By Cajetan Mmuta, Awka
Hundreds of angry youths drawn from towns and communities in Anambra State yesterday took the war to the forests and camps harbouring members of the Eastern Security Network (ESN) and other criminal elements who indulge in violent killings, kidnappings, and other terrorist acts.
The youths vowed to take their fate into their hands to flush out the hoodlums and restore peace and order in parts of the state.
They said they took it as a task to fish out those troubling the state.
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It was learnt that the youths stormed the camps of suspected unknown gunmen/Eastern Security Network (ESN) in parts of Ichi in Ekwusigo local government area; Oba and Ojoto communities in Idemili South local government areas where they burnt down houses and shrines belonging to those responsible for all the violent killings, kidnappings, and other criminalities.
Some of the suspected gunmen were said to have been arrested by the angry youths from their shrines and their properties set ablaze in the process.
They vowed that there was no hiding place for criminals in the state.
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According to them, a hashtag campaign was being launched to flush the hoodlums out of the state with the title “#TakeBackOurStateFromCriminal, #ReclaimBackOurState”
A concerned citizen of the state, Okechukwu Onyia, who wrote on his Facebook page said, “My plea is to hand them over to law enforcement agencies. Let’s not engage in jungle justice. But if the youths could judge them by the way they kill and destroy people’s businesses, they will be lynched immediately. But please let’s apply civility in this fight.”
When contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) DSP Ikenga Tochukwu, yesterday said the command was studying the trending video on social media about the action taken by the youths to ascertain the veracity of such development.
Ikenga disclosed that operatives of the command have been deployed to the areas and investigations have commenced getting to the root of the matter.
“The command is studying the trending social media reports and we have sent our operatives to the communities and investigations are ongoing on the matter,” he said.
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Recall that in the past three weeks, four local government areas had been attacked including Aguata local government headquarters where properties worth several millions of naira were burnt while some persons were also gruesomely shot dead.
The state Governor, Prof Charles Soludo, had granted amnesty to all the IPOB/ESN members and other agitators as well as criminal elements living in the forests and camps with a plea for them to come out, and lay down their arms and embrace peace.
Soludo also through the collaboration of traditional rulers drawn from all the states in the Southeast geo-political zone, security heads, and clergies in Anambra State, set up a peace, truth, and justice commission whose membership is drawn from eminent personalities from the states of the zone.
A state-wide prayer session was held last Monday in churches and worship centres for peace and progress which is a step to end the weekly Monday sit-at-home that has continued to hurt businesses and other socio-economic activities.
