It took repeated appeals by
the correspondent to make Agnes talk, as she maintained that her husband had
barred her from speaking further on the issue to avoid negative attention to
the family.
A middle-aged woman
identified as Agnes on Sunday in Abakaliki lost the pot of rice she was cooking
to thieves.
A News Agency of Nigeria
(NAN) correspondent who visited Agnes’ residence behind Nnodo Secondary School,
Amike-Aba on Monday reports that she was still in shock over the incident.
“I came back from a
village-meeting late on Sunday and put the rice on fire so that my family could
have their dinner and eat the remnant on Monday morning. This apartment, as you
can see, has no kitchen so we cook in the space in front of the house, likewise
other occupants of the building,” she said.
Agnes said that as she went
inside her room to fetch some condiments, she was delayed by the attention she
had to give to her crying child.
“I gave attention to my
child who was crying and by the time I came out to continue cooking, the pot of
rice had vanished, with the stove still enkindled. After I recovered from the
shock, I started screaming which attracted my husband, family members and
neighbours who were all as stupefied as I. When it was established that no
occupant of the building took the pot, it dawned on us that the act was
perpetrated by a thief who exploited the vulnerability of the improvised
kitchen,” she said.
The woman declined further
comments but her neigbour, Justin Mbam-Egbe, noted that the situation had
re-awakened security consciousness among the occupants of the house.
“This is the first theft
case we are experiencing and we will henceforth be security conscious to avert
future occurrences,” he said.
A private security
consultant in Abakaliki, Dr. John Odikwa, blamed such incident on the current
economic recession in the country.
“The country has
degenerated to a level that people now steal pots of rice and soup and with the
yuletide approaching, the society should be ready for serious security
challenges. The Federal Government should take immediate measures to alleviate
the sufferings of the people to prevent total breakdown of law and order,” he
said.
The Public Relations
Officer of the Ebonyi police command, George Okafor, described the incident as
funny and noted that it had not been reported to the command.
“It is difficult for such
incidents to be reported but we assure the citizens of the state of adequate
protection of their lives and properties,” he said.
austerity wire dem
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