There is palpable fear and apprehension in Ihetutu, Ishiagu community, Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State following the killing of two youths allegedly by soldiers.
The deceased; Chibuike Elema, 18, and Obinna Joshua, 19, were killed by soldiers attached to a mining company in the area.
They were reportedly shot dead around midday Sunday at the mining site operated by Palladium Mining Company after they allegedly refused to give money to the soldiers stationed at the facility for security.
The incident sparked outrage among residents, particularly women and community leaders, who are demanding a thorough investigation into the killings and an end to what they described as the harsh treatment of their children by the mining company and security personnel.
There was atmosphere of grief and tension on Sunday evening when the reporter visited the community.
Narrating the circumstances surrounding his son's death, Mr Donatus Okoro, father of Chibuike Elema, said his 18-year-old son was called from home on Sunday morning to join other workers at the mining site only for him to be killed.
He said that, according to eyewitness accounts, the youths were returning from work when soldiers attached to Palladium Mining Company allegedly called them to pay money.
The grieving father, who struggled to contain his tears, alleged that the soldiers opened fire on the youths after they explained that they had no money to give them.
“My son was called from the house this morning to come and join them for Sunday work. While coming back along the road, according to people who witnessed what happened, the soldiers attached to a mining company called Palladium asked them to settle them.
“But they told the soldiers that they were not with anything. The soldiers raised their guns and shot them in the head,” he alleged.
Okoro called on the Ebonyi State Government to investigate the incident and ensure that those responsible for his son's death were brought to justice.
Obinna Joshua, the second victim, was identified as the son of the serving councillor representing Ihetutu community in Ivo Local Government Area. He was reportedly a second-year undergraduate student.
The killing of the two young men has raised concerns among residents over the use of lethal force at the mining site, with community leaders insisting that no alleged offence could justify taking the lives of the youths without due process.
The Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Ihetutu Community Development Union, Prince Fabian Chukwu, condemned the incident and called on the state government to intervene.
Chukwu, who described the killings as unacceptable, said security personnel attached to a mining company had no justification to kill the youths, even if they were suspected of committing an offence.
“We are not happy. For a miner working in our community to authorise security personnel to kill our youths is something we cannot accept,” he said.
“Even if the youths had come to take anything from the company, the appropriate thing would have been to arrest them and hand them over to the police, not to kill them. They were not authorised to kill a vibrant youth like that,” he added.
The community leader said Palladium had operated in the area for about five years or more, explaining that the company initially worked as a technical partner to another mining firm before taking over its operations.
He alleged that palladium Minig Company is owned by Victor Nwokeji who displaced his partner Gexpam Mining Company that brought him to partner with Gexpam in a lead-zinc concession originally owned by Gexpam at Ihietutu and took over the mining site.
The trustee chairman went further to say Palladium is currently running the mining site as Ambertone Logistics Ltd another arm of Palladium. Mining company.
According to him, tensions between the community and the company became more pronounced after the change in ownership or operational control.
He appealed to the state government to urgently intervene to prevent the incident from escalating, while urging the bereaved families to remain calm as the community seeks justice.
Also speaking, Mrs Eze Ifeyinwa, a former secretary of the women’s wing of the Ihetutu Community Development Union, accused the mining company and security personnel of treating residents unfairly.
She called on the government to investigate the killings and review the continued operations of the company and the soldiers in the community.
“They are treating our children as if they are thieves. We want them to go. The government should stop both the mining company and the army from operating in Ihetutu. They are treating us like slaves, and it has never been like this before,” she said.
Questioning the circumstances that led to the deaths, Ifeyinwa said Sunday was a normal working day for male miners in the community, contrary to any suggestion that the youths had committed an offence simply by going to the mining site.
“What crime have these children committed by going to the site today? Men work on Sundays; it is only women who do not go to the mining site on Sundays,” she said.
The incident has left the community grappling with the loss of two young men whose deaths have devastated their families and raised fresh questions about the conduct of security personnel deployed to protect mining operations.
Residents are now calling on the Ebonyi State Government and relevant security authorities to conduct an impartial investigation, establish the circumstances surrounding the shootings and ensure that anyone found culpable is held accountable.
As the bereaved families mourn their loved ones, the community insists that justice must be served and that measures must be taken to prevent a recurrence of such a tragedy.
