Obosi is the home town of Igwe Isaac Iweka, the first Igbo engineer; Chief Emeka Anyaoku, former Commonwealth secretary general; the late Chief Chimezie Ikeazor, a legal luminary and founder of Legal Aid Council; Chief Osita Chidoka, former Nigeria’s minister of Aviation; the late Ogidi Ibeabuchi, former Enugu Rangers International Football Club ace; Chief Mike Ajegbo, former senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; Dame Dorathy Ejindu, and others.
Obosi is a fast developing town with industries springing up in every nook and cranny of the town. The proliferation of industries in the town has led to the reduction of the rate of unemployment in the area. Those industries do hire workers for the production of goods and provision of services to people.
However, Obosi has its own peculiar niggling problems. It has been battling incidences of crime for a relatively long while now. But, it has successfully tackled its problem of crimes. Armed robbery incidents have abated in the town while cult-violence in it has stopped following rapprochement brokered for the cultists by prominent indigenes of the town. Thankfully, today, the atmosphere of peace is reigning in the town, which made both natives and non-natives of the town to heave a sigh of relief.
But sadly, now, some miscreants and hoodlums, who are not natives of Obosi, have not given up their perpetration of criminal activities. Those ne’er-do-wells do engage in such sundry criminal acts as pick pocketing, snatching of phones and handbags, internet financial crimes, burglary, and others. When they are caught in the acts of committing crimes, they assume false identities and claim that they hail from Obosi.
Those criminals and undesirable elements (non-indigenes of Obosi) who live within the Obosi metropolis are besmirching the reputation of Obosi town by their false claims. Their fibbing regarding their towns of origins portray Obosi people as bad people, who are adepts at committing crimes like armed robbery, internet fraud, rape, burglary, and others.
This is the reason some industrialists are giving Obosi town a wide berth regarding siting of industries and factories. The indisputable fact is this: Obosi people are proud and honourable. And they do not demean themselves and soil their images by engaging in anti-social behaviours.
Those miscreants who tarnish the image of our town should be punished.
A stitch in time saves nine.
Chiedu Uche Okoye, a poet, is from Uruowulu-Obosi, Anambra State.
