Tension has returned to Umuahia, the Abia State capital, as soldiers, on Tuesday, laid siege to the Afaraukwu country home of the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.
The soldiers arrived in the community on Tuesday barely 48 hours after the clash between the Army and IPOB members on Sunday, where three people were reportedly injured.
It was learnt that the soldiers returned to the state capital with about 10 Armoured Personnel Carriers and seven Hilux vans.
The development created panic in the area, forcing shop owners to hurriedly close their shops.
The soldiers were also seen at the secretariat of the Abia State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists on Aba Road, Umuahia, where they destroyed laptops and other valuables.
A journalist at the NUJ secretariat told one of our correspondents that, “Soldiers stormed the press centre, claiming that they saw somebody taking photographs of them from the one-storey building office.”
The chairman of the council, Mr. John Emejo, confirmed the incident.
Emejor, who expressed disappointment with the incident, said a national officer of the union, Ezeogo Okoro, was slapped by one of the soldiers.
He said, “Our press centre was invaded by soldiers; two journalists lost their IPads and phones, while a national leader of the union was attacked.
“Our stand is that those involved in this attack on innocent journalists should be fished out and punished in line with the constitution of the country.”
When contacted, the Assistant Director, Army Public Relations, 14 Brigade, Nigerian Army, Maj. Oyegoke Gbadamosi, said he had asked the chairman of the council to send the photograph of the damage in the office to him.
Gbadamosi later expressed regrets over the reported attack on some journalists.
In a telephone interview, the spokesman said he was shocked to hear that military personnel invaded the NUJ secretariat.
Gbadamosi promised to look into the incident.
Meanwhile, the Abia State Governor Okezie Ikpeazu has declared a three-day curfew in Aba, the commercial hub of Abia State, starting from Tuesday (yesterday) to Thursday, September 14.
The curfew, the government said, would last from 6pm to 6am.
Ikpeazu, who spoke with newsmen at the Government House, Umuahia, noted that the state had noticed the skirmishes between some groups in the state, especially IPOB members and men of the Nigerian Army.
He urged residents of the state to remain law-abiding and go about their lawful business without fear of molestation.
Ikpeazu warned the people against confrontation with military personnel or other security agents, saying the military operation was meant to check criminal activities in the state.
He said, “The operation, as declared by the Army, is intended to check kidnapping, banditry, assassination, secessionist activities within the region, amongst other forms of criminal activities.
“The recent confrontation between the Nigerian Army and members of IPOB on Sunday, 10th September, 2017, could presumably be attributed to the commencement of the said Operation Python Dance II.
“While the Government of Abia State recognizes the right of the Nigerian Army and other security agencies to perform their statutory duty of protection of lives and property of Nigerian citizens, such duties must be carried out within acclaimed Nigerian and international standards of engagement with the civil populace, with due respect to the human rights of citizens and sanctity of human lives.”
