Masquerades beat up Seminarian at Orba….smash-up his head

Masquerades beat up Seminarian at Orba….smash-up his head

By Alphonsus N. Ogili

A senior seminarian of the Catholic Diocese of Nsukka, Desmond Kelechi Ogbonna, a native of Uda village in Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area, Enugu State was beaten up mercilessly by a group of Akatakpa masquerade at Umu-Ugwu Orba in Udenu Local Government Enugu State.

This ugly incident took place on 30^th September, 2016 while the senior seminarian was returning from St. Theresa’s Cathedral Nsukka after a choir practice by the entire Nsukka Diocesan senior Seminarians.

Desmond Ogbonna who is supposed to return to school on 5^th October was seriously beaten up by the masquerades during which his head was smashed with a big log of wood leaving him in his pool of blood.

Narrating the ordeal to newsmen, he bitterly said: “As I was approaching, I discovered the crowd in the front. When I got to the spot, about 8 masquerades were standing there and 2 of them stopped me and said I should give them some money. It was then that I told them that I am a seminarian but before I knew what was going on, they started raining sticks on me. Another came and asked what was the matter and I told him that I am a seminarian coming back from a choir practice at the cathedral but to my chagrin, he said that he is a pastor and immediately, he joined in beating me up.”

The seminarian narrated that he lost consciousness when he was hit on the head and added; “When I regained consciousness, I rushed to Obollo Police Station where I alerted them about the development.”

It was gathered that the seminarian eventually reported the matter to his parish priest, Rev. Fr. Ugweze Simeon who is also the Director of Justice and Peace. Fr. Simeon hurriedly took the seminarian to the Hospital where he received some medical treatment. As it stands now, Fr. Ugwueze has taken the matter to the DPO of Obollo-afor who is handling the matter. The police on their part have started arresting the culprits in question. Fr. Ugwueze told the Shepherd Communications that the matter will be definitely settled in the court of Law so that the culprits will face the wrath of law.

The big question in all this is what do our people understand as culture? It is high time our people started to define culture not just as a people's way of life but positive way of life. This is because what most of our people see as peoples’ way of life may be negative. And this is very much clear in most of the cultural practices we find around us. It is a pity and pains a lot how our people have continued to sit on the mud. In a hard time like this when we are losing our homelands and the things that define us as a people, our youth are preoccupied by useless practices that gull us to nay wood. May those who see and reason well rise up in every community to fight some of these obnoxious practices.