Ebubeagu raids the place of the women's meeting in Ebonyi and fires shots
Gunmen, believed to be members of Ebubeagu, attacked the venue of a women's meeting in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, on Saturday.
The incident occurred at a location along the Abakaliki-Enugu highway.
The meeting was reportedly convened by more than 17 women's groups in the 13 local government areas of the state for the empowerment of some women.
The gunmen stormed the hall in the middle of the meeting, firing in the air. The women ran in different directions for their safety, PREMIUM TIMES learned.
Some people were arrested and taken away from the meeting venue by the gunmen, sources said.
Reporters covering the event were chased away.
The gunmen reportedly took the awnings and chairs from the site to an unknown destination.
Later, the women got together and organized a demonstration in some streets of the city.
Speaking to the media, they accused Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi of orchestrating the attack which they call a "desecration of womanhood".
In a statement signed by Amaka Chukwu and three others on behalf of the protesters, the women described the disruption of the meeting as a violation of their basic human rights as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.
“This heinous act was perpetrated by the Executive Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, through his attack dogs, the Ebubeagu Security Team of Ebonyi State.
“It is not new or unfamiliar to the Igbo race that all women meet every August to discuss and map out the best possible ideas and development projects to improve welfare and welfare of our people," they said.
The women protesting said the governor used to work against women in the state.
"This includes the manhunt for Ebonyi South APC senatorial aspirant, Princess Ann Agom-Eze, who is currently in external exile for aspiring to serve her senatorial district.
"Two previous disruptions and harassment of lawful gatherings of Ebonyi women, and today's attack on the Ebonyi Women's Annual General Meeting in August 2022, during which some people were abducted by Governor Umahi's Ebubeagu Security Militia and taken to the Ebonyi State government headquarters, beaten and stripped naked.
"Furthermore, the Afikpo delegates were repelled by another detachment of Governor Umahi's Ebubeagu militia who fired sporadically at the unfortunate women."
The reaction of the governmentSpecial Assistant to the Governor for Homeland Security Panchris Eze said the Ebubeagu were there based on a report that some pro-separatist groups were gathering there.
He said the group fired the women from the site to prevent any security breaches in the area.
He denied, however, that his group had undressed some women.
Ebonyi State Government Security Consultant Stanley Emegha also confirmed the meeting was discontinued.
He said that Ebubeagu had received a security report indicating that the site was being used to plan attacks against security teams in the city.
Mr. Emegha vowed that those arrested would be prosecuted.
He warned against such a gathering in Abakaliki.
“Anyone who wants to attend the August meeting should go to their respective villages and do so,” he said.
The governor's spokesman, Chooks Oko, said Governor David Umahi had left the state and was unaware of the incident.
Ebubeagu's Horrible PastEbubeagu, who is backed by the Ebonyi State government, has been linked to torture and death.
In January, members of the security team were caught on video torturing a state resident.
The victim, Nnaogo Amyum, later died as a result of torture.
Young people in the community staged a violent protest over the incident, burning down houses belonging to members of the security team, including a house belonging to the chairman of a local government council.
>In addition, a government critic and spokesman for the state People's Democratic Party, Nwoba Chika, was attacked and beaten by Ebubeagu agents in January.
He was taken to court, remanded in custody, but later released following public outrage.
Support the integrity and credibility journalism of PREMIUM TIMES Good journalism costs a lot of money. However, good...
Gunmen, believed to be members of Ebubeagu, attacked the venue of a women's meeting in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, on Saturday.
The incident occurred at a location along the Abakaliki-Enugu highway.
The meeting was reportedly convened by more than 17 women's groups in the 13 local government areas of the state for the empowerment of some women.
The gunmen stormed the hall in the middle of the meeting, firing in the air. The women ran in different directions for their safety, PREMIUM TIMES learned.
Some people were arrested and taken away from the meeting venue by the gunmen, sources said.
Reporters covering the event were chased away.
The gunmen reportedly took the awnings and chairs from the site to an unknown destination.
Later, the women got together and organized a demonstration in some streets of the city.
Speaking to the media, they accused Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi of orchestrating the attack which they call a "desecration of womanhood".
In a statement signed by Amaka Chukwu and three others on behalf of the protesters, the women described the disruption of the meeting as a violation of their basic human rights as enshrined in the Nigerian Constitution.
“This heinous act was perpetrated by the Executive Governor of Ebonyi State, Dave Umahi, through his attack dogs, the Ebubeagu Security Team of Ebonyi State.
“It is not new or unfamiliar to the Igbo race that all women meet every August to discuss and map out the best possible ideas and development projects to improve welfare and welfare of our people," they said.
The women protesting said the governor used to work against women in the state.
"This includes the manhunt for Ebonyi South APC senatorial aspirant, Princess Ann Agom-Eze, who is currently in external exile for aspiring to serve her senatorial district.
"Two previous disruptions and harassment of lawful gatherings of Ebonyi women, and today's attack on the Ebonyi Women's Annual General Meeting in August 2022, during which some people were abducted by Governor Umahi's Ebubeagu Security Militia and taken to the Ebonyi State government headquarters, beaten and stripped naked.
"Furthermore, the Afikpo delegates were repelled by another detachment of Governor Umahi's Ebubeagu militia who fired sporadically at the unfortunate women."
The reaction of the governmentSpecial Assistant to the Governor for Homeland Security Panchris Eze said the Ebubeagu were there based on a report that some pro-separatist groups were gathering there.
He said the group fired the women from the site to prevent any security breaches in the area.
He denied, however, that his group had undressed some women.
Ebonyi State Government Security Consultant Stanley Emegha also confirmed the meeting was discontinued.
He said that Ebubeagu had received a security report indicating that the site was being used to plan attacks against security teams in the city.
Mr. Emegha vowed that those arrested would be prosecuted.
He warned against such a gathering in Abakaliki.
“Anyone who wants to attend the August meeting should go to their respective villages and do so,” he said.
The governor's spokesman, Chooks Oko, said Governor David Umahi had left the state and was unaware of the incident.
Ebubeagu's Horrible PastEbubeagu, who is backed by the Ebonyi State government, has been linked to torture and death.
In January, members of the security team were caught on video torturing a state resident.
The victim, Nnaogo Amyum, later died as a result of torture.
Young people in the community staged a violent protest over the incident, burning down houses belonging to members of the security team, including a house belonging to the chairman of a local government council.
>In addition, a government critic and spokesman for the state People's Democratic Party, Nwoba Chika, was attacked and beaten by Ebubeagu agents in January.
He was taken to court, remanded in custody, but later released following public outrage.
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