The Northern Community in Umuchieze Cattle Market in Umunneochi Local Government Area of Abia State has described the government’s allegation of decomposing corpses around the market as an alibi to execute a plot to chase them away from the land they had occupied since 2005.
While addressing the media earlier in the week, Governor Alex Otti had said a large number of decomposed and headless bodies as well as skeletons were discovered in the market located at Lokpanta in Umuchieze.
The governor added that intelligence showed that most ransom for kidnapping were dropped around the market.
Otti, who had expressed concern over the state of insecurity at the Umuennochi/Isuikweato axis, said the market had become a den of criminals and kidnappers.
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He had insisted that the government was going ahead with its plan to make the market non-residential.
He, therefore, ordered the traders to live with the natives in the neighbouring communities.
Reacting to the order, the spokesperson for the community, Buba Abdullahi, expressed dissatisfaction with the governor’s position.
Abdullahi debunked the government’s claim that the market was littered with decomposed corpses and skeletons and that the market harboured criminals.
He alleged that part of the plot was the recent demolition of houses in the market.
Abdullahi put their population at 15,000, saying that they occupied about 80 hectares of the land that was donated to them by the Orji Kalu-led government.
According to him, if the government would fence the market, demolish our houses and ask us to go and live in the neighbouring villages, it means it has automatically chased us away from Abia.
He said: “We northerners are peace-loving and very accommodating. This is the reason there are many Southerners in the North doing their business without harassment and threats of eviction.
“It is unjust, unfair and ungodly for anyone to prevent any Nigerian from staying in any part they so desire in Nigeria.
“There is a general misconception that the northern community is harbouring criminals, but all the brothels, rooms, beer parlours, night clubs and lodging accommodation recently demolished belong to the natives.”
Appealing to the government to allow the traders reside inside the market, Abdullahi said it would be a “tactical mistake for us to relocate to communities in Umuchieze, considering the prevailing high rate of crime in the area”.
He said that some of them were also victims of the crimes taking place around the area.
He expressed their readiness to collaborate with the state government toward finding a lasting solution to the security challenges in the area.
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