Geoffrey Anyanwu, Awka
The new Commissioner of Police in Anambra State, Mr. John Abang, has prevented the shutting down of the offices of two South African firms, MTN and the Shoprite in the state by the National Association of Nigeria Students (NANS).
NANS had a few days ago threatened to shut down South African businesses in Nigeria over the continued attack on Nigerians living in South Africa.
A source within the association revealed that it had slated Wednesday to shut down the MTN office in Awka and Thursday move to Onitsha equally to do the same to Shoprite.
Sequel to the threat, members of the association had started assembling at the Amaenyi office of MTN in the state capital Awka, as early as 8am to carry out their threat before its leadership received an invitation from the state Commissioner of Police.
Coordinator and leader of the protest, Mr. Anthony Ojiaku, who spoke to newsmen at the MTN office said as law-abiding students, the leadership would answer to the invitation of the CP hence “for now, we are shelving the protest until after the meeting.”
Confirming the development while addressing members of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Anambra State council when he paid the council a courtesy visit at Godwin Ezeemo Press Centre, Awka, CP Abang said he had to intervene to forestall a breakdown of law and order.
He said: “I have a mandate to protect lives and properties in Anambra, and what I did was to summon the leaders of the association to a meeting. They are young and can be violent, but I sat them down and spoke to them like a father.
“I told them the offices they were going to attack do not have South Africans inside them, but their own brothers and sisters. I also told them the implication of what they were about to do, and without deploying force, we were able to make them change their mind and shelve the protest.”
In their notification letter dated July 22, 2019, signed by the National Director of Sports, NANS, Mr Anthony Ojiaku, and addressed to some South African businesses in Nigeria and copied to the state Director, Department of State Security (DSS) and the state Police Commissioner, NANS said: “We are poised to protecting the rights and interest of Nigerian students and citizens.
“We write to you on the need to conform with the matching order given by the national secretariat of NANS that all South African businesses in Nigeria should vacate Nigeria as a result of the continued xenophobic attacks on Nigerians living in South Africa and the killing of Mrs. Elizabeth Ndubuisi-Chukwu, Deputy-Director General of Chattered Insurance Institute of Nigeria at Emperor Palace Hotel, Johanesburg in June.”
Meanwhile, the remains of Mrs. Ndubuisi-Chukwu would be buried on Thursday July 25 in her home town, Ihiala, in Ihiala Local Government of the State.
Her remains had earlier been flown to Nigeria from South Africa and kept in an undisclosed morgue in Asaba, Delta State, from where it would be conveyed home for burial today.