By Gideon Njoku
The residents of Oyigbo, Rivers State, are heaving a sigh of relief, no matter how small.
Obviously under pressure, the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has relaxed the 24/7 curfew he imposed on the Community.
An angry Wike, in the wake of the #EndSARS protest, had imposed the curfew following the violence that accompanied it. This stemmed from the killing of six soldiers, at least two Police officers, and the razing of all Police stations and Courts in Oyigbo, allegedly, according to both Governor Wike and Mr Mukan, Commissioner of Police, Rivers State, hold members of the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, responsible for the mayhem.
Wike had subsequently banned IPOB and its activities in the State, and placed a N50m bounty on the head of its alleged leader in Oyigbo. He, also, asked Security Agents to fish out the alleged IPOB members who wreaked havoc in the state, accusing the organisation of trying to over-run the state.
For one, he accused IPOB of using Oyigbo as a launching pad; of trying to rename a Local Government in the State; and of hoisting the Biafran flag in a public school in Komkom Community.
IPOB denies the allegation of the killings and destructions, and arson. But soldiers have since taken over the Community in search of the IPOB members who allegedly killed, especially, six of their colleagues.
Residents of Oyigbo allege that the soldiers have since embarked on a spree of mass arrests and the killing of many youths, without any proof of their membership of IPOB.
To compound the Oyigbo problem, the 24/7 curfew has denied the people of any means of livelihood. Hunger reign, and the health of many has either been affected or worsened, since all shops, pharmacies and hospitals are closed.
Wike has been accused by many people of not only inviting soldiers to arrest and kill Igbo youths in Oyigbo, but to starve people to death, no thanks to the curfew.
However, the Governor vehemently denies the allegations, and accuses his political enemies of the allegations against him. He said he does not control the deployment of soldiers, but admitted that they were after IPOB members who allegedly killed and maimed and destroyed.
Already, the Police have arrested four IPOB members who they accuse of being part of those who razed the Afam Police station, and killed the the Divisional Crime Officer.
Reports from PH indicate that following several appeals and outrage which greeted the 24/7 curfew in the past, almost, two weeks, the Governor has relaxed it for some hours to enable the people restock.
However, the public outcry over Oyigbo continues. And not a few people are asking for an Inquiry to look into what caused it, and the aftermath.
