. . . Intersociety uncovers list of another 95 detainees

Four of those allegedly abducted from Obigbo, Rivers State, and Orlu in neighbouring Imo State by the military have reportedly died in custody with 257 others said to be missing. This is according to the Int’l Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), which “with rudest shock and deepest dismay” announced the “fresh discovery of 95 abducted Obigbo and Orlu residents including six females and 89 males in Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers.”

“Out of the newly discovered Army abductees, four including Citizen Ugochukwu, have died and 257 others still missing,” Intersociety said in a statement issued on Thursday in Onitsha, Eastern Nigeria, signed by Emeka Umeagbalasi, Board Chair; Obianuju Igboeli Esquire, Head, Civil Liberties and Rule of Law Department; and Chidimma Udegbunam Esquire, Head, Campaign and Publicity Department.

Blow is part of the statement:

How The 95 Igbo Citizens Were Discovered In Kaduna Prisons And Lock Centers

It must be pointed out that most of the 95 located victims of the Army abduction discovered in Kaduna Prisons who are all Igbo citizens of Christian faith were discovered to have been abducted by soldiers of the Nigerian Army during their genocidal invasion of Obigbo area of Rivers State in response to October 2020 country-wide EndSARS protests in the State. According to information obtained from some of the interviewed victims, they were held in various Army secret custodies for several months or not less than ten months without transferring them to the Police and court trial. The secret military facilities where they were held included Bori Camp of the Nigerian Army’s 6 Division in Port Harcourt and the Obinze-Owerri 34 Brigade, under 82 Division; the Mogadishu Barracks in Abuja and the 1 Mechanized Division, Kaduna, etc. It was from those secret Army detention facilities that the 95 Igbo citizens were transferred to the Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers without charge or open court remands after several months in Army custody. According to obtained victims’ accounts, about fifty of the 357 abducted citizens were transferred few months ago from Orlu and other parts of Imo State and some are among the 95 presently languishing without court trial in Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers. Also, the number of deaths among the 357 is likely to be in scores or dozens. The interviewed victims also further disclosed that while in Army custody, torture and starvation were a routine and that they were specifically conditioned to die of hunger, starvation and disease.

Their discovery came to light through shared independent intelligence information gathered by some local and international human rights activists and corroborated by some friendly military personnel and a freed victim whose father has links in the military. The attentions of Human Rights Counsel Richard Okoroafor and leadership of the country’s leading self determination group in the East were also drawn. It must be remembered that the leading self determination group and Human Rights Counsel Richard Okoroafor played critical roles in the recent release of over 400 victims of the same Obigbo Army Massacre and Abductions of October/November 2020. Upon discovery of the ‘Obigbo/Orlu 95”, arrangements were made by the said local and international human rights activists for purpose of verifying the independent intelligence information gathered including dispatching a team to locate the detainees and obtain some useful information concerning their abduction and long incarceration without trial and in the end, the following pieces of useful information were obtained:

(1)That most of them were abducted and bundled by soldiers of the Nigerian Army since October/November 2020 and held for several months or not less than ten months amidst torture and starvation in different secret military detention facilities, starting from Bori Camp and Obinze 34 Brigade in late October and early November 2020 to different others in Northern Nigeria including Mogadishu/Abacha Barracks and others in Niger and Kaduna States from where they were recently dumped in Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers. (2) That these, the soldiers of the Nigerian Army did by refusing to hand them over to the Police. (3) That from the period they were abducted till date, no form of access to their families or lawyers has been granted. (4) That throughout their twelve months in Army and paramilitary captivities, they were never taken to court for one day and were surprised to have found themselves lately in the Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers. (5) That out of the total of 357 abducted Igbo citizens, taken to Army detention facilities in Kaduna and other unknown locations within and outside the State, scores or dozens must have died as a result of torture, hunger, starvation and disease. (6) That about fifty out of the 357 abducted citizens were part of those abducted from Orlu and other parts of Imo State by the combined forces comprising soldiers and police especially from March, April, May and June 2021 and among them are some of the 95 abductees presently languishing in Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers. (7) That the Orlu abductees were transferred to Kaduna Prisons and Lock Centers by soldiers and police personnel jointly called “Special Forces”. (8) That throughout their stay in Army captivity, they were not allowed to change their clothes especially ladies among them that were denied access to sanitary pads and under-wears. (9) That most, if not all of the abductees had nothing whatsoever to do with or involved in “Biafra Matters” at the time of their abduction and were randomly abducted at their places of work or leisure or on their way home from their work places. (10) That some were abducted during house or vicinity raids especially at sleep

Names Of The 95 Defenseless Igbo Citizens

Humphrey Onyii, Kenechukwu Paul, Kacil Ude, Antonio Obi, Oluchi Nwaba, Ben Akachukwu, Mebechukwu Ifeanyi, Ebube Uche, David Akudo, Namdi Ndidi, Francis Collins, Ozioma Anurika (female), Odinaka Prince, Kingsley Obinna, Ekechukwu Joshua, Ekechukwu Paul, Pius Victoria (female), Emmanuel Obinna, Kanyinene Andrew, Kosisochukwu Best, Kachi Ude, Uchechukwu Uba, Londonboy Kelvin, Chinedu Anwuru, Sunday Adaoche, Chika Obasi, Isaac Ejekwe, Benjamin Orakwe, Maxwell Uba, Kenneth Erochukwu, Mba Osigwe, Harrison Ezenwa, Boniface Nsowolu, Lawrence Celestine, Ugonna Kennedy, Nwadike Akolam, Jerry Chukwuemeka, Arinze Somtoochukwu, Anyanwu Ositadinma, Livinus Shedrack, Monday Uba, Ogugua Chukwuebuka, Prince Eze Ugochi, Ndubuisi Anayo, Bright Okafor, Emma Okafor, Henry Sopuruchukwu, Chika Ugwueze, Osinachi Jerry, Abraham Emeka, Moses Uzoma, Aaron Osagie, Onyekachi Chukwu and Chukwu Prince.

Others are Ibe Francis, Maduka Synagogue, Onyinyechi Chukwuma (female), Maurine Akapu (female), Ebuka Ositadinma, Ebere Anyanwu, Paulina Eberechukwu (), EkeneMaria Chisaram (female), Chibuikem Anarue, Success Anome, Richard Onyii, Peter Charise, Nwa Daddy, Boniface, Igwe Harry, Chinonso Kelvin, Geoffrey Egemba, Ikechukwu Mike, Chike Ndurugo, Chima Okorie, David Amaefula, Aloysius Kalu, Valerian Ndubuisi, Kingsley Ebube, Chukwuebuka Aja, Nwabuife Henry, Elias Chima, Anthony Austin, Benjamin Amechi, Ugwunna John, Chisom Mbah, Ejikom Louis, Mgbeke Jasper, Odoh Joshua, Oku Solomon, Chidi Ugomsi, Mathias Osuji and two others; totaling 95 persons including six females and 89 males.

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