The people of Amangwo community of Olokoro, Umuahia South LGA of Abia State are still in grief, more than three weeks after the gruesome murder of their two sons by unknown gunmen.
The two indigenes, Pastor Chukwuemeka Nwachukwu and Ifeanyi Onwunkwe were shot dead inside a bush near Aro Ndizuogu in Imo State on Friday, June 23, while heading to Enugu State to attend a burial ceremony. They were kidnapped, blindfolded and marched into the Toyota Sienna bus conveying them to Enugu, before being taken to a bush off the Aro Ndizuogu-Anambra road where two of them were shot dead like criminals.
While Pastor Chukwuemeka Nwachukwu was shot dead for allegedly asking the gunmen ‘challenging questions’, Ifeanyi Onwunkwe who was the youth leader of Amangwo was killed by the gunmen for allegedly trying to run away from the ‘Cell’ where he was kept inside the bush. But about a month after the killings took place, Amangwo, an agrarian community in Olokoro has not known joy as the horrible death of the two indigenes continue to re-echo like a nightmare in the hearts of the natives.
A trip to the community by News Echo’s correspondent showed that the people were still in shock and of course, still wishing that the two dead sons could resurrect and return home.
One of the survivors who spoke under anonymity, said it was like a horror movie watching the gunmen pass ‘judgment’ on Pastor Chukwuemeka Nwachukwu before killing him with blasts of gunshots.
According to the terrified native, the gunmen said they would not have taken them into the bush if not that they were challenged by Pastor Nwachukwu who dared to ask them some questions about their reasons for being on the Enugu-Umuahia -Enugu expressway.
The survivor, who thanked God that he was not killed as well, said that the gunmen also became livid after understanding that they were from Umuahia, a people they (gunmen) said were stubbornly shunning the sit-at-home declaration.
He noted that after collecting their monies and phones, the unknown gunmen later decided to release them which they did by putting them back in their vehicle and escorting them back to the road. He added that they were not allowed to carry the bodies of the two victims.
Another member of the community who simply gave his name as Kelechukwu revealed that his friend who was a driver of the Ill-fated Sienna bus was actually a member of the Jehovah’s Witness Congregation who spoke on behalf of the 7 remaining ‘captives’, before they were let off the hook.
According to Kelechukwu, the gunmen after searching the phone contacts of the Umungwo people discovered that some names in the phone contacts of the driver were saved with Police and this aroused more suspicion within them.
They queried the driver to explain his business with Police officers and at that point, the driver explained to them that as a commercial bus driver, people hired his vehicle for traveling, including one of his brother who is a Police man.
At that point, according to Kelechukwu, the gunmen accused the Olokoro indigenes of participating in the last general elections in the country.
But the bus driver who was the ‘voice’ for the abducted persons, once again told the gunmen that he was a member of Jehovah’s Witness who has never voted in his life and would never vote.
He told them that his religious was against voting or being voted for. “At this point, they decided to free the remaining seven people and took them into their vehicle and led them to the road to Umuahia,” said Kelechukwu, who is a relative to the traumatized bus driver.
The murdered indigenes left young wives children and children who are now confused about what the future hold for them, having lost their bread winners.
A traditionalist in Amangwo who simply identified himself as Onye Ichie, told News Echo that arrangements were on with the family of the victims to hold a traditional or mock burial for the body and soul of the departed two men after which they could still organize a Christian ceremony, if they wished.
This, he said, would assuage their spirits not to wander around their homes and would also ensure that no one dies untimely or is murdered again in the two families.
“You know, these our brothers died untimely deaths and their bodies were buried or thrown into strange lands and because of these, the spirits would continue to come around their real homes.”
That is why the burial will be conducted after which the family can now say that they have given their loved ones befitting burials, in line with Igbo culture”, the Onye Ichie said.
Meanwhile, the former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prince Vincent Ogbulafor who is an indigene of Olokoro, will be buried on Friday, July 28, 2023.
Ogbulafor, who was also a former Minister in the President Olusegun Obasanjo administration, would be buried at his hometown, Itaja Olokoro.
Seven villages that make up Olokoro have already declared mourning period for him and have also singled out July 26 for community-wide honour for his soul, in remembrance of Ogbulafor’s life-time philanthropy to his people.
A release by HRH, Eze Dike Nzenwa, the Chairman of Olokoro Council of Traditional rulers and Mazi Boniface Izuogu, the traditional prime Minister lamented that death took away Ogbulafor who was an iroko in their land.
