There was palpable tension in the Ndegwu community, Owerri West Local Government Area of Imo State, yesterday, after irate youths clashed with heavily armed policemen deployed to the area over a dispute surrounding the community’s annual women’s August meeting.

The confrontation occurred at about 9am at Ndegwu Secondary School, the venue scheduled for the opening ceremony of the women’s meeting.

Witnesses said the policemen, who were accompanied by vigilantes, had taken position early to forestall a breakdown of law and order. Their presence, however, was resisted by youths in the community who insisted on enforcing the cancellation order issued by the President General, Chief Godson Ejiogu.

The youths reportedly pelted the security operatives with stones after the police fired tear gas and shot sporadically into the air to disperse them.

Sources said the police deployment was at the instance of one of the factions of the women’s group, which defied the suspension of the meeting by the President General and insisted on going ahead.

The crisis stems from factionalisation within the women’s group. Both factions conducted separate elections to choose their executives at different venues.

Last year, the two groups held their meetings on different dates. This year, however, their meetings clashed on the same date, prompting Ejiogu to suspend the August meeting entirely to prevent a breakdown of law and order. Despite the suspension, one faction vowed to proceed, leading to yesterday’s clash.

As of press time, security operatives remained stationed around the school premises while community leaders called for calm and dialogue to resolve the dispute. (The Sun)