An automobile parts dealer, Mr Ifeanyi Kingsley Iwuagwu, has fled Nigeria to save his life following repeated attacks by bandits on his community in Imo State.
Iwuagwu, who left the country in January this year, said he was compelled to seek safety abroad after surviving a series of violent raids that left several residents dead and properties destroyed.
The young businessman, who hails from the Okigwe axis of Imo State, recounted how the incessant assaults by armed men turned his once peaceful village into a battlefield.
“I had no choice but to leave,” he told AljazirahNigeria Newspapers. “It became a matter of life and death. Staying back would have meant waiting for the next attack.”
Iwuagwu, the only son of an aged mother, said leaving her behind was the most difficult decision he has ever made. His mother, who depends solely on him for welfare and survival, now lives in constant fear and uncertainty.
“It breaks my heart that I am far from her,” he said.
“But I had to go so I can stay alive and hopefully find a way to bring her to safety.”
Residents of parts of Imo State—particularly rural communities—have in recent times faced increasing threats from bandits and criminal gangs, forcing many to flee their homes, some seeking refuge in distant lands abroad.
For Iwuagwu, ‘the last straw that broke the camel’s back,’ was the attack on November 20, 2024, when his shop in his town at Amiagbo in Nwangele Local Government Area, LGA, of Imo State, was completely raided and burnet down afterwards.
“That was when I finally took the decision to tow the path of some of my brothers and colleagues to seek refuge abroad since I don’t know any safe place in Nigeria.
“We keep hearing of the tales of woes of kidnappings, bandits, herdsmen and terrorists attacks across the six geopolitical zones of the country, so no one can tell where will be next.”
Security experts and local leaders have continued to call on the government to strengthen protection for defenceless communities and tackle the root causes of insecurity in the region.
For Iwuagwu, safety remains his only priority. “All I want is peace and the chance to live without fear,” he said. “No one should have to abandon their home just to stay alive.”
The South eastern geopolitical region of Nigeria has been a hotbed of insecurity that has left many dead with several businesses destroyed. This has led many to abandon their ancestral homes and lands to seek not just means of livelihoods, but safety too.
According to Amnesty International, AI, a total of about 1,844 persons were killed in the South East by state and non-state actors between January 2021 and June 2023.
This was disclosed by Ai’s Director, Isa Sanusi during report presentation and campaign launch against insecurity in the region tagged “A Decade of Impunity: Attacks and Unlawful Killings in South East” October 7.
Many Nigerians across the country are hoping that the new service chiefs just appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, restore hope to the Nigerian masses.
