Otti Reveals Discovery of 50 Corpses, Skeletons at Lokpanata Cattle Market

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia

The Governor of Abia State, Mr. Alex Otti, has given an insight into the atrocities that criminals perpetrated at the Lokpanata Cattle Market and its environs in Umunneochi Local Government.

He revealed the horror unearthed during security operations a fortnight ago, saying that security agents discovered 50 corpses, 20 decomposing headless bodies and countless skeletons that littered the area.

The Abia governor made the revelations Sunday night at the second edition of his monthly media interaction tagged ‘Governor Alex Otti Speaks to Abians’. It was aired live on several radio stations with listeners participating by asking their governor questions on issues bothering them.

Otti stated that it was the horrendous discovery that prompted government to convert the cattle market to non-residential market hence people residing in the market were asked to relocate.

He reiterated that the cattle market will now become a general purpose market with sections for different goods, while commercial activities would last from 6.00am to 6.00pm  daily.

Apart from the human carnage at Lokpanta Cattle Market, Otti also noted that the market served as a haven for other criminal activities including gun running, prostitution and narcotics trade, among other unsavoury acts.

Lokpanta Cattle Market and its environs assumed the notoriety of being referred to as ‘axis of evil’ due to the pervasive kidnappings and armed robbery activities perpetrated along this segment of the Enugu-Port Harcourt expressway.

Government’s decision to make the cattle market non-residential was misinterpreted by a group, the Northern Consensus Movement (NCM), which said that northerners were being targeted and asked to quit Abia State.

The NCM President, Auwal Abdullahi, had vowed that he would not fold his arms while northern traders “face humiliation and disgrace in Abia or any other part of the eastern states”.

He also appealed to President Bola Tinubu and the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar llI, to intervene by calling the Abia State government to order, and backed it with an ultimatum for southeasterners to leave northern states.

But Otti said that the NCM leaders have recanted and rescinded their quit notice to Igbos in the north after they were confronted with the sobering facts of the atrocities criminals were committing under the cover of the cattle market.

He explained that asking people to leave the market and find alternative residences has no ethnic of religious colouration but purely for security of lives and properties of every resident of the state

“Criminals don’t ask if you’re from North or South or the religion you profess before they attack,” he said, adding that the victims whose bodies were discovered could have come from different states.

According to him, “Anybody opposed to what we are doing (to secure the state) must be a criminal,” adding that the state would be made very safe for people to celebrate Christmas this year.

The Abia governor assured residents that Umunneochi axis “is now calm” with no reports of kidnappings since after the security operation, which would be sustained to ensure criminals don’t rear their heads again.