The sleepy and usually quiet twon of Ubulu Uku in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State erupted in peaceful protests for much of Friday over the strange and perplexing death of their monarch, Agbogodi Obi Akaeze Ofulue 111.
The Obi was kidnapped on January 5th this year at Igbodo, near Ubulu Uku on his way to Asaba by persons suspected to be Fulani herdsmen. His decomposing body was found on Thursday inside the bush at Umunede after a tip off by a farmer who said he sighted two corpses in the bush.
His abductors were said to have initially demanded a ransom of N100m which was scaled down to N25m. The family of the monarch were rallying to negotiate the amount further down when the captors refused to communicate with them and breaking every link of communication. This heightened the anxiety of the family and the people of the otherwise peaceful town.
After days of staying incommunicado with the captors, the state government detailed a search party of the police, Army and members of the local vigilante corps who combed the environs and found his corpse which already decomposing. Two corpses were reportedly found by the search party, the identity of the second corpse could not be ascertained as at press time.
It would be recalled that the Obi was kidnapped alongside his Christian brother who himself managed to escape from the bush where they were kept by their captors. A source claimed both the Obi and his Christian tried to escape from their assailants but he was not so lucky as he was shot but his companion escaped.
However, some members of the Ubulu Uku community said they suspect foul play, claiming that the Obi may have been murdered by those who were opposed to his ascendancy to the throne. His coronation as Obi was a subject of contention and tore the entire town into two camps.
By press time, the Palace chiefs were still meeting to take a decision on the next line of action.
Meantime, the state Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa has commiserated with the families of the late Monarch and the entire people of Delta State over the untimely death of the late Monarch in the hands of his abductors.
In a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, the Governor said the death of Obi Akaeze Ofulue III has opened a sacrilegious chapter in the history of the state and vowed that the state, under his watch, would ensure that the incidents of the abduction and his subsequent death would be thoroughly investigated.
“It was sad that a reigning king was abducted but an unheard of fact was his murder in the most dehumanizing circumstances by his abductors, in the forest. I have directed an inquiry into this abominable act and call on Deltans; particularly the Kingdom and the security agencies to work harmoniously to unearth the culprits”.
Governor Okowa noted that he had received with shock the news of the Obi’s abduction about 15 days ago and enjoined the people of Ubulu-Uku to close ranks in the course of this investigation.
He said that King Ofulue’s death will mark a new vista in the battle against kidnapping and other violent crimes in the state and called on parents to warn their wards about the companies they keep as the state was out to make a guinea pig of anybody found to be culpable in related crimes.
The Governor who underscored the place of security for peaceful and investor-friendly environment, observed that it was against this background that his administration set up the committees on peace and security with prominent community leaders as members.
Senator Okowa noted that as part of enlightenment on the dangers of these violent crimes, the state has been sponsoring seminars in higher institutions across the state to sensitize the youths on the dangers and implications of these crimes to their career and the security of the state
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