The People of Ozalla Community in Nkanu West Local Government Area have vowed not to rest until killers of their son, Chief Dons Udeh, APGA Gubernatorial Aspirant in Enugu State, are arrested.
Members of the community came out in their numbers, adorned in black and carrying various placards on Wednesday in Enugu, to protest the “one murder too many.”
Udeh was kidnapped on April 22 and his decomposing body was later found on April 26 at 9th Mile Corner, Udi Local Government Area of the state.
In a protest letter submitted to Gov. Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, Ozalla Development Union (ODU) said, “We are resolved to treat this case as a matter of great importance and with utter dispatch to avoid this case falling into the bucket of numerous unresolved murder cases.”
The letter was signed by the President General of the union, Chief C.N.N. Nwagbara and handed over to Gov. Ugwuanyi.
“The deceased was an accomplished statesman, a community leader and a patriot who had held several positions at the local, state and federal levels, including the Secretary General, Ozalla Development Union, President General, Ozalla Development Union.
“He has served as State Secretary Peoples Democratic Party, Commissioner and member of Enugu State Executive Council, National Commissioner, Nigerian Communications Commission, Board member, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and more recently, a governorship aspirant on the APGA platform in the 2023 elections.
“He was a man who brought to bear his wealth of experience, capacity and strict sense of nation building to our own state and the nation at large.
“He had served creditably well in all the offices he occupied to the admiration of the public. His footsteps in the democratic processes and institutions stand tall as ever,” the letter stated.
The ODU expressed worry that such a man of high pedigree should be murdered in such a cruel manner that depicted the public execution of the medieval era.
They added that the gruesome murder had traumatised the people and every right thinking individual.
“Though we are aggrieved, we have decided not to take laws into our own hands, being law abiding citizens.
“We are therefore constrained to write to your office, knowing your penchant for due process and unblemished integrity to always ensure that justice is not only done but seen to be done in any case brought before you.
“We trust your establishment to conduct an intense forensic investigation into this dastardly act, to reveal the perpetrators behind it and bring them to book as soon as practicable.
“This will bring succour to us and send a signal to others nursing similar criminal intents to steer clear.
“We are more than willing and ready to cooperate with you to achieve this set objective,” it said.
Similarly, Mr Obiora Okwuibe the convener of #JusticeforDonsUdeh, said the community was yet to heal from the kidnap of one of their traditional rulers from Ozalla Etiti to be faced with this.
“This is one murder too many for us to swallow. We have come on our knees to beg the government to bring the perpetrators of this dastardly and heinous act to book.
“The cases of adoption in our community are becoming alarming and we’re begging the government to come to our aid and stop this carnage,” Okwuibe said.
Responding, Gov. Ugwuanyi expressed concern over the sad incident and assured the people of Ozalla and the entire state of his commitment to ensuring that hoodlums had no place in the state.
The governor said late Udeh was a friend and a loyal party man; thus, his death pained him too.
He, however, assured them of his readiness to provide the necessary support to both the community and the security agents to ensure the perpetrators were brought to book.