The Nigeria Army has denied that the home of the Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu was under siege.
According to Deputy Director, Army Public Relation and Information, 82 Division, Colonel Sagir Musa, no soldiers were deployed at the home of the IPOB leader. Col. Musa who spoke in Umuahia when visited the Abia State Council of NUJ which was attacked by some overzealous soldiers, also said that the Operation Python Dance [Egwu Eke] was not targeted at anybody but aimed at tackling the security situation in the South East zone. Musa who regretted the action of the soldiers said he came to apologize for the action of the soldiers.
He said the General IOfficer Commanding 82 Division, Maj. Gen. Adamu Baba Abubakar sent him to tender the apology even as he promised that the soldiers involved in the act would be fished out and sanctioned appropriately. Col. Musa said that the GOC was so disturbed by the incident that he immediately detailed to go to Umuahia to meet with journalists and appeal to them for calm as the army was on top of the situation.
“It is regrettable that this ugly incident happened to a group of people I have known and worked with since 2010-2011 when kidnapping was at its peak in the state and I would not want that cordial relationship to be spoilt. “I am in Umuahia on behalf of my boss Mag. Gen. Adamu Baba Abubakar who is the general officer commanding, GOC, 82 Division, Enugu, to express our concern over what happened today (yesterday) which is not the normal way we operate. “I want to assure you that all those who took part in the action against journalists will be fished out and dealt accordingly. The Operation Egwu Eke (Python Dance) will commence from 15th of September to 14th of October and the exercise is not targeted at any group.
“The exercise is targeted at all security flash points in the entire South East geopolitical zone which is the reason behind the army show of force; particularly it is targeted at kidnappings, armed robbery, cultism, insurgency and session agitators”, Col. Musa said. He insisted that there was no military siege at the home of the IPOB leader and that the Egwu Eke operations was not targeted at Nnamdi Kanu or any person or group[s]/ In his response, the Vice Chairman of the Council, Ezeogo Boni Okoro said that it was a shame that the military would invade the NUJ state secretariat over flimsy excuse that journalists were taking pictures of the show of force convoy.
Okoro said that he was slapped, gun cocked at him while his iPad and the phones of his colleagues were smashed by the soldiers and called on the military hierarchy to rein on their junior men and to also fish out those behind the dastardly act and deal with them accordingly.
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