Masquerade beats pregnant woman to stupor in Ukpor, Anambra state.

An eight months pregnant woman Mrs Oluebube Obiaghara is currently receiving treatment at Adaugo Specialist Hospital Umuohama Ukpor having been beaten by a masquerade (mmanwu Ozoebune) while returning from market at Ugwuorie Market Umuohama Ukpor.

Recounting her ordeal in the hands of the masquerade cult, Mrs Obiaghara noted that she was returning from market around 7.00pm while the masquerade accosted her. “There was this burial of one Mr Innocent Onyejinduaka that was going on with lots of masquerade in attendance and because his house is closer to the market I had to pass through the market to get to my house. I closed my shop around 6.00pm and had to wait for extra one hour for  the masquerades to dismiss before going home.

“Unknown to me there was still one left. I did not see it initially as it was getting dark but when I saw it, I had to run and hide at the back of a man which ordinarily the masquerade should have retreated but rather it left that man and starting pursuing me with its big stick,

“I ran into a nearby house but the masquerade pursued me into that house as I was entering the house I fell down on my stomach and the masquerade came over me. The last thing I could recall was the heavy stick the masquerade had as it was descending on my big tummy before I fainted. The next thing  was that I saw my self on this hospital bed.”

The 29 year old woman who have been in the hospital for five days showed the reporter bruises and wounds she sustained on the cause of the beating. Amidst sobs, She noted that she has not been able to move her left leg because of the pains and injury she sustained and that all her belongings got missed, the food stuff she bought in the market were destroyed on the process.

She lamented that she did not know why the town should not curtail the activities of masquerade cult whom she noted target mostly woman especially pregnant woman and young girl. “I taught masquerades do not ply in the night but the different is the case here in Ukpor. Few years ago, a pregnant woman fell off from a motorcycle popularly called Okada as she was running away from a masquerade that was pursuing her”, she noted. She however thanked God for saving her life and that of her baby.

Mrs Obiaghara who is married to an Ukpor man Mr Ekene Obiaghara noted that her pregnant is her first and prayed for safe delivery.

A source during the burial disclosed that lots of evil were perpetuated by the cult especially during that burial; the source said that the way the Nmanwu Ozoebini as  it is popularity called in the area beat, harass and main people is uncalled for. He noted that a man who is not from Ukpor was taken by force to be initiated into the cult, when he refused the source said they carried the young man by force.

Commenting on the ugly incident the parish priest of St Mary’s Catholic Church Very Rev Fr Anthony Nwachukwu described the situation very bad . Rev Fr Nwachukwu called on government to take urgent steps in order to curtain the activities of the cult which according to him, is becoming a menace to the society and to save guard lives and properties of the people.