Lt.-Col. Jonah Unuakhalu, the Acting Deputy Director, 82 Division Army Public Relations, yesterday denied reports that were making the rounds on social media and other online sites that a soldier and civilians were killed in an attack on the Nigerian Army in Imo State’s Ehime Mbano Local Government Area.
According to a statement released by the Nigerian Army’s 82 Division headquarters in Enugu, the reports contained “no iota of truth, but the fiction of the imagination of sympathisers of dissident group.”
“The attention of 82 Division Nigerian Army has been drawn to the falsehood being peddled by some online media outlets claiming that an attack on troops of the division deployed in Ehime Mbano Local Government Secretariat led to the death of several soldiers and civilians.
“The publication is a fiction playing out in the minds of the terrorist Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) criminal elements and their sympathizers that want to dampen the confidence of Imolites and by extension the people of South-east region.”
Unuakhalu remembered that on October 3, 2023, the same IPOB/ESN criminal elements set fire to and destroyed the publicly funded headquarters of Isiala Mbano LGA; nonetheless, there was no attack or casualty among troops or civilians.
In the late hours of Wednesday, October 8, 2024, a similar heedless effort was made at the secretariat of Ehime Mbano LGA, the army spokesperson continued. However, he said that the forces’ efforts stopped the criminals from entering the secretariat of the council region.
According to him, “The criminal elements who came in their numbers shooting sporadically from a distance had to beat a hasty retreat due to the overwhelming fire power of the vigilant and gallant troops.
“During the exploitation carried out in the early hours of today, it was confirmed the dissidents suffered heavy casualties as seen from the blood stains on Ehime Mbano- Oriagwu Road.”
As forces continue to defend civilians and vital government infrastructure in the state by firmly combating criminal elements that seek to overthrow the government, Unuakhalu advised the public to ignore false information spread by internet outlets.
He noted that “the anti-people cowardly behaviour” of the dissidents burning public buildings built by tax payers’ money and where law-abiding citizens eke out a living is most unfortunate.”
The spokesman said: “Apparently, the IPOB elements are not for the people but for themselves.
“Headquarters of 82 Division enjoins all Imolites and by extension the residents of the South-East to continue to provide security information that will allow security agencies to eliminate the criminal elements by calling our toll-free line 193 and press Option 2.
“The good citizens of the South-east region are encouraged to go about their normal socio-economic activities without fear or intimidation from any group of persons.”
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