Fear Grips Ibusa - By CHRISTOPHER OJI
Fear and apprehension rightly described the atmosphere in Ibusa,
Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta state.
The one-time peaceful and largest town in Delta State known for
its farm produce is now a shadow of itself, as men and women have
refused to go to farm for fear of being killed by suspected
ritualists who have been unleashing terror on the community. The
evil men target only women who are above fifty.
Daily Sun reliably gathered that from December 2009 to July 2010,
nine women have been murdered in their farmlands and their body
parts tampered with.
When Daily Dun visited the town recently, people discussed the
new trend of alleged ritual murder in low tones. Women have
refused to go to the farm while their male counterparts are afraid
to also go to the farm alone for fear of running into the ritual
killers, who may feel they were being trailed by the men.
The traditional Prime Minister of Ibusa (Odogwu), Dr Tony
Nwaezeigwe, took the reporter to some of the scenes of the
killings. He said the incidents smack of ritual killings.
The university lecturer revealed that nine women have been killed by the evil men since last year December with the latest being in July 2010. Tracing the killing to ritualists, he said: “The manner in which their victims were killed suggest ritual. The killers target women above 50 and after killing them, they tamper with their private parts through where they removed their wombs.”
He said the manner in which the first one was killed was the
same way others were killed. He explained that aside the physical
evidences seen on the corpses, he and his team had gone for
inquiry from the oracles: “
He is of the opinion that solution to the killings should not be
left for the police alone. “We should go back to our root and
ask our ancestors to fish the evil men. Moreso, we should place a
curse on those behind the shameful act in Ibusa.”
Odogwu revealed that the prices of food has gone high in Ibusa
and its environ as people are now afraid to go to the farm. “As
you can see, Ibusa people are farmers while our women concentrated
in processing cassava and vegetables, the men engaged in yam
planting. Now, the women are afraid to go to the farm because they
are the target. The men are also afraid to go for fear of possibly
running into the evil men. As you can see palm wine and bush meat
are also scarce as tapers and hunters are also afraid to go to the
bush.
Nwaezeigwe described the happenings as shameful and abominable
warning the killers to leave the town or risk the wrath of the
gods of the land as the community will tackle the problem
traditionally.
He continued: “blood money will always backfire as the curse
associated with it will visit the family of perpetrators from
generation to generation.”
His Royal Highness, Onowu Patrick Mowete, also described the new
trend of killings in Ibusa as abominable.
The 102-year-old man, who is the oldest in the clan (Diokpa), said
there is just on reason for the killing. It was purely for money
making ritual. Those behind it are advanced fee fraudsters
(419ners) who are being chased up and down by law enforcement
agents. They now know that 419 no longer pays and have now gone
into rituals.”
He called on Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan to wade into the matter as he is the Chief Security Officer of the state. “Our wives and children are afraid to go to the farm for fear of being killed by the ritualists who have invaded our town. If you go outside, you can see them hanging around. It is not that they are lazy, they are afraid to go to the farm. Our farm produce are dying gradually because there is nobody to clear the farms.
He also advised parents and guardians to advise their children
and wards if they are involved in such act, to come out honourably
and confess their sins, “before we place curses on them. We are
about doing so and the curse will consume all the members of the
community who are behind the act.”
A retired teacher, the Ochibadike Oshia of Ibusa, Patrick Okolie,
whose cousin was a victim described the killing as wickedness in
highest order. “My sister, Onyebuchi Nwaokocha was gruesomely
killed while she was clearing her farm. After killing her, the
evil men through her private part removed her womb and stuck her
wrapper into her vagina.”
The 70-year-old man who claimed the killing was for money making ritual said the solution to the development would be that of metaphysical. “We should resort to tradition and ask our gods to intervene. In the olden days, this evil men would have been fished out within seven days. But few weeks from now, they would be unmasked by the gods of the land.”
He said while the governor and the police will be doing their
part to unmask those involved, “we the traditional rulers should
go back to our tradition and ask questions and release our god to
deal with the evil men.”
A retired Shell staff, the Onu Diokpa of Ibusa, Okpala Etufunwa
corroborated the belief of others that the reason for the
incidents was for money making ritual.
He said: “Our children are responsible for the killing. So, the
killers are in our midst. We are afraid because as we are planning
to unravel the mystery and unmask the killers, our children are
giving out information to their gang because they are involved.”
Etufunwa said there is tension in the land as no one knows the
next target. “So, we want government’s intervention urgently
in the land. Nine of our women have been killed and nobody is
saying anything.”
The Local Government Chairman, Mr. Ben Okonkwo, who spoke to
Daily Sun at his office in Akwukwu Igbo, also traced the killings
to money making ritual. He wants the people to know that the
killers are in their midst. “I am saying unequivocally that the
culprits are indigenes of Ibusa even though they may be
collaborating with outsiders. So, I am advising them to assist the
police in giving out information about their children who are in
this ritual murder.”
He said: “As the Chief Security Officer of Oshimili North LGA,
the information at my disposal shows that nine women have so far
been killed. The women were not killed in one area but in
different farm lands. The manner and style in which they were
killed suggest ritual murder.”
He described the development as pathetic as the killings have brought untold hardship on Ibusa community and the LGA as a whole. “Agriculture is the major source of our income but due to the ritual killings targeted at women, they are now afraid to go to farm. If people are afraid to go to farm, you should know the danger involve. Food prices will skyrocket and there will be scarcity and inflation.
On the measures put in place to checkmate ritual killings, he said the council had embarked on orientation campaign to discourage youths against ill-gotten wealth and the need for hard work “because, the syndrome of get rich quick is the order of the day now. People no longer want to work, otherwise how can one demean himself to kill a woman, severe her private part, if not for money ritual making.”
Secondly, he said the state police command has brought a part
of the State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) to Okpanam which share the
same boundary with Ibusa in a bid to track down the perpetrators
of the ritual killings and other vices.
He called on Ibusa clan to clean itself of ritualists by giving
out information to the police “because the killers live in their
midst.”
However, the state police spokesman, Mr. Charles Mouka said only
four women were killed in the bush. He said the police have been
collaborating with the local vigilante to seeing that they
unmasked the killer squad. Unfortunately, all the women who were
murdered went to farm where they were killed by their assailants
all alone. So, nobody could come out to give description of the
perpetrators.
”
On what he suspected may be the reason behind the killings, he
said the force would not tie the reason to one thing or the other.
“All we are saying is that the killers are not strangers, they
live in our midst. So, indigenes should assist the police in the
area of information so as to arrest the killers so that Ibusa will
be at peace.
Daily Sun was accompanied by the Odogwu and his entourage to visit
some of the scenes, the farm roads were lonely as only few
courageous men who were in groups were seen on the road. The men
were heavily armed with double barrel guns and other farm tools.
A man who spoke on the farm road, Sunday Agbo, said it was now a common practice for them to go to the farm in group as no one knew when the evil men would strike. “My brother, that is the only way we can survive. But it is not an easy thing to gather in group to go to the farm the same time.