Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia

An advocacy group, the Igbo Women Assembly (IWA), has raised the alarm over the alleged killings and disappearances of youths going on across Igbo communities in the South-east zone, saying that the carnage is “appalling and unprecedented.”

In a statement signed by its President of the group, Lolo Nneka Chimezie, which was made available to the media in Umuahia yesterday, IWA expressed horror at the senseless killings being perpetrated as the authorities appear helpless to arrest the ugly situation.

The women group, especially, decried the spate of violence and senseless killings that have been going on in Okigwe and other communities in Imo State, including Agbobu, Umulolo, Aku near Ihube, Umuowa in Mbato,whichht have all been deserted. It also noted that “it’s the same story (of killings and disappearances) at Isieke, Awomanma, Akokwa, and parts of Anambra State, where many communities have been deserted.

“Our greatest shock is that these barbaric attacks and senseless killings have continued to fester unchallenged despite the heavy presence of security operatives and multiple checkpoints on our roads.”

The women said that there was “the dire need” for the government to carry out thorough investigations “to unravel the true identities of the perpetrators behind these atrocities,” adding that “this atrocious evil cannot be allowed to go on.”

They noted that both the federal government and its security agencies have continued to be fixated on blaming the Indigenous People of Biafra(IPOB) for every security breach in the South, thereby ignoring the activities of criminal groups operating in the zone.

According to IWA, its preliminary investigations “revealed that some of the criminals behind the atrocities in the Southeast are being sponsored to demonise members of the Indigenous People of Biafra.”

It expressed the belief widely held across the Southeast that non-state actors have been engaged by the authorities to perpetrate clandestine, sinister activities to justify their terrorist label on IPOB.

It alleged that “these criminals are the ones committing all the atrocities, especially in Imo State, while the security agencies and media keep pointing accusing fingers at IPOB and ESN (Eastern Security Network).”

IWA stated that though IPOB actually started sit-at-home on Mondays to protest the abduction, extraordinary rendition, and continued incarceration of its leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, it has since been discontinued after much appeals by Igbo leaders.

The Igbo women group wondered wh,  since IPOB “has consistently distanced itself from the barbaric killings in Southeast,” the security agencies have continued to point fingers at them without verifiable evidence.”

They demanded an investigation into the activities of Ebubeagu security outfit operating in Imo and Ebonyi States to ascertain their true mission, as well as the role of a Niger Delta militant leader.

The woman said that a proper investigation would establish “if there are any links between Ebubeagu outfit and the boys of a former Niger Delta militant leader who once claimed that he was engaged by the federal government for security operations in the Southeast.

“We found out that Ebubeagu was formed around the same time that there was jail jailbreak in Imo State. We don’t know the background of the personnel of that security outfit. There is also a need for further investigation on the quality of people whoare recruited into Ebubeagu.”

IWA recalled that in December 2024, a former militant leader claimed he was contracted by the federal government to provide security in the Southeast and his men were on the ground in Imo State fighting against criminals.

“The questions are: who contracted him? Who was he killing? Was there any war in Imo State? How come the federal government has not debunked this or arrested him for questioning? How come the conventional security agencies are not enough to quell insecurity in Southeast that a non-state actor had to be hired?” the group asked.

The Igbo women challenged the federal government to demonstrate its genuine commitment to putting an end to the insecurity in the Southeast,, as it cannot blame IPOB and at the same time drag on resolving the Nnamdi Kanu issue.

“It’s also our belief that the federal government cannot pretend to be serious about the restoration of peace in the Southeast when it has refused to release Nnamdi Kanu despite several pleas and court orders,” IWA said.

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