It was a black Sunday in the ancient town of Owo, in Ondo state as gunmen attacked Saint Francis Catholic Church, Owaluwa area of the town, near the Olowo of Owo’s Palace, killing scores of worshipers during service.
The gunmen were said to have used dynamites to blow the altar of the church while the service was going on, with parts of the altar caving in following sporadic shooting of many worshipers.
No fewer than 50 persons were said to have been killed by the gunmen with several others injured.
Blood stains littered the floor of the church as corpses were moved to the Federal Medical Centre Owo.
Many of those injured in the incident were also rushed to the hospital.
One of the health workers on duty at the FMC Owo disclosed that over 50 people were brought to the hospital.
“They are still bringing people to the hospital; some have been confirmed dead while some are still breathing. For now, I can’t specify the number of people killed,” the worker said.
70 killed, says lawmaker
In yet another version, the majority leader of the State House of Assembly, Oluwole Ogunmolasuyi, said the attack affected about 100 persons.
Ogunmolasuyi, the lawmaker representing Owo Constituency 1, said he visited the church and hospital to see the victims.
“It’s a very sad incident. Of course, it had already happened before I got there. I saw thousands of angry youths. It was barbaric, never experienced in the history of Ondo State,” he said.
“We should be looking at a casualty figure of between 70 and 100. I saw more than 20 people dead, especially children.
’23 people killed’
An official at the Federal Medical Centre, Owo also said 23 bodies had been admitted to the morgue of the hospital, two of which are children.
The official, who would not want to be named because he was not authorised to speak, said the 28 persons who are survivors, are still receiving medical attention, noting that they sustained very serious injuries.
“Of the number, 17 are females while 11 are males,” the official said.
“They are relatively stable and are being attended to by general and orthopaedic surgeons at the hospital’s theatre.”
He also said that 13 children were rushed in immediately after the incident, but two arrived at the hospital already dead.
“The other 10 children are receiving treatment and are relatively stable,” the source said.
A witness, who identified herself as Toyin, said the terrorists attacked the church while the priest was rounding off proceedings of the service.
“They first started by throwing in explosives into the church hall, which sent the worshipers scampering for safety,” she said.
“It was while they were running for safety that the attackers started shooting at them.
“It was initially thought that the Reverend Father was kidnapped, but he was not kidnapped, he survived the attack.” (Premium Times)
Ondo gov reacts
In his reaction, Ondo state Governor Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, SAN, expressed sadness over the tragic event.
He said: “The vile and satanic attack is a calculated assault on the peace-loving people of Owo Kingdom who have enjoyed relative peace over the years.
“It is a black Sunday in Owo. Our hearts are heavy. Our peace and tranquility have been attacked by the enemies of the people. This is a personal loss, an attack on our dear state.
“I have spoken to the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Ondo, Most Reverend Jude Arogundade, who is presently on his way to Owo. Similarly, I have had to cut short my party’s national assignment in Abuja and visit Owo immediately.
“This is an unexpected development. I am shocked to say the least. Nevertheless, we shall commit every available resource to hunt down these assailants and make them pay. We shall never bow to the machinations of heartless elements in our resolves to rid our state of criminals.
“I commiserate with my people in Owo, particularly families of the those who lost their lives to this ugly and unfortunate attack. I extend my condolences to Olowo of Owo, Oba Gbadegesin Ogunoye as well as the Catholic Church.
“I urge our people to remain calm and vigilant. Do not take laws into your hands. I have spoken to the heads of the security agencies. I have equally been assured that security operatives would be deployed to monitor and restore normalcy to Owo kingdom.”
Police confirm devt
Meanwhile, the police authority has confirmed the incident through the public relations officer, Funmilayo Odunlami.
Odunlami, however, said the command had yet to ascertain the cause of the attack.
The police spokesperson, who promised to provide more details on the attack, said the Ondo state Commissioner of Police was on his way to the scene to ascertain the cause of the incident.
Governor Akeredolu, who moved straight to Owo from the Akure Airport has received briefs from the Heads of Security agencies in the state.
Catholic condemns attack
In its condemnation, the Catholic Diocese said security agencies had been deployed to the church to ensure normalcy.
In a statement signed by Rev. Fr. Augustine Ikwu, Director Social Communications of the Church said “at this point in the history of our dear country Nigeria, we need God’s ultimate intervention to restore peace and tranquility.
“Meanwhile, all the Priests and Bishop in the parish are safe and none was kidnapped as the social media has it.
“Nonetheless, let us continue to pray for them and the good people of Owo and the state at large.
“We turn to God to console the families of those whose lives were lost to this distressing incident, and we pray for the departed souls to rest in peace. Amen.
“The Bishop appeals that we remain calm, be law-abiding and pray for peace an normalcy to return to our community, state and country.”
… Kill Sokoto monarch’s wife, abduct wedding guests
Similarly, terrorists have killed the wife of a village head and wounded several people in Isa local government area of Sokoto state in a Saturday afternoon attack.
Fifty-seven people were abducted from two villages – Gebe and Alkammu. 50 were abducted in Gebe and seven in Alkammu.
Premium Times gathered that the wife of the village head of Gebe was killed after the gunmen attacked a wedding.
A source, who asked not to be named over concern for his safety, said it seems the bandits were attracted by the movement of the wedding guests from other towns to Gebe.
“There was a wedding ceremony yesterday at the village head’s house. Most of those who were abducted were mostly from Sokoto city and Isa who were at the community to celebrate with the monarch,” he said.
The source said the wife of the village head was killed for refusing to be abducted.
“She was the only person killed as far as we know now. And I was told by the displaced people of the village that she told the bandits that she would not follow them to their hideouts. They however wounded several people in the attack you know because possibly they started shooting when they entered Gebe to scare people away.”
Nuhu Shehu, another source, said the village head of Gebe confirmed that 50 people were abducted.
“You know since there is no mobile network, it’ll be hard to get their response quickly. So, we only got to know what was happening when they come to Sokoto or Wurno. We now heard that 50 people mostly from Sokoto and Isa, who attended the ceremony, were abducted and his (Village Head) wife killed,” he said.
Also, the Alkammu community in Wurno local government area was also attacked Friday night and seven people, including a village leader, were abducted.
Yusuf Gidan Dare, a local journalist from the area, told Premium Times that the attackers rustled some cattle in the village.
“They didn’t kill anyone in the attack on Alkammu,” Dare said.
“But they abducted seven residents including the Dangaladiman Alkammu (a senior traditional title holder) and six others. I learnt that they have not contacted the family for ransom payment yet,” he said.
Kwara
In a related development, gunmen reportedly shot dead two travellers and abducted unspecified number of people along Obbo Ayegunle-Osi road in Ekiti local government area of Kwara state.
A statement by the state Police Command Sunday confirmed the incident.
According to the command’s spokesman, SP Okasanmi Ajayi, the gunmen shot into the vehicle and fatally injured the driver simply known as Akeem and one Mama Ariye, both of Obbo Ayegunle town.
“Information received on 4/6/2022 was to the effect that at about 1700hrs same day, unknown armed men forcefully attacked an 18 seater commercial bus with REG NO XC 167 MUN, along Obbo Ayegunle- Osi-road, shot into the vehicle and fatally injured the driver one Akeem ‘M’ saw name unknown and one Mama Ariye ‘F’ both of Obbo Ayegunle town and abducted yet to be specified numbers of passengers.
“On receipt of the information by the police in Obbo Ayegunle, policemen, vigilante, local hunters and available members of sister agencies on ground immediately raced to the scene.
“Bodies of the dead were retrieved and deposited at Carosi Hospital mortuary in Osi for autopsy, while they stormed the bushes in an effort to get the kidnapped victims rescued,” he stated.
“The Commissioner of Police, CP Tuesday Assayomo, on hearing of the unfortunate incident directed that a massive manhunt for the perpetrators of the heinous crime must commence, gave a marching order to the Area Commander and the Divisional Police Officers covering the area to move into the bushes to ensure that the kidnapped victims were rescued and the kidnappers arrested.
“While empathizing with the families of the deceased, the Commissioner of Police assures that the perpetrators of the crime would be smoked out from wherever they may be hiding.
“Consequently, the CP has directed a 24-hour patrol of the area in conjunction with other sister security agencies to boost the confidence of the people and to also prevent any further attack in the area,” he said.
Buhari condemns killings
Condemning the Ondo killing, President Muhammadu Buhari said “only fiends from the nether region could have conceived and carried out such dastardly act,” adding that “eternal sorrow awaits them both on earth here and ultimately in the hereafter.”
“The President mourned the dead, condoles with their families, the Catholic Church, and the Government of Ondo State, charging emergency agencies to swing into action, and bring succor to the wounded.
“No matter what, this country shall never give in to evil and wicked people, and darkness will never overcome light. Nigeria will eventually win,” he said.
