It was a narrow and miraculous escape for the Managing Director of the Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), Chief Chido Obidiegwu, as he reportedly fled for his life after suspected gunmen trailed him in Ozubulu, Ekwusigo Local Government Area of Anambra State, where he attended a burial ceremony.
The incident, which eventually culminated in the setting of his official vehicle on fire by the suspected gunmen, occurred on Friday, July 28, 2023. It was gathered that Obidiegwu had attended the funeral of the matriarch of the Emecheta family, Madam Bridget Emecheta, at Egbema, Ozubulu, before his journey back to Awka reportedly turned into a desperate struggle to escape his pursuers.
Obidiegwu said he had no cause for alarm while at the funeral, where he said he joined other guests and also presented his condolence envelope to the bereaved family, before taking off back to Awka. It was only after he left the funeral venue that he reportedly began to suspect that something was wrong.
According to him, after taking off, he noticed that a cream-coloured Toyota Sienna was following him. He said his suspicion deepened when the vehicle continued behind him after he intentionally made different turns to different directions to ascertain whether he was being trailed.
He said the occupants’ persistence in following him to every direction he went left him convinced that they were actually trailing him. This, he said, forced him to increase his speed in an attempt to get away. However, he said the suspected gunmen reportedly maintained the pursuit, leaving him increasingly apprehensive about his safety.The ABS MD said the situation immediately reminded him of threats he had received over the station’s broadcasts on efforts to stop the sit-at-home exercise in the South East.
The ABS MD said the situation immediately reminded him of threats he had received over the station’s broadcasts on efforts to stop the sit-at-home exercise in the South East.
He recalled that, before the incident, a threatening text message had been sent to him concerning the broadcasts, while a warning letter had also been pasted on the gate of the ABS premises, demanding that the station stop airing reports on the campaign against sit-at-home.
With violent incidents already being recorded in parts of the region, Obidiegwu said he feared that the pursuit could end in his death, and therefore became more determined to find a way out.
He said escape reportedly became possible around Orie Market junction, where a truck moved between his Toyota pickup and the Sienna that was pursuing him, luckily allowing him to gain some distance from the suspected attackers.
According to him, with the Sienna still behind him, he consequently decided that he could no longer risk remaining in the vehicle; as he parked his vehicle somewhere by the roadside and immediately ran into a nearby compound before making his way through a bush farm.
Obidiegwu said he eventually emerged onto another road, where he boarded a commercial motorcycle to a motor park and took public transport back to Awka, leaving his vehicle behind as he sought safety.
It was further gathered that the suspected assailants eventually set his official vehicle ablaze where he parked it.
The development became particularly striking to many, given the reported hostility towards the ABS over its coverage of the campaign against the sit-at-home exercise, which has remained a contentious issue in the South East.
Obidiegwu’s experience also brought to the fore the threats previously directed at him and the broadcasting station, including a text message and a warning letter reportedly demanding an end to the station’s broadcasts on efforts to halt the sit-at-home exercise.
