Herdsmen killings: Enugu government blasts group over attack on Ugwuanyi

Forum 7 years ago

Herdsmen killings: Enugu government blasts group over attack on Ugwuanyi

The Enugu State Government, Thursday, blasted a civil society group, Civil Rights Realisation and Advancement Network (CRRAN), for blaming Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi over the persistent attack in the State by Fulani herdsmen.
The group had in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Mr. Olu Omotayo accused the Governor and other governors in the South-East of not taking adequate measures to forestall herdsmen attack in the zone.

According to Omotayo, Governor Ugwuanyi was paying lip service to the matter.

The development followed the attack on three Roman Catholic Priests by the herdsmen along Nkpologwu in Uzo-Uwani Council Area of Enugu State. One of the priests was later kidnapped.

DAILY POST recalls that two Enugu communities had within this year witnessed deadly attack from Fulani herdsmen, leading to the death of several natives.

However, reacting to Omotayo’s stand on the matter, the Enugu State commissioner for information, Hon. Godwin Udeuhele, called on civil society groups to stop creating unnecessary tension in the State.

He maintained that the attack on the priests was not different from what obtained in other roads across the country.

According to him, “Anybody who is saying that Enugu government is not doing anything on the issue of herdsmen does not live here.
“These people stay in Abuja, form one association or the other and begin to carry out campaign against the government.

“If you go to other States, you see what is crime; down there they kill people, burn down their houses and all that; these things don’t happen here.

?”The issue of activities of herdsmen in Enugu State is being over reported; in the instant case, what happened was issue of armed bandit; even the kidnapped priest has been released; we call on these rights groups to always cross-check their facts.”

On the failure of the State government to arraign four suspects arrested in connection with the deadly attack on Nimbo community, he said the government was at the final phase of the processes towards arraigning ?them.

Udeuhele denied allegations that the government was politicing the matter to please the presidency, insisting that “government is only keen on following due process. The law must certainly take its course.”