State-Backed Terror in Ugwuaji: Youths Accuse Enugu Forest Guard of Wielding AK-47s to Harass Residents, Beat Women, and Aid Land Grabbing

The erosion of public safety and the alarming militarization of civilian spaces in Enugu State have sparked a fresh wave of outrage, as an entire community cries out against alleged state-backed intimidation.

​In a strongly worded statement issued in Enugu on Friday and signed by their chairman, Barr. Ogbodo Nwobodo, the youths of Ugwuaji under the aegis of Ugwuaji Youths for Peace laid bare a harrowing pattern of harassment, assault, and oppression carried out by armed elements operating under the cloak of the Forest Guard.

​Questioning the legality and operational boundaries of these armed squads, the youth group queried when local forest guards were legally authorized to carry deadly AK-47 rifles, roam communities without clear identification, and turn their weapons on the very citizens they were meant to protect.

​“Our people are wondering when Forest Guards started wielding AK-47 rifles and using their positions to intimidate residents over land matters,” the youths stated. “These men have subjected our people to intimidation, while our women have been beaten by these armed individuals. This is unacceptable and must not be allowed to continue in any civilised society.”

​The community specifically pointed an accusing finger at the Enugu State Commander of the Forest Guard, Dr. Akinbayo O. Olasoji, accusing him of turning a blind eye to the sufferings of the people and issuing dismissive statements that shield the perpetrators. The group questioned whether the commander and his armed operatives were being deployed as instruments to aid and abet high-profile land grabbing in the area, demanding his immediate removal from office.

​Confronted with photographic and video evidence showing unidentified armed men operating with impunity, the Ugwuaji youths have issued an urgent, multi-agency appeal to:

​The Commissioner of Police, Enugu State Command

​The General Officer Commanding (GOC), 82 Division, Nigerian Army

​The Garrison Commander and the Department of State Services (DSS)

​The community is demanding an immediate, transparent investigation into the beatings of residents and women, the illegal use of AK-47 rifles, and the dark syndicates behind local land-grabbing activities. While urging residents to remain calm and avoid taking the law into their own hands, the message from Ugwuaji is unequivocal: a government that weaponizes security forces against its own people has lost its moral legitimacy, and the victims will not be silenced!