Members of the Hausa community in
Onitsha, Anambra State, who fled the town following the two-day
pro-Biafran agitation fracas, which resulted in the death of about nine
persons and destruction of properties, are still into hiding.
When our correspondent visited Onitsha
on Saturday, the baristas, shoe menders, green grocers, barbecue sellers
and allied workers, who are of northern origin, had yet to open shops.
Investigations by our correspondent
showed that most of them were still in the Nigerian Army and Nigeria
Police barracks in the area, apparently for fear of attacks.
During the Biafran agitation mayhem, the
Onitsha central mosque, a nomadic school and many other properties
belonging to the Hausa community were destroyed.
An Onitsha resident, who spoke with our
correspondent, said, “After the crisis, most of them only came out in
the night to do brisk businesses and disappear again.”
Efforts to get the reaction of the
Military Cantonment Central Mosque, where most of the displaced victims
camped, did not yield any results as nobody was willing to speak on the
issue.
“We don’t talk to strangers. Our leader
is not around. He is the only person who has the power to talk on our
behalf,” one of the victims said.
When contacted on the telephone, the
state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Ali Okechechukwu, said the
Police were in control of the situation.
He called on the people of the state to go on with their businesses without any fear of molestation.
He said, “The situation is calm. Nobody
should be afraid or hide. The police have brought back normalcy to
Onitsha after the storm and we are ever prepared to sustain the peace
and order in Onitsha.”
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