Two rival groups have caused serious pandemonium in Ette town of Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu state after a disagreement ensued between them. This has resulted in serious damages as not less than 10 houses were razed while an unnamed number of people sustained severe injuries.
The said disagreement emanated from their deliberations on whether to remain as part of Enugu citizens or to join members of Kogi state which is nearby.
The Army Command the 82 Division of the Nigerian Army deployed soldiers to the area to calm the situation.
According to a report by Vanguard, it was gathered that fight ensued when the proponents of Kogi attacked a youth leader who was against them and set his house on fire.
Police sources at Enugu Ezike disclosed that the group proposing to be merged with Kogi state shot at the leader of the Enugu proponents Mr Matthias Eje four times.
Even though Eje survived the attack, he was inflicted with numerous bullet wounds from the gun shots while his house was razed down by fire.
Other houses were also gutted in another part of Ette town know as Onoda.
Eje was taken to an unnamed private hospital in Enugu where he is said to be responding to treatment.
However, the people in favour of remaining in Enugu launched a an attack bent on retaliation, putting houses of some of their attackers om fire before the soldiers arrived the scene and intervened.
One of the citizens of Ette who preferred to be anonymous disclosed that before the attack, “the pro-Enugu youths of Ette had successfully repelled the invading pro-Kogi armed youths four times in the past few weeks’’
“Those attacks had in the past one year escalated to such a level that those in favour of ceding the large area from Enugu to Kogi had forced a Catholic Church Parish to close down, while most government establishments in the area now barely exist,’’ he added.
