety with my children. I can’t find the last one, Amogechukwu. I don’t know where she is till now. I have been struggling to take care of them since their father died.”
But, Aku community accused Ikolo community of misleading the public.
According to Chairman, Aku General Assembly (AGA), Chief Innocent Diyoke, Ikolo people migrated from Ikolo-Affa in the present Udi Local Government and were originally given some parcel of land where they settled:
“But these settlers have continued to drag parcels of land beyond where Aku community graciously gave to them.” In fact, he accused Ikolo people of constantly engaging in vicious attacks on Aku people in the past.
He alleged that this led to several clashes between the two communities including a recent attack on a prominent Aku politician who had been reportedly singled out as the sponsor of the attack against Ikolo people:
“Let me use this opportunity to state categorically that the allegation that Aku people through Ogbons Idike masterminded the attack on Ikolo people is in its entirety false. Aku people have no hand in the alleged attack against Ikolo people.
“Let me state emphatically that through all the years Ikolo people were unleashing terror on Aku community, our people have never for once engaged in any reprisal against Ikolo community because of our civil and law-abiding nature.”
Youth president, AGA, Joel Akerekwe, said after conducting a private investigation into what led to the attack, he discovered that the mercenaries who Ikolo people had reportedly hired to demolish buildings in Aku came back to hurt them.
He alleged that after the mercenaries were arrested by the police and abandoned by Ikolo people, they got angry: “So, after they were released, they decided to attack Ikolo for abandoning them in detention.”
Police spokesman, Daniel Ndukwe, confirmed the attack but urged the two communities to be law-abiding and peaceful. He said police were still investigating what led to the attack and those behind it.