By Comr Amos Kalu

There is indeed a sad atmosphere hovering over Ohafia as a video making rounds on social media depicts a young lady alleged to have been shot by stray bullets.

According to sources who narrated the incident to OHAFIA TV News, the stories behind the fracas seem to be sketchy at this point, but it has been confirmed that besides the life lost in the circulating video, more people are feared to have been affected as economic activities and human movements have been grounded due to fear of the rampaging soldiers in Ohafia.

Sunday Ibe Oge, and eye witness said that the young lady, Miss Chinenye Ajunwa was cut down by a strayed bullet in Ebem Ohafia, headquarters of Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia on Wednesday, August 17, 2022, during a gun duel between soldiers and some yet-to-be-identified hoodlums who had earlier warned that no political activity will be welcomed in Ohafia in 2023.

The deceased is said to be from Amuta in Isuikwuato local government area, but resident and owned a shop in Ohafia.

Another source corroborated the narrative that the origin of the chaos is related to the visit of Senator Orji Uzor Kalu, the APC Senatorial Candidate for Abia North to Ohafia which brought deadly opposition that warranted the soldiers to escort him out of Ohafia only to return to meet confrontation by the hoodlums, resulting to gun-duel. Yet another narrative posited that it is related to an encounter between soldiers at Nguzu Junction that escalated to death and retaliation.

We, therefore, call on the relevant authorities to intervene and bring this issue under control to prevent further loss of lives in the once peaceful and calm city. There should be better and more civil ways of settling crises rather than these incessant confrontations between soldiers of Goodluck Ebele Jonathan Barack and their host community, Ohafia, that always end up hurting everyone.

RIP Chinyere.