The Arewa community in Abia State has demanded compensation for its members killed and properties destroyed by suspected members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in Aba, Abia State, Southeast Nigeria.
The group claimed that five of its members were killed and many injured by suspected IPOB separatist agitators in Aba, the commercial centre of Abia State.
It said during the attack, properties worth millions of naira were burnt or destroyed by suspected members of the group following the #EndSARS protest in the town.
Sabi’u Ibrahim, an Arewa community member, told HumAngle that the suspected IPOB members carrying guns stormed their area, burnt over 30 lorries, killed five people, and injured many others.
An unverified video shows the gunmen heading to the area some moments before the attack. Other videos and photographs circulating online show properties being burnt down and people hiding in nearby bushes.
“Lives and properties were lost.
“We are calling on the government to investigate and compensate the victims of the attack,” he said.
Ibrahim said a delegation from the Abia State Government visited the area after the attack and urged the affected community for calm, but no further action had been taken so far.
He called on the state governments in Northern Nigeria to intervene and pressure the Abia State Government to ensure justice is served.
Governor Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State had imposed a 24-hour curfew on the Aba but later relaxed it from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. following the outbreak of violence in the city.
The president through his spokesman, Garba Shehu, urged for calm.
“The right of all citizens to live and work in any part of the country is a constitutional right and will be defended by the government,” Shehu said.
He added that President Muhammadu Buhari had “condemned hate messages and eviction notices to ethnic and religious groups” and asked, “Nigerians to take pride in the fact that our diverse people have been living with one another in harmony for ages.”
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