Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State has given native doctors and traditional medicine dealers a seven-day deadline to register with government agencies or face arrest and prosecution.
After a security meeting at the government house in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State capital, Umahi issued the ultimatum.
“We have agreed that all native doctors in the state and traditional medicine dealers must within seven days today register with the Commissioner for Border Peace, with the Commissioner for health and with the Commissioner of Police,” Umahi said. There will be an executive order to this event and anyone that is caught doing otherwise will be arrested and will be prosecuted,” Umahi said.
The governor has imposed a 10-hour curfew on the state’s entry and exit points, from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., with defaulters facing a N1 million fine.
Umahi also directed the security forces to bring those responsible for the deaths of a police officer and two soldiers to justice within 72 hours.
Umahi also imposed a nighttime ban on social gatherings, noting that events such as wakes, clubbing, and other similar activities could not take place after 6 p.m., and that violators would be fined N1 million.
He unveiled the Ebube-Agu South East Security of Ebonyi State Chapter while also ordering the state’s ‘okada riders’ to join vigilante groups or face being barred from operating in the state.
“We are aware that there are some killings over the weekend; a policeman was killed, two army men were killed and I think one civilian and their killers are pure bandits. They do these killings and put it in social media that they are members of IPOB or ESN.
“Without standing for either IPOB or ESN, but they continue to deny that they are not into violence but for me, criminality is criminality and I have directed security agencies to crack down on all criminal activities in the state. And for those who did the killings, the security agencies must bring them to book within 72 hours, they must do that.
“We agreed that there is rampant of fake news in Ebonyi state. Like today, somebody posted that herdsmen are in Ebonyi and they are killing people and schools started closing down, students and pupils started running helter-skelter, is that what we will continue to tolerate?
“And so, I have directed whether you are in opposition, whether you are in agreement, whatever thing you are, you should be tracked down so that you should be going to court to prove whatever thing you are putting.
“We have directed that all wake keep in the state must end by 6:pm and the local government Chairmen, security agents and Ebubeagu must enforce this.
“All social activities must end by 6:pm. When you defy this order, you will pay a minimum of N1million because a lot of hoodlum activities happen during this week keep going into the night.”
