Late Anene Utazi died on Feb. 25, days after he was
wounded at Ladipo Market, Mushin following the clash between
security agents and traders during a protest against alleged extortion
by hoodlums.
Ladipo
Market President-General, Mr Kingsley Ogunor who narrated how Utazi died
said the 27-year-old sustained injuries from matchet cuts on his head
and a gunshot on his right muscle on February 18. He fell into a coma
and died a week later.
Ogunor had urged the Inspector-General of Police (IG), AIG Zone 2 and the
state Commissioner of Police to fish out the killers of the late Utazi,
adding that so far no arrest had been made.
"The magnitude of these cases and its emotional outburst is not one
to be swept under the carpet for us to achieve a serene environment. As
we remain calm, peaceful and law-abiding, we have explicit confidence in
the Nigeria Police force in discharging their constitutional duties,’"
he said.
The market association’s Secretary-General Pastor Steve Paul said
the traders also lost goods and cash worth N45 million. Ogunor accused
one Ijoba, a cemetery attendant, of fomenting the trouble that led to
the death of Utazi. He debunked claims that the association owed the
owners of the land
on which the market is built, a problem which triggered the conflict.
"The Owoyemi family, who purportedly lay claim to Odo Aladura Market
with over 2,000 traders and 200,000 dependents, resulted to self-help
by employing the services of Ijoba for the demolition of the Odo Aladura
Market without following due process of law and applying police
protection. Let me also use this opportunity to debunk the rumours going around
that we are fighting our wonderful Yoruba community. We are only seeking
justice for our departed member, killed by another Igbo man," Ogunor
added.
A representative of the
Utazi family, Mr Denis Dieke called for justice. Dieke lamented that his
brother was attacked despite that his shop was in the middle of the
market. While seeking a befitting funeral for the deceased, he urged the
government and his colleagues to assist Utazi’s family, noting that he
had many relatives and an aged father as dependents.
Credit: The Nations
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