ANAMBRA : LP LAWMAKERS REACT TO KIDNAP, MURDER OF COLLEAGUE, AZUKA
By Juliana Nwachukwu :
The Labour Party (LP) Lawmakers, Hon.Fred Ezenwa and Hon. Jude Umennajiego representing Onitsha South 1 and 11 respectively have reacted to the kidnap and murder of late Hon Justice Azuka.
In an interview with newsmen, Hon Ezenwa described late Azuka as a nice man who made and revealed laws at the state House of Assembly for the smooth governance in the state, described his demise as unfortunate one.
“We have left everything to the police to unravel, we have seen his corpse and the culprits, they were not denying it, we are looking up to the Police to tell us if the killing is masterminded or not.
“His family should take heart and also be happy because Azuka’s colleagues at the House started searching for him the moment we heard of his kidnap, we implored all measures and eventually have seen him.
“We did not abandon him, Labour Party House members would not forget his family, we would do something remarkable for the family. We, at the House, led by Hon. Somtochukwu Udeze (PhD), have lined up things we would want to do for the family”,he disclosed.
In his contribution, Hon Umennajiego stated that, “I’m not just demanding for justice on Hon. Azuka, but I’m demanding for justice for everybody that has been in any way, under any circumstances been involved, especially in terms of all these kidnappings and violence going on.
“We are determined to ensure that people who killed him and others who are involved, who are still planning on how to kill others get justice.
“The establishment of the security initiative by the governor is a call we expected to start by last year and I am sure if he has done what he did now by last year, Azuka would have not been dead, people taught we were playing politics but we saw what was coming.
“As for the positive impact especially in the area of diabolic native doctors, (Dibias), who aid and abert criminalities, all in the name of religion, I want to tell you categorically there are criminals who want to hide under the basis of religion to continue to commit crime. There have been people who have been in traditional african religion but they have never committed any crime with it.
“Of course if you start using your religion to commit crime, the government is bound to come in and crush you, if you see the brazen manner which these people have been acting especially those so called Oke ite, Eke hit and so on, who come out to openly advertise money ritual in the name of African traditional religion.
“What the government is doing should be applauded from the political sphere you find yourself, the most important thing is that we have applauded it and I can tell you as a lawmaker who have practised, that there is no violation of any body’s religious rights.
“Our people tend to confuse the pattern of worship, you have the right to worship the way you want but when it entails aiding and aberting crime, it is now an issue where the state government must be involved and also I want you to know that there are exception of all those places they site as in supporting them doing what they are doing.
“For instance, you are bound not to be arrested and detained unnecessary but when it is over riding public interest,in this case, a law was made and that law restricts you from performing some certain actions, if you perform those actions, it becomes a criminal act that you are entitled to be arrested, questioned and detained as the law deserves.
“So if anybody said it is restriction on his religious freedom, I do not see where an action is criminalized and somebody said it is against his religion or freedom, what the law essentially is saying is that if you are doing anything promoting success without hardwork, promoting rituals, promoting things that would turn out to be charlatans, what you are saying in essence is that you are violating that law and the constitution does not offer you that constitutional protection,” he further explained.
* Nwachukwu is of the Ministry of Information, Anambra State *
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