By Solomon Gwiyi:
Fellow concerned citizens, I write with heaviness in my heart, sorrow unquantifiable, grief unspoken and flowing tears in my eyes, as my LGA (the very food basket of Enugu State), once a tranquil, burgeoning and blooming agricultural hub of the coal city state, has now been brought to its knees with killings and paintings with human blood.
This is not only despicable and unimaginable, but heart-rending and tearful in the real sense of the word. It is rather inconceivable that our people now live in utmost fear, and as a result, have deserted their farmlands for fear of being killed by these marauding killers, who are roving the farmlands and villages of Uzo Uwani LGA, while snuffng away the lives of the peaceful but defenseless people of my council.
The events of these past weeks, where three young men: Emenike from Adani, Chijioke Anioke from Nkpunator-nkpologu and Owen P Star (Nickname) from Uvuru were cruelly and gruesomely murdered in their own ancestorial lands left much to be desired. I am aware there have been instances of kidnappings and other criminal activities across the local council in the past three weeks, especially along Uvuru-Ukpata road, Ukpabi-Adani road, Abbi-Nrobo road, among others.
These activities which have gone unchecked and unrestrained by the security operatives, have not only motivated the suspected Killer-headers to continue in their business of killings, destruction and spilling of blood of the innocent young and energetic rural dwellers of Uzo Uwani rural council, who until their deaths, were working relentlessly to eke-out their living.
I had struggled to restrain myself from writing or making comments on this pervading insecurity for fear of being misinterpreted by those who clearly would give me a bad name. But "the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing".
Nevertheless, I decided on writing this note to Sincerely sympathize with the bereaved families of our slain young men across Uzo Uwani LGA and all the victims of kidnappings and other neferous activities of these criminal elements in the past few weeks of tears and sorrow in the council. I also wish to use this medium to urge the authorities to double up efforts, especially in terms of proactiveness,
His Excellency our Governor, having deployed a good number the DRS personnel to Uzo Uwani LGA, has taken a bold step towards confronting this debacle. It is now incumbent on the local government authorities to read the riot acts for the security: both local and foreign in the LGA. It is either the job is done or they are shown the exit door, and we resort to self help. The blood of an Uzo Uwani Man or woman must be protected with every arsenal under the powers and authorities of government, both at the Local and state level. .
There must be a strong and regular stakeholder-engagement to brainstorm on the possible way out of this current impass. Those who had held sway in the past at the council must be rallied to provide permanent solutions to the madness currently eclipsing the local council.
Finally, the ongoing killings must be challenged before Uzo Uwani LGA is completely turned into a killing field. We must all remember that the primary responsibility of government is security of lives and property of the citizenry.
God Protect Uzo Uwani LGA.