Nigerians on social media have lamented the persistent
attacks by gunmen in Imo State, with many expressing fears that the South-East
state was fast turning to another Borno State.
Borno State, with Maiduguri as capital city, is located in
Nigeria’s North-East. The state rose to inglorious fame when Mohammed Yusuf,
founder of militant Islamist group Boko Haram, was killed in 2009. Yusuf’s
death birthed a macabre era of unprecedented uprising; carnage, bombings,
kidnappings, amongst other crimes against humanity, even till date.
Millions of aboriginal Borno residents have also been
displaced by the activities of the insurgents as military forces battle to
clear the terrorists out of the entire North-East.
Unlike Borno in faraway North-East, Imo State located in the South-East geopolitical zone of the country has enjoyed relative peace until lately when daring gunmen started wreaking havoc in the state.
The gunmen particularly target police formations in their
attacks. For instance, in what could be described as unmatched, gunmen on
Monday attacked the Owerri Correctional Prison and freed over 1800 inmates. The
attackers also razed the Imo State Police Command headquarters situated in
Owerri and burnt all the vehicles parked at the command headquarters.
The hoodlums further freed the suspects in the cells at the
State Criminal Investigation Department of the command and made an attempt to
loot the police armoury in the state.
It was gathered that the gunmen operated from 1am till
3am on Monday and sang solidarity songs at the Government House Roundabout for
about 30 minutes before attacking the facilities.
The police have since accused members of the Eastern
Security Network, the security arm of the proscribed Indigenous People of
Biafra, of been the masterminds of the attacks but the secessionist agitators
led by Nnamdi Kanu have since denied the allegation.
But just barely 24 hours after the attacks, gunmen on
Tuesday razed the Ehime Mbano Local Government Area Divisional Police
Headquarters also in Imo. The brazen gunmen launched the attack despite the
presence of the then Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, in Owerri.
Adamu had visited the state to assess the level of damage done by Monday
attacks and to charge the cops to be ruthless before he was sacked.
Between February and March 2021, gunmen have burnt down
Obowo, Abo Mbaise, Ihitte/ Uboma and Isiala Mbano Divisional Police
Headquarters, killing three cops and injuring others. This is aside from other
attacks on innocent citizens.
The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), has
condemned the Owerri attacks as acts of terrorism, one which many Nigerians
feared was coming up in the South-East.
“Does Nigeria have the capabilities to engage in two blown
wars at the same time –one in the North-East and another in the South-East?”
asked a Facebook user, Kenneth Ani.
Another Facebook user, Faisal Haruna, wrote, “New Maiduguri
is emerging”, while Usman Abubakar corroborated, “That was how Boko Haram
started.”
“This was how Boko Haram started. Folks were happy as they
attacked police stations until they turned on the people,” Waliu Aro stated.
Also, a tweep, @favouredhero lamented, “This is tending
towards anarchy, it keeps on getting worse daily.”
“The rise of IPOB is a photocopy of the rise of Boko Haram,
they will have to be curtailed anyways, but this time around it will be very
costly…Nigeria remains,” @JackObinyan wrote.
However, with the appointment of a Deputy Inspector-General
of Police, Usman Baba, as the acting Inspector-General of Police, many
Nigerians could only wish for a more secured and safe country.
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