The simmering crises between the Imo State government and the council chairmen of PDP extraction may have spiraled out of control as armed thugs deployed to forcefully oust the elected council chairmen and councilors were Thursday rounded up and arrested by soldiers of the 34 Artillery Brigade, Obinze, Imo State.
The thugs who, the Imo ALGON had accused of having been trained by the Imo State Government, had on Monday invaded Owerri North and abducted the council chairman, Mr. Eric Ogwoh and his Orlu counterpart and also took away the Owerri Municipal Council Secretary.
The thugs who Thursday stormed Owerri Municipal Council in commando style to sack councilors and the chairman ran out of luck as a military patrol team intervened.
The thugs who arrived the council in two Hilux trucks, armed with pump-action rifles took over the council premises shooting indiscriminately into the air.
Fortunately, the council chairman, Chief Emma Odor was not in office, but his Personal Assistant was not so lucky as the thugs pounced on him and thoroughly brutalized him.
As council workers scampered to safety following the sporadic shootings, the thoroughly battered assistant, simply identified as ‘China’ was dragged to one of the waiting Hilux trucks and dumped there just before the soldiers stormed the council and saved the day.
Before the soldiers rounded up the armed thugs, some of the hoodlums successfully fled the council while 12 others were arrested and handcuffed by the soldiers with their vehicles impounded.
Two of the vehicles impounded with inscription, “Imo Security Network Unit 2 (001) and “Imo Security Network Unit 4 (001)”, are without number plates.
The arrested thugs, some of whom were dressed in Police bullet proof vest, were thereafter taken to the Imo state Police Headquarters where they are being detained.
While council workers that witnessed the ugly scene expressed shock at the level of armed brigandage unleashed on the councils, the Owerri Municipal Council Chairman, Chief Emma Odor expressed dismay at the level of desperation by those who want elected council executives out
of the way
He said,“This is unfortunate and if this trend remains unchecked, then this is the coming of lawlessness and anarchy in Imo. If they could go to this extent to antagonize a legitimate council executive, one can only imagine what they would do with the state police.”
Meanwhile, vital intelligence, suggests that the Imo state government have concluded plans to spring the hoodlums from detention, at any cost, to forestall any possibility of prosecution and government complicity in the matter. The cover-up effort believed to be spear-headed by the Chief of Staff, Prince Eze Madumere with the assistance of some top security chiefs.
