There was wild jubilation in the evening hours of Saturday, April 16, 2017 as Uburu people of Ebonyi State gathered at the famous Ekeaja Market square to welcome their children who were arrested in the midnight of Thursday, April 14, in their different homes by police officers, allegedly at the directive of an influential Uburu son, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, the Minister of Science and Technology.

Recounting his ordeal, Mr. Sunday Onu, a youth leader of Umuobuna community, said that he was in the comfort of his home sleeping around 12:00 a.m. when a group of armed police men barged into his private abode and arrested him. He disclosed that he was taken to Obiozara Police Station, from where they moved him and others to Enugu Police Headquarters, where they were thrown into the cell till the next day before being taken to Abuja.

Sunday Onu said that when they got to Abuja, they presented him with a petition written against Him, Hon. Ogbonnaya Odii, Chief Emma Obasi, Samuel Basdon Okike and about 40 others. He that he was thinking that it was a mere affair of the community knowing that he cannot even hurt a fly – not until he was taken alongside one Mr. Enekwachi Odii to Abuja where they alleged that he is among hoodlums whose stock-in-trade include money ritual, kidnapping, raping, armed robbery, etc, and being headed by Hon Ogbonnaya Odii.

Mr. Onu expressed surprise at the development as the town has been enjoying peace for long without any record of such activities. He said that the picture became clearer to him when his interrogators diverted their questions to issues that have to do with the community land of which he heard that some people stopped a certain project which Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu commenced without due process and consultation as regards the Land Use Act.

Sunday Onu thanked Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. David Nweze Umahi, for intervening and rescuing them.

The case of Mr. Odii Enekwachi is even more touching as he was arrested in place of the Coordinator of Ohaozara DC and his name later added to ‘others’. Odii said that they arrested him for bearing the same surname with the coordinator. He said he knew nothing about the issue at stake and later learnt that he was arrested just because he bore the same name with Mr. Ogbonnaya Odii.

On his part, Coordinator of Ohaozara DC, Mr. Ogbonnaya Odii, said that their illegal arrest, detention and interrogation could not have been done by any other person than Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, the Minister of Science and Technology. He described Dr. Onu as being greedy, self-centered, extremely jealous and a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

“In his words, once you are not ready to be enslaved by him, he will plan evil against you either to permanently keep you silent or dent your reputation but his evil plans will always fail,” Odii said.

The King of Uburu kingdom, HRH Eze (Dr.) Laz Umahi, the Ezeadu III of Uburu Autonomous Community, and other community kings like HRH Eze Akpandu were present at the event. In their separate speeches, they expressed sadness over how a true son of Uburu could tarnish the image of young Uburu sons and punish them for what they knew nothing about.

•Nwaze Francis is a Social Activist from Uburu.

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