President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Chief Nnia Nwodo, the Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB), leading clerics and groups, yesterday, condemned the bomb attack on Holy Cross Catholic Church, Iji-Nike in Enugu-East Council Area of Enugu State.
They said the attack in the early hours of Sunday is not only sacrilegious but also satanic.
Specifically, Nwodo flayed the use of Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in Igbo land, calling on the security agencies to unravel those behind the dastardly act.
“I am alarmed that IEDs are beginning to be used recklessly in Igboland and this casts aspersion on the security in Igbo land. This places a serious bounding on the security to find the source of the IEDs.”
MASSOB, in a statement by its National Director of Information, Edeson Samuel said the unprovoked attack is a crime against the body of Christ, which would not be accepted.
The pro-Biafra group, which accused Islamic fundamentalists of the attack warned that they would no longer condone such aggression.
“MASSOB investigation has revealed that the aim of these traitors is nothing but to create fear and disaffection among us, this will give them the opportunity of divide and rule syndrome in Igboland. It was the house of Chief Nnia Nwodo and Chief Kalu Idika Kalu, now Catholic church,” the statement read.
However, Archbishop of Enugu Anglican Communion, Dr. Emmanuel Chukwuma has attributed the incident to the porosity of security in the country.
He expressed doubt whether the present administration was really in charge of the security of lives in the nation.
Also, former President of Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) and Bishop of Rock Family Church, Dr. Obi Onubogu described those behind the attack as cowards, stressing that they had failed if their aim was to destabilise the Igbo nation.
But he warned: “We can’t wait until they get into the market places.
On its part, the Igbo Civil Society Coalition (ICSCO) in a statement by its National Convener, Bismarck Oji said they believed the attack was related to the recent bombing of the country home of the Ohaneze President General.
The group alleged that those behind it might be non-Igbo, who were apparently doing a dress rehearsal for something much more serious.
But the Enugu State Police Command has denied reports of alleged bomb explosion at a Catholic church in the state on Sunday.
Command spokesman, Ebere Amaraizu, said there was no bomb blast in any church in the state.
“The command wish to make it categorically clear to the members of the public that there was no bomb explosion at Holy Cross Catholic Parish at Iji Nike in Abakpa, Enugu State, as being speculated.
“And that there was a report of alleged explosion in the church in the morning on Sunday in which the command’s Explosive Ordinance Department (EOD) promptly attended to together with other security operatives of the command.
“The command to this end, wish to advice members of the public to go about their normal lawful businesses as analysis from the men of the EOD of the command revealed that that it has got nothing to do with improvised explosive devise or it like.
“But it is pyrotechnic which the perpetrator used to cause panic to church members.
“There was no loss of lives, injury or damage to properties during the incident,’’ he said.
The spokesman said that police operatives in the EOD department had rendered the entire area safe.
“A full scale investigation has commenced into the alleged incident,’’ he said.
-Sun
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