Governor of Ebonyi State, David Umahi, has confirmed that many people have been kidnapped, and one Ebubeagu operative killed in a violent clash between Enyigba and Enyibichiri communities in the state.
Umahi, according to the Peoples Gazette, said this while addressing stakeholders from the troubled communities during the state’s Security Council meeting.
The governor disclosed that an operational vehicle belonging to the Ebubeagu security outfit was burnt during the alleged unprovoked clash.
“We did our best to permanently demarcate the boundary between both communities, but the Enyigba people, who felt shortchanged, failed to comply.
“I inquired about the steps government should take for peace to reign, and the demarcation was carried out by the state chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, all to no avail. They proposed a N20 million electricity project which I accepted,” Mr Umahi said.
The governor, however, regretted that while he was working on the proposal, miscreants from the community kidnapped an unspecified number of Enyigba indigenes, a development which the Izzi clan did not take lightly.
According to him, it took the intervention of stakeholders from the clan, including the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Francis Nwifuru, to douse the tension caused by the clash.
“I called a meeting of the Enyibichiri people and requested for information on the whereabouts of the kidnap victims to be able to take necessary actions if they have been killed.
“I got most of the stakeholders detained and will effect a massive arrest in the area if the whereabouts of the victims were not known by June 13,” the governor further explained.
“It is regrettable that no relative of major stakeholders from the community has been killed because no one life is inferior to another.
“I have ordered the re-arrest of the coordinators of the two LGA development centres of the area among other stakeholders and the withdrawal of all their security details. I have also placed an embargo on appointments from the area until the end of my administration,” the governor said.
Similarly, the Commissioner of Police, Aliyu Garba, reiterated the governor’s position, saying the command had made several arrests connected with the abduction and the violent clash.