Mr Viral
It was a harvest of tears and lamentation as people of the Lilu community in the Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State stormed the state’s Government House in tears and with heavy hearts.
The people, including youths and elderly men and women, maintained straight faces, which they claimed was indicative of the urgency and seriousness of their mission.
According to their spokesperson, who gave his name simply as Emeka for security reasons, they had to abandon the burial of two of their kinsmen halfway through when news reached them that two others, who sustained severe machete cuts in last Sunday’s attack, had died where they were receiving treatment.
Emeka, who briefed the Secretary to the Anambra State Government (SSG), Solo Chukwulobelu, on their travail, stated that their brutal gun attacks began some years ago. In their first ugly experience, eleven (11) kinsmen were killed, while nine (9) persons lost their lives in last Sunday’s massacre.
He noted that so far, 20 citizens have lost their lives in the recent orgy of killing. That some were taken away, with the attackers telling them that they were going to sacrifice them to their gods.
While calling on Governor Chukwuma Soludo to come to their immediate assistance, the people lamented that every day remains a struggle for them as they either get kidnapped, slaughtered, or just disappear without a trace.
He bemoaned a situation where about eighty-five per cent of the whole community now live in exile in neighbouring communities. There is no household in Lilu without a member who has been savagely murdered.
Moreover, anyone who speaks out is usually killed the next day.
The numerous placards they bore said it all, including: ‘Soludo rescue us’, ‘Lilu is on the verge of extinction’, and ‘Is Lilu actually in Anambra State?’
The palace of their traditional ruler, Igwe Godson Onyediri, in its comments appealed to the governor for quick assistance, describing the savage murder and decapitation of Venerable Gabriel Obiesie’s wife, who was burnt alongside the St Andrew’s Anglican Church parsonage and their children, cars, and entire property, as sacrilegious, inhuman, and an abomination.
Chief Chukwulobelu, while acknowledging their peaceful disposition even in the face of intense provocation, appealed for their continuous understanding, stating that the governor was aware of their challenges and is on top of the matter.
The SSG admitted that the governor was not relenting in efforts to secure lasting peace in Lilu and other trouble spots in parts of the state.
He collected all their placards, promising to present their matter to the governor later in the day.
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