Traditionalists in Obubo village, Ugbenu, in Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State, at the weekend unleashed terror on a Catholic Priest and his parishioners during a procession in the community.
The cleric, who is recuperating in a hospital, was shot and stabbed by armed youths who were hired by the leaders of a deity in the village. They also injured 20 of the Catholic faithful.
The victim, Rev. Father Fidelis Ifeanyichukwu Ugozo, of St. Raphael’s Catholic Church, was leading his congregation in a prayer procession when the suspected traditional worshippers struck.
The hoodlums, who were armed with dangerous weapons, stabbed the cleric and shot him twice from behind.
The youths were said to have torn the priest’s humeral veil to shreds and stabbed him on the face while his followers were wounded. Residents said that the priest holds a monthly Rosary procession in the village.
According to eyewitnesses, the priest was carrying the “Blessed Sacrament” with his parishioners moving from one village to the other when they were intercepted by one Mr. Gabriel Ikegbunam, now at large.
They said that Ikegbunem insisted that they would not be allowed to enter Obubo village. When the congregation allegedly ignored him, he called in some youths who attacked the priest and others who were mainly women and children.
Father Ugozo, who is the Spiritual Director of Amen and Amen Ministry, Omor, in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, was first rushed to an undisclosed hospital in Ebenebe before being transferred to St. Joseph’s Hospital, Adazi Ani.
A former Catechist in St. Raphael’s Parish, Ugbenu, Chief Cletus Nwankwo said that Obubo village is known in Ugbenu town for idol woshipping. He said the youths suspected that the Rosary procession was aimed at destroying their deity’s shrine.
He said: “They (parishioners) moved from Agueke village to Obiagu and decided to veer into Obubo before Ikegbunam blocked them and in the process alerted the youths that some Catholics were coming to burn their shrine. The youths trooped out, wielding dangerous weapons such as axes, guns and machetes.
“They grabbed the Blessed Sacrament from our Parish Priest, hit it on the floor and used the Monstrance to hit our priest on his hand before stabbing him on the face and other parts of the body”.
The Traditional Ruler of Ugbenu Town, Igwe Lawrence Egwuonu, whose wife, Lolo Egwuonwu, was battered by the youths, said that Ikegbunam, Israel Egwu and two others stormed his palace before the incident occurred to complain that their shrine and other sacred symbols were burnt by some Christians.
“Upon investigation,” he said, “I discovered that they were all liars. None of their shrines was burnt and I can defend it anywhere. It was Ikegbunam that incited others to attack the priest and other Christians. Their greatest mistake was touching the priest and destroying the Blessed Sacrament. It is a sacrilege and they will pay for it”.
At the time of filing this report, two of the suspects, Mr. Anthony Anigbogu and Humphrey Ekwenye, had been arrested by the Police and taken to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Awka.
Others: Moses Ekwenye, the gang leader (Ikegbunam), Amechi Onuorah, Sunday Okoye and Tochukwu Okoye, were said to be on the run.
Other suspects still at large are Sunday Innocent, Amaechi Anozie, Oge Nnakee, Lambert Okoye, Ejike Okafor and Omenankiti Uba.
The Chief Priest of “Ofufe” Deity, Mr. Omenankiti Uba, could not be reached for comments but one of his allies who sought anonymity, said they were protecting their Ofufe Deity since the Catholic Priest was in the habit of destroying shrines in the community.
Residents who did not want to be named said the incident happened around 3pm when the Catholic faithful were on their Rosary and Eucharistic procession.
They said that the priest was about escaping when he heard that the hoodlums were about to shoot him from the back which they eventually did.
One of the residents said that the attack may not be unconnected to a spiritual cleansing the priest carried out three years ago when he resumed duty in the area. He said that although the priest was the prime target of the attack, some of his parishioners were wounded, including the wife of the traditional ruler of the community and a woman whose finger was cut off.
Our reporter learnt the cleric was immediately rushed to a nearby hospital where he was first attended to before he was later brought to the present hospital.
When contacted, the State Police Command said it was not aware of the mayhem but would make contacts to establish the true position of things.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Nkiru Nwode, said that the incident had not been reported to the police.
Source: BreakingTimes