A new twist was added on Thursday to the controversy surrounding the mystery corpses found floating on the Ezu River three weeks ago, when the Movement for the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of Biafra claimed that the corpses belonged to its members arrested and detained by security agencies in Anambra State.
In its first reaction to the discovery of the corpses, MASSOB said the corpses were bodies of its members, who were never released from detention or charged to court by the police.
The Director of Information, MASSOB, Mr. Uchenna Madu, said the movement had petitioned the Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon; President Barack Obama; the United Nations Human Rights Commission; and Amnesty International, protesting the mass killing of its members by Nigerian security agencies.
He gave the names of MASSOB members the movement suspected to be among those killed and dumped in the Ezu River to include Basil Ogbu, Michael Ogwa, Sunday Omogo, Philip Nwankpa, Eze Ndubisi, Ebuka Eze, Obinna Ofor, Joseph Udoh and Uchechukwu Ejiofor.
He said they were arrested at MASSOB security office at Onitsha Anambra State on November 9, 2012, by a combined team of the army, police and State Security Service men and handed over to the State Anti-Robbery Squad headquarters, Awkuzu Anambra State, where they were detained until their disappearance.
He said, “Efforts by our counsel to secure their bail from the police proved futile. Our demands for their arraignment before a competent court of law were frustrated by SARS officers. They claimed that the court was not sitting because of Christmas.
“We got information from an insider at SARS headquarters, Awkuzu, that armless MASSOB members detained at SARS were secretly killed alongside other robbery suspects.”
The Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emeka Chukwuemeka, however dismissed the claims of MASSOB, saying the police were still waiting for the report of the autopsy carried out on the corpses dumped in the river.
Meanwhile, an Onitsha Magistrate Court, presided over by Mrs. E.O. Ughanze,has ordered the police to issue a hearing notice to Directorate of Public Prosecution in a case involving the Region 4 Administrator of the movement of MASSOB, Chief Arinze Igbani,
Igbani and two others (Ugwu Chikezie and Chukwudi Udemobi) were on Thursday arraigned at the magistrate court on a two-count charge of conspiracy, aiding and abetting
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Police or boko haram, which is a lesser evil?
ReplyDeleteI have more reasons to believe that the allegation is true. Else, where will so much male corpse emanate from. SARS facilities all over are simply human slaughter slabs. They kill ppl with careless abandon and secretly too. In Abuja for instatnce,they kill detainees recklessly on a daily basis and bury them at the public cemetry around Apo rounabout. In this modern dispensation i think there should be more room for rule of law in our society if the democracy we claim we are practicing is anything to go by. Influential ppl use SARS to intimidate their enemies or opponents at the slightest provocation. The easiest way to eliminate your enemy nowadays is not to go for assasins but to simply tip SARS and your guess is as good as mine. If they are left unchecked, relatives of victims who are themselves hardened will embark on repriesal attack as was the case of Lawrence Anini and Boko Haram. If govt like let them act.
ReplyDeleteIts because massob is not violent like boko haram that is why innocent people will be wasted like that.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very serious issue against the Nigerian Police and should not be swept under the carpet.
ReplyDeleteI knew this from the onset that this is the hand work of sars, taking lives as if they can give one. When will blood stop flowing in this country?
ReplyDeleteThis is a very serious issue...
ReplyDeleteMASSOB is a peaceful movement so why?
ReplyDeleteMans inhumanity 2 man! God save ur people
ReplyDeleteMan's inhumanity 2 their follow man.God save us!
ReplyDeleteIt's only the Igbos that can be slaughtered like rams and nothing will come out of it! Ask anyone they will tell you, the police has absolutely no respect whatsoever for the Igbo race. Perhaps this is the out come of the wicked civil war! When would the Igbos rise and say enough is enough of this rubbish?
ReplyDelete