Mr Kamus Ile from Boji-Boji Owa, Agbor, Delta State, has cried out over the sudden disappearance of his friend, Nduka Harrison Ehikaogwu.
He stated that the whereabouts of his friend, Harrison, remained unknown since the invasion of his father’s home by some uniformed men suspected to be security agents.
Ile, a prominent businessman in Agbor was speaking when the media confronted him in Agbor on Tuesday, August 29, 2016.
Ile who was sobbing profusely disclosed that he could not say if his friend was alive or dead because his location became unknown immediately after the security personnel invaded their home at No 9, Opia Street, Boji-Boji Owa, Agbor, Delta State.
Ile who expressed shock over the event in the family of his friend, revealed that Harrison, aside having lost his father in 2012, Harrison’s mother was killed by security agents a week ago, adding that the disappearance of his friend was inexplicable.
He cried out that those who took his friend away should take him to where they kept him or if he is dead, show him where they bury him, lamenting that the government is not doing enough to put a stop to the activities of herdsmen in the country.
He said, “I can’t see my very good friend. This is barely a week since they killed his mother not to talk of having lost his father 4 years ago and now their son cannot be found.
On further interrogation, he stated that Harrison led a protest in July, 2016, and he Kamus Ile, donated three buses to take the protesters from Agbor to Asaba. He said, “I donated three buses for the protest. During the protest he was arrested and released on condition that he would never participate in such protest again, but in August there were more clashes between the farmers and the herdsmen and the security agents who have not shown impartiality saw Harrison as the mastermind.
He said he has gone to several police stations around Agbor in search of his friend, but all to no avail.
According to Ile, Harrison was fingered as one of the masterminds of the protests.
He disclosed that the security agents whom he accused of not only invading many homes in search of the masterminds of the protest and whisked away many, might be responsible for the disappearance of Harrison.
He said Harrison’s mother, Rebecca Okpuzor, was beaten to stupor in his house at Ika North-east Local Government Area, Agbor, Delta and she died in the hospital that same day.
Making independent inquiry into the probable cause of death or disappearance of Nduka Harrison Ehikaogwu, this journalist interviewed a resident in the area whom he felt could lead him to the truth of the matter.
The native narrated how the community has been under attacks by the Fulani herdsmen since 2015 when Buhari, a Fulani man, took over government of Nigeria, they fed their cattle on people’s farms, destroyed crops and killed owners of those farms at the slightest confrontation.
For Mr Simon Ikem, one of the eyewitnesses revealed that the last straw that broke the camel’s back was the killing of four farmers by the herders and the reluctance of the security agencies to act.
He said, “On Saturday, July 2, 2016, four farmers were killed in their farm by the Fulani herdsmen, so the youth of the community carried the dead bodies to Owa-Oyibo Police Station. On getting to the station with the corpses, the personnel on duty felt unconcerned, it was worse even when they were told that the Fulani herders were responsible for the death of the people, a couple and their two children. They simply told them to go and bury the corpses. When the native insisted on being properly addressed, the police teargased them and they left in anger.”
According to Ikem, two days later Harrison mobilized the youths of the community for a peaceful protest at the Government House in Asaba, capital of Delta State to protest the incessant killing of farmers by the Fulani herders. He was arrested at the scene of the protest alongside eight others and clamped in the back of the truck of the law enforcement agents, all of them Fulani who accused them of trying to destabilize the country, accusing him of supporting PDP and all manner of accusations instead of addressing the real issue. They were beaten and locked up for over a week. The families of those locked up searched for their love ones in various police stations. But at the end, we give God the glory that they were later released after being detained for over a week.
“Two weeks ago, there were more clashes between young farmers and Fulani herdsmen in Owa-Oyibu. In one of the clashes the herdsmen killed a young lady prompting local youths to fight back, and succeeded in chasing the herders away, and managed to seize some of their cows.
“The security officers said they were given order from Abuja to arrest all the protesters of 4th July 2016, they invaded houses and when they got to Nduka’s house, he was not at home, they met his mother alone in the house and when she could not provide them needed information about Harrison’s whereabouts they beat her to coma.
“She was rushed to the hospital and she died same day,” he narrated.
As it is now, the disappearance of Patrick and Harrison, has remain a puzzle for the community as families, community and even the security agencies have not been able to give the correct answer as to where they are.
