The newly elected President of Orluzurumee Youth Assembly, Prince Izunna Obiefule on Tuesday, October, 7, 2025 addressed a meeting of Amnesty International held in Enugu State.
Obiefule, used the opportunity to highlight the nefarious activities of criminal elements, the attendant security challenges and socio-economic trauma their activities have had on the people who have been denied the opportunity to go about their lawful activities.
According to Obiefule, “Regrettably Fulani Herdsmen had serially, unlawfully, severely and without provocation attacked, killed and maimed helpless farmers and other villagers, as well as destroyed their farms, with many of them taking refuge in neighbouring towns.
Currently, Fulani Herdsmen are in the bushes in the South East attacking, killing and maiming helpless indigenes with security agencies doing nothing to arrest and prosecute them.
This ugly situation is also hindering farmers from cultivating on their farm lands – those who took the risk to cultivate, the herders would command their herds to eat up their crops. This ugly and wanton act had compounded poverty and hunger in the South East”.
The Youth President also noted that kidnapping for ransom, organ harvesting and armed robbery among others, have become rampant in the South East and have continued unabated. Hence many have lost their lives in questionable and gruesome circumstances.
“Badly too, the activities of unknown gunmen had taken lives of innocent people, displaced many indigenes who now find peace and solace in alien communities, not minding the devastating poverty that greet them on daily basis, with government of the day caring less.
Attacks and killings have degenerated in Igbo land. Another worrying situation is the business transactions happening at security checkpoints in the South East wherein roads are barricaded, innocent motorists and other road users being extorted, harassed, intimidated and manhandled.
Obviously, insecurity and unlawful attacks in the South East of Nigeria have their root causes to greed, selfishness, corruption and wickedness which gave room to bad governance, economic imbalance and marginalization (sectionalism, divide and rule), poorly pay/weak security apparatus and arms proliferation.
For instance, some parts in Orlu Senatorial District of Imo State, where I come from, had reached an alarming position where investments are nose-diving, poverty, unemployment soaring and the populace living in fear and agony.
No doubt, insecurity in the South East of Nigeria has handicapped businesses and destroyed the presence of both foreign and local investors.
The economy of the South East has been pushed to zero level, having direct effects on the living standard of the people, as many now feed from hand to mouth, while living in apprehension.
The youths of the twelve local governments in Orlu Senatorial Zone, whom I represent in this gathering today, are clamoring for equity, fairness and justice in the distribution of national cake.
Orlu Zone has been neglected despite the fact that oil and gas, which are the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy, are richly tapped from Orlu Zone soil, hence Imo State is rated as the highest producer of gas in Nigeria.
As I speak, many communities in Orlu Zone especially where the oil and gas are produced do not have public electricity, good road, working hospitals nor good drinking water.
The perceived Nigeria government’s neglect of the region is the major cause of poverty, illiteracy, suffering, poor and dilapidated infrastructure. These challenges frustrate people who take solace in crime and violence.
For crime, violence and insecurity to reduce or be eliminated entirely from the South East, government should shun greed, corruption, selfishness, cheating, shortchanging and marginalization and embrace good governance and purposeful leadership as obtainable in a democratic setting.
The Orluzurumee Youth Assembly, as the Apex and Umbrella Youth Body of Orlu Senatorial District, are calling on security forces to improve on their success stories.
There should be more cordial collaborations between the security agencies and local vigilante outfits for enhanced effective community policing.
Innocent youths should not be tagged unknown gunmen, unlawfully arrested, detained, maimed or killed.
The government should evolve or equip the security apparatus with modern day security gadgets to be able to combat insecurity
The youths of the South East should shun crime and violence: organ harvesting, kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism, banditry, terrorism and embrace hard work to become useful to themselves, families, communities and Igbo nation at large”.
