Igbo Women under the aegis of Igbo Women Assembly ( IWA) has decried the alleged extra judicial killing without due trial and conviction of suspected criminals when apprehended in Anambra state by the Local Vigilante Group called Agunaechemba
IWA national president Lolo Nneka Chimezie decried this scenario during interaction with journalists in Umuahia, Abia state capital and announced IWA’s plan to hold a Special Event on Mother’s Tongue Day scheduled for March 21st, 2025 at the International Conference Centre, Umuahia.
She commended governor Chukwuma Soludo’s in-vigorated strives to address insecurity in Anambra state but expressed fears and concerns that innocent suspects might be killed extra-judicially by the Vigilante Group without following due process of Law.
She said ” many young people are reportedly being killed for crimes they were not being convicted for. I have seen on social media where they packed over 50 youths tagged as criminals and I prayed they were not going to be shot.
“We at IWA are very happy about the ongoing efforts to fight crime in Anambra state but for any innocent man to die, in the process contradicts this well intended anti-crime effort”.
The IWA Leader consequently tasked governor Soludo to look into the activities and modus operandi ( operations ) of the Agunaechemba such that apprehended crime-suspects are handed over to the Police to do the legal needful before prosecuting them.
“We are not saying that the governor should not fight insecurity in the state, but the alleged arresting of people and killing them without trial is wrong”.
On the Mother Tongue Day, Lolo Chimezie said it is part of IWA’s moves to revive the use of Igbo language in schools and homes and
ensure that Igbo language does not go extinct in the next six years as predicted by the United Nations Organization ( UNO ).
” The planned Event is aimed at bringing together stakeholders from all the Igbo speaking states in the country to brainstorm on how to preserve the Igbo language hence, it has become worrisome that most parents, though can understand the language, cannot speak in it, which in turn translates to having children who can neither speak nor understand it”
Positing that there was need to find out if Igbo people were still interested in having the language preserved, the IWA President disclosed that an Igbo school is being proposed for establishment to begin early to teach the children the language and inculcate the Igbo culture in them. END
