Ebonyi State Governor Francis Nwifuru has ordered the immediate closure of all schools in the Amasiri clan of Afikpo Local Government Area, following a deadly attack in a nearby community in Ebonyi State, in southeastern Nigeria.
The action came after violence in Okporojo village in Oso Edda community, Edda Local Government Area, where four people were killed and beheaded and more than nine houses were set on fire, according to information presented to the state authorities. Okay News reports that the government believes the attackers came from the Amasiri clan.
The governor announced the measures after an emergency meeting of the Ebonyi State Security Council held on Saturday night, after he visited the affected area earlier the same day to sympathise with residents and instruct security agencies to arrest and prosecute those responsible.
Speaking to journalists in Abakaliki, the governor said the council agreed on a set of security and administrative steps aimed at stopping further attacks and restoring calm across the area.
Among the decisions, the state approved the immediate removal of two traditional rulers in the Amasiri clan, with the governor saying their dethronement letters would be issued the next day.
The state government also ordered the dissolution of all community-based leadership structures in the clan. This includes development union executives, village heads, women leaders, youth leaders, peer groups, and any other formal or informal groups operating within the community.
In addition, the security council directed that the chairmen of Afikpo, Ivo, Ohaozara, and Onicha Local Government Areas should jointly oversee administration and government activities in the Amasiri clan until further notice.
The governor further ordered that all amenities in the town be shut immediately. This includes all schools, both public and private, as well as the Amasiri Development Centre, which functions as an arm of the local government structure in the area.
He also said the state has prepared an executive bill to send to the Ebonyi State House of Assembly to repeal sections of the 2015 law that established the Amasiri Development Centre, with the goal of removing the centre from the list of development centres in Ebonyi State.
Under the plan, teachers and tutors affected by the school closures are to be redeployed to other schools and communities. The governor said the Commissioner for Local Government and the Commissioner for Education were directed to begin implementation immediately.
As part of the security response, the state imposed a daily curfew on the Amasiri community from 2 p.m. to 10 a.m., which amounts to a 20-hour restriction each day. During the restricted hours, markets, shops, businesses, banks, quarries, and other commercial activities are expected to remain closed.
The governor said security agencies have been instructed to arrest and prosecute those responsible for the killings in Okporojo and to recover the severed heads of the victims. He added that the measures, though tough, were necessary to restore law and order, and he warned that the state would not accept violence or lawlessness in any part of Ebonyi State.
