“Killings Of Security Personnel, Calculated Plan To Make Abia Ungovernable” – Group Alleges

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

A Civil Society Group, Coalition of Southeast  Youth Leaders, COSEYL,  has raised alarm over alleged  orchestrated moves by some forces to make Abia State ungovernable.

This is even as it condemned, in strongest terms, Friday’s unprovoked attacks on a police formation in Aba, which resulted in the gruesome killing of  two police personnel and the destruction of several properties of innocent people.

The Source reports that some unidentified gunmen late Friday, June 28, 2024,  unleashed an attack on a Police Station in the Ogbor-Hill area of the commercial nerve centre of Aba,  Abia State.

Eye witness account said the gunmen who operated in  a Toyota Sienna vehicle, on arrival, began to shoot indiscriminately at the Police Personnel on duty, leaving them with little or no option to defend themselves.

Some market women and others selling vegetables and other food items close to the Police formation were forced to abandon their wares and scampered to safety.

Although,there were  no civilian casualties as at  the time of reporting , the wares of the traders littered the roads, along side other individual properties .

Police authorities have not reacted at the time of reporting. The Spokesperson for the Abia Police Command,  Chilaka Maureen, ASP,  when contacted by this Magazine, said the Police will make available its statement as soon as it is ready.

But the COSEYL, in a statement issued by its President General, Goodluck Ibem, on Saturday,June 29, while describing the attack as unfortunate heartbreaking, barbaric and senseless ,wondered how anybody and/or group of persons will allow themselves to be used in perpetrating such a heinous crime against humanity .

“These spates of attacks and killings of security agents in Abia state are well calculated attempts by some criminal actors to make the State and other Southeast States ungovernable.

“But we are assuring them that their evil plans are dead on arrival. Abia  is a peaceful State, with hardworking residents ,and no amount of blackmail, subterfuge and intimidation will distract them.

“We are also commiserating with the Nigeria Police Force over this unfortunate incident.

“We call on security agencies to work assiduously to ensure that the perpetrators of this dastardly act are apprehended and brought to book.

“We stand solidly behind the Abia state Governor Dr Alex Otti, in his determined efforts to reposition the state . Abia will be great again,no matter the evil plans of enemies” the COSEYL stated

The Police  killings comes on the heels of the yet-to-be resolved murder of five Nigerian soldiers on a peace keeping mission on May 30 2024.

Some yet-to-be identified gunmen had ambushed the soldiers at a military check point at Obikabia junction close to the Ogbor-Hill area of Aba ,razed their operational vehicles ,and mauled down five soldiers, three of them,  indigenes of Abia State.