Soludo tells genuine agitators to come out of the forests, drop guns for rehabilitation

Tayo AFOLABI

Governor Chukwuma Soludo of Anambra has called on all genuine agitators in the state to embrace the olive branch extended to them by coming out of the forests and dropping their guns for rehabilitation.

The Governor warned that anybody in the bush with guns would be regarded as a criminal and treated as one.

He described the recent attacks in the state as an “act of mindless criminality by a bunch”.

Soludo was reacting to the arson that visited Aguata Local Government Area Secretariat on Thursday.

The governor said that the act was carried out by fleeing criminals who had been sacked from their operational camp by joint operations of Nigerian Security forces.

He said military operations around the borders of Aguluezechukwu and Ogborji communities in the council had led to the dislodging of the arsonists who had operated for about two years.

He said that information from those arrested revealed that they were not from Anambra while worrisome exhibits were discovered from them.

According to Soludo, yesterday, combined forces got to a criminal camp between Agulezechukwu and Ogborji, and that is from where they have operated unhindered for over two years.

”They attacked, kidnapped, maimed and burnt places.

“They were smoked out, the camp destroyed and as they were fleeing cowardly, they decided to set the Local Government Secretariat ablaze but thank God the police came on time and smoked them out.

“From the statistics so far, 85 per cent of people arrested come from one of the states in the South East and the remaining 15 per cent from another state in the Southeast.

”It is really our people doing this to themselves.

“From the items recovered from them, they are common criminals, there is a register of those kidnapped, how much they paid, balance remaining, date of kidnap and how, shrines, arms and food items,” he said.