Security in Akwa Ibom Gasy , Says NMA are Worried

Security in Akwa Ibom Gasy , Says NMA are Worried

Worried by the spate of seeming political assassinations and kidnappings prevalent in Akwa Ibom State, the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA, according to AkanimoReports on Monday, has cried out aloud, claiming that the state is no longer safe for medical doctors and other targeted citizens as the security arrangement against kidnapping is very weak.

AkanimoReports says the state branch of the NMA was reacting to the latest abduction of Dr. Memfin Ekpo, by a gang of sophisticatedly armed kidnappers on the sprowl in the state.

Dr. Ekpo, a Consultant Pathologist with the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, is the husband of Prof. Comfort Ekpo, the Vice-Chancellor of University of Uyo (UNIUYO). He was abducted at a church service in Uyo, the state capital, the previous Sunday.

Branch Chairman of the NMA, Dr. Enobong Etukumana, said the association has since met on the incident, and is of the view that the security situation in Akwa Ibom is unsatisfactory. ''The NMA is of the view that the security situation in Akwa Ibom is unsatisfactory especially as it affects kidnapping for ransom'', Dr. Etukumana said, as the association called on the state government and the security agencies to rise to the occasion.

Medical doctors in the state have already withdrawn their services to the public in protest against the abduction of Dr. Ekpo. The association said it is no longer comfortable with the incessant abduction of its members for ransom. Continuing, the association said so far, two of its members have been assassinated with the most recent being the assassination of Dr. Joseph Anthony Akpanakpudo.

In the mean time, a cleric, David Thompson, is blaming Christian leaders in the state for fuelling the current security problems in the state. Thompson, who is the General Overseer of Kingdom of God Missions International, said most politicians are carried away by the praises showered on them by clerics.

''I am disturbed by the wonton praise singing and sycophancy going on by some clerymen in the state. Such is misleading God's people toward the wrong direction'', he said, pointing out that it was wrong for any human being to take the life of his/her fellow human.

The cleric in very strong terms condemned a situation where supposed Christians engage in fetish practices and bloodshed in the name of politics, warning that if the ugly trend continues, the future would be bleak for Akwa Ibom.

ENDS

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