Gunmen, at the weekend, invaded Umuihe Autonomous Community, Akaeze, in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State and killed their traditional ruler, Omazi Ubani.
There was reported heavy shooting by gunmen in the community, which caused pandemonium, leading to people scampering for safety. Police authorities in the state confirmed the dastardly killing of the highly revered and peace-loving traditional ruler said to be in his 60s.
A community leader, who wished not to be named, noted that the attack on the community occurred at about 10pm, last Friday. He condemned the killing, stressing that it will be very difficult to get a traditional ruler of Ubani’s nature.
Coordinator, Akaeze Development Centre, Chinasa Okorie, described the slain monarch as bold, fearless and intelligent, stating that his wealth of experience would be greatly missed by the community, the local government and the state.
“This is a great loss to the community and Akaeze at large because he is a man of integrity, a man that would be difficult to replace because the man is intelligent, he is bold and he is fearless. The man did not know corruption because at all times, his integrity was always seen. I am very sad about his killing. It is a great loss to Akaeze Development Centre, where I am the leader, Ivo local government and Ebonyi State. His voice is loud in Ebonyi State, he is a first-class traditional ruler. The killing is a very bad incident,” he stated.
Okorie said only security agencies would unravel the cause of the incident and those behind it. Another stakeholder from the community, Sinbad Ogbuatu, noted that the incident has caused tension and apprehension in the community, adding that markets and shops around the community could not open for businesses.
Ogbatu said: “I have been calling everyone and nobody told me there was a crisis or problem in the community to warrant such an incident. Maybe, when normalcy returns, we will know the cause of everything.”
Police Public Relations Officer in the State, DSP Joshua Ukandu, said their men were after the assailants.
“Immediately we got a distress call on the incident, we swung into action and the assailants had already left the scene by the time our men moved to the scene, but we are trailing the assailants,” he revealed.
No official statement was made by the state government at press time. Similar incident happened on February 27, last year, when Eze Igboke Ewa of Umuezekoha in Ezza North LGA was brutally murdered in his palace by gunmen. His assailants shot him repeatedly in the night after invading the compound. Curiously, three days to his burial, last month, yet-to-be-identified arsonists burnt the palace of the late traditional ruler.
Prior to this period, the traditional ruler of Isuokoma autonomous community in Onicha LGA was abducted in his palace by gunmen on June 22, 2022 and his whereabouts were not known even after the abductors had allegedly collected an unspecified ransom.