Concerns over insecurity in South East and possible effects on 2023 elections

The attack on the convoy of former Imo state governor, Ikedi Ohakim last Monday, which resulted in the death of four people is eliciting fresh concerns about security of lives in the southeast region as the 2023 general elections draw near, and how it may affect citizen participation and election outcomes.

Ohakim was attacked at the Ehime Mbano area of Imo state by some gunmen who pursued his vehicles in what the ex-governor had described as an attempt “to kill me.” Sources said the politician was home for the Christmas and New Year festivities.

On the day Ohakim was attacked (January 2, 2023), no fewer than five others were killed in Anambra state. They included the President General of the Obosi Community, Mr Ike Okolo who was reportedly shot dead in a petrol station, as well as Onyiebo Okoye, Kenechukwu Okeke, Jude Ebenezar and Obinna Maduka, said to have been killed within Nodu town square, Nodu Okpuno in Awka.
 
Ohakim had attributed his escape from the brutal attack to the grace of God and the bulletproof vehicle he was riding in, even as he observed that his attackers were “professionals, well trained,” whose sole mission was to snuff the life out of him.
 
Unfortunately, the gunmen who embarked on the failed mission operated and left unchallenged, apparently to prepare for the next target. No arrests have been carried out since the incident.
 
Late last year, the convoy of the senator representing Anambra South senatorial zone, Dr Ifeanyi Ubah was attacked and left many casualties. The attack, which took place at Enugwu Ukwu, Njikoka local council of Anambra state, claimed the lives of security officials attached to the senator as well as his aides.

The attackers were said to have ambushed his convoy and continued to pummel it with bullets until they were sure it had been reduced to rubbles. His attackers were said to have moved in and allegedly collected the arms of those they killed.
 
When they left, the blood of those hit by the bullets were seen freely flowing on the tarred Enugwu Ukwu road with several shattered vehicles. Residents who got to the scene of the attack early had expressed bewilderment at the superior firing power of the hoodlums that shattered the quietude of the sprawling area. They had feared the bravery in confronting a convoy of such nature fitted with several security officials and yet made a breakthrough.

Like Ohakim, Ubah had said after he survived the attack: “If not for the Bullet Proof Jeep I was riding in, I would have been dead by now. We were passing Enugwu-ukwu junction when they hit us front and back from all sides and as I speak, one of my Special Assistants is dead and about seven security operatives were hit by the assassins bullets.” Uba’s attackers have remained unknown since then.

Also in Anambra state last year, the member representing Aguata 11 State Constituency, Okechukwu Okoye was kidnapped alongside his driver. Okoye’s head was later found dumped inside a carton without other parts of his body.

Since last year, the quietude of the southeast region had come under serious challenge, as gunmen have intensified attacks. Residents no longer live with ease. Travels have reduced to the barest minimum. The level of return of Igbo people to their places of origin in the last Christmas and new year celebrations were strong indications that all is not well in the zone.

Posh cars are rarely seen on the highways, as they have become prime targets of gunmen. From Enugu to Ebonyi, Abia to Imo and Anambra, the situation is similar. It is strange for a day to pass without stories of killings or kidnaps. Nightlife is gradually fading away. Businesses are shutting down. Business operators now close early for fear of attacks. Although the highways are littered with security checkpoints manned by soldiers and policemen, the security situation has continued to deteriorate. Meetings of political parties have been attacked. In some communities, people are now forced to pay some criminal gangs if they must hold their events.

Attempts by non-state actors to seize initiatives are creating unbearable pains for innocent residents. A recent case is the December 30, 2022 plundering and burning of houses and other property of residents of Aku-Okigwe in Okigwe local council of Imo state by a horde of military personnel and other security agents who invaded the community in search of an abducted female army officer. The army officer was abducted on Monday 26, December 2022 while allegedly visiting her grandmother. A video of her abduction and dastardly treatment was widely circulated online by her captors.

In an attempt to rescue the army officer, security agents had descended on the community, shooting sporadically and destroying property including businesses. Some persons reportedly died from the incident. Infractions such as these and others are making life unbearable for the people of the region and continue to invoke fears and concerns on what awaits the zone as the 2023 general elections draw near.

To boost the fight against insecurity, President Muhammadu Buhari last Tuesday approved deployment of high technology in the region. Imo state governor, Hope Uzodimma, who revealed this after a meeting with the President said the advanced surveillance equipment are to be delivered in no time to the region to enhance the fight without much collateral damage.

The promise of deployment of high technology for the insecurity fight in the zone is being received with mixed reactions. Investigation by The Guardian shows that though there is a general outcry for a permanent solution to the security challenges in the region, it should not come at extra cost. For instance, many believe that the activities of some security agents have either marred the fight or helped fuel it, adding that the gains inherent in the deployment of the high technology may not be realisable if not operated according to rules.

“Yes, look at the number of security check points on our highways and ask how these criminals still operate and go scot free. We have a situation where they have abdicated their responsibility while crimes fester. They target the innocent people rather than the criminals and pay little or no heed to intelligence and information gathering,” Eze Onwuegbu, a social critic based in Umuahia, Abia state observed.

Onwuegbu had lamented the amount of arms circulating in the region, blaming the situation on the failure of the federal government to give equal sense of belonging to the people. “When competence is no longer the issue in appointing people in authority, especially that of security, it becomes a problem. So, what has really happened is where security has been politicised such that the track record of accomplishments is no longer things to reckon with, rather we use religion and ethnicity. That is why security has collapsed in this country. It is very unfortunate and painful the way insecurity is escalating in the southeast. Security agents posted to work here and their heads have not helped matters and have continued to see everyone from this zone as not deserving to live,” he added.

The President, Cultural Credibility Development Initiative (CCDI), Chief Goddy Uwazuruike, said the failure of intelligence system by security forces has given rise to insecurity.

He said: “The menace of criminal gangs has increased such that if you have a nice car, you become a target. Now that public figures are being attacked, it becomes big news and we are calling on the government to step in. It is a failure of the intelligence system for the security forces to fold their arms and continue to watch. A good intelligence system will tell you where these people are. Those criminals are human beings and they leave marks wherever they strike. Those who attacked that convoy have their den around there. It is something the intelligence system will analyse and step on it. To continue to wait for report is a failure.”

On how the growing insecurity could impact the 2023 general elections in the region, a politician, Durueke Samuel noted that it had already started taking its toll on the elections, stressing that “some political activities that are usually carried out during Christmas seasons were not observed last season.”

“If you come to my area, Orlu (Imo state), you will discover our pains and sufferings. Many of our people did not return home. I do not know how they are going to participate in the coming elections with the dislocations and destruction that have come our way. We still live in fear and run from security operatives and non-state actors who dish out instructions at will and enforce them. It is a big challenge for my people. So what we are yearning for at the moment is survival and tranquility to enable us repossess our environment,” he stated.

Chief Donald Okereke, a stalwart of the Labour Party, however, feels that the rise in insecurity in the region would not affect the general elections, insisting that the people are yearning for change and would not be deterred by the scourge.

“Nigerians are ready to take back their country and would stop at nothing in doing so. Insecurity is everywhere. It has affected productivity and good governance of the country. Mis-governance also affects the Southeast region. So, I don’t see them going back. I don’t see them submitting to the threats of these men of the underworld whose motives are to hold all of us to ransom.

“If you look at the way people are rushing to the INEC offices to pick their voter’s card, you will agree with me that the consciousness has been created and the people are already hooked to it. So I expect a similar response during the elections proper. Psychologically, what is happening could weigh down people but the zeal to excel is there,” he said.

He, however, beckoned on the government to rise to the occasion and give the people a reason to believe in her security intervention, alleging that the level of compromise in the security issues of the country has festered insecurity.

Okereke also charged southeast governors to rise to the occasion by way of building confidence in the people on the electoral process, insisting that, “there is no going back in the pursuit of the change that we all require. We cannot, however, achieve the same in an environment devoid of security.”