Land Tussle: Pandemonium as Police Open Fire on Awka Indigenes, Journalists

By Praise Chinecherem

Pandemonium erupted on Saturday in Agu Nawgu land in Awka, Anambra State following bloody clash between armed policemen and protesting indigenes of Ezinano Community in Awka South local government area of the State.

Although no casualty was recorded as of press time, but Anambra Daily gathered that no fewer than 14 journalists escaped death by whiskers while four others sustained injury during the melee.

The armed policemen stationed on the disputed land had opened fire to scare the indigenes who were in the area in their hundreds for land inspection.

The indigenes who marched in their scores on Saturday to inspect the land were stopped by police operatives, who insisted they had orders not to let anyone into the disputed land.

A prominent member of the community, Chief Kanayo Obidigbo who joined other indigenes during the inspection said police deployment to the area had stalled development of property on the land.

He accused police authorities of complexity, saying they had apparently displayed interest in the matter, especially a deputy commissioner of Police.

He called on the Inspector General of Police to investigate the matter and order the withdrawal of the operatives from the land.

He said: “We are here to inspect Agu Nawgu. This is a land that our great grand parents won in conquest. It is a vast land of about 60 kilometers radius. We grew up to know this land and it has a survey plan of 1949, made by our fathers who were illiterate.

“They gave out the land to Enugwu-Agidi people on rent to be cultivating, but later our forefathers sent them packing when they stopped paying rent.

“The land in question belongs to Ezinano community of Awka, which has about 20 villages. Even the estates you see here belong to Awka people.

“What we are saying is that police presence on our land is unacceptable. The men were sent here by a Deputy Commissioner of Police, whose interest we do not know.

“They have stalled development in this site. I have a building here, but I can’t continue with work because police have occupied the whole place and shooting at us.

“How can our tenants (Enugwu-Agidi community) now become the ones making case with us the landlords, just because police authorities are supporting them.

“Today you saw how police were shooting at us, defenceless Awka indigenes, who have neither stick nor knives. Police claimed that they did not post operatives to our land as they told the IGP, but as you can see now, they sent police to the land, and they were shooting at us as we made to move into the land to inspect it.

When contacted, Commissioner of Police, Aderemi Adeoye denied deploying any police operatives to the land

He however failed to state who deployed the operatives to the land as alleged by the protesting indigenes who fingered one Deputy Commissioner of Police in the command of posting the police to the area for selfish interest.