Today, March 8, 2014 is a sad day in the otherwise peaceful community of Mgbee in Orlu Local Government of Imo State.
31-year-old musician Onunaka Asika aka Shalla passed away on December 8, 2013 after complaining of a sudden chest pain, while on a church trip. He was rushed to the hospital and gave up the ghost soon after.
This morning, Saturday March 8, 2014, ahead of the burial of the deceased, his father, Chief Linus Asika who is prime minister of Mgbee and elder brother of the late musician, Uchenna Asika refused to come out of their story building to receive the youths who had brought the corpse from the mortuary for burial in his father’s compound.
This action led to protest at the Asika compound, youths from the community and neighbouring communities gathered and threatened to pull down the house of the prime minister if he and his eldest son, Uchenna did not come out to receive them.
“We had gone to make our findings, and the oracle says that Uchenna is responsible for the death of his brother, Onunuka,” one of the youth leaders who did not want to be named told The Trent’s correspondent. ”And the oracle says that their father, our prime minister is aware of Uchenna’s wickedness.”
”We must rid our land of this wickedness!”, ”Come out and answer!”, some of the angry youths chanted.
Eventually, elders prevailed on the youths to keep the peace and allow the burial of Onunaka, who until his death was a trumpheter working with Cherubim and Seraphim Church in Orlu, to proceed.
The accused elder brother, Uchenna Asika, did not come out of the house, perhaps in fear of being lynched by the youth, and did not witness his late brother’s burial.
The late Onunaka Asika leaves behind his father and mother, three brothers, two sisters, and a daughter.
