A chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Joe Igbokwe, on Saturday bemoaned the activities of some hoodlums commonly called ‘Unknown Gunmen’ on social media.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that violence has flared in the southeastern states since last year, killing at least 150 police or members of the security services, according to the police. About 30 police stations and election commission offices have been attacked, local media have reported.
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), an outlawed movement seeking independence for ethnic Igbo of the region, and its armed wing Eastern Security Network (ESN) have been blamed for the violence, but IPOB has denied the charges.
For Igbokwe who is a victim of the current violence, it is disheartening that criminals continue to destroy properties and kill innocent citizens, yet some separatist apologists are hailing them as “Umu Chineke”.
“See the IPOB, ESN, UGM criminals, murderers, arsonists, kidnappers, armed robbers, looters, rapists , plunderers, thieves, killers , extortionists etc our people call Umu Chineke( Children of God) and Umu Oma( Good Children) in the South East. The tragedy these soulless entities left in the South in the past two years will take decades to heal,” Igbokwe wrote on his known Facebook page.
“I do not know how we got to this sorry pass, this level of depravity, criminality, and audacity. I do not know how a people who claim to be wise got to terrible and pathetic mess. I am stunned beyond beyond comprehension. I am in deep pains. I am troubled. Iam mourning. I am weeping for Igboland. But we have a duty to do in order to reclaim Igboland. Nobody has a monopoly of violence. Force respects force. Dialogue must be on an equal basis. You speak and I speak. You pull AK 47 I pull mine . We will get there very soon if common sense fails even though commonsense is not common.”
