The pan Yoruba socio-political organization, Afenifere, has described the attack on a Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State on Sunday morning as a terrorism act against the south western part of Nigeria bordering on a declaration of war.
The body then called on all the six governors in the South West of Nigeria to declare three solid days of mourning for the victims of Owo carnage.
Reports have it that some gunmen on Sunday morning attacked St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, headquaters of Owo Local Government Area during church service. Owo is the hometown of Arakunrin Rotimi Akeredolu, governor of Ondo State. It was gathered that no fewer than 50 corpses have been moved out of the church with many casualties lying at the Federal Medical Center, Owo, for medical attention.
A release signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Comrade Jare Ajayi, Afenifere recalled that it was in this same vicinity, Owo, that Olufunke, daughter of its Leader, Pa Reuben Fasoranti, was killed by Fulani bandits in 2019 just as many other acts bordering on terrorism got daily reported in Ondo State and other parts of Yorubaland.
“The attack with sophisticated weapons where people gathered to worship is one of the most heinous acts that could ever be committed especially since we are not in a state of war. Going by the extent of the damage and the systematic way that the massacre-like action was carried out, it was clear that the act was planned far ahead with the seeming imprimatur of trained gunmen.”
Reports also have it that two people were killed and ten abducted by terrorists in Ekiti local government of Kwara State this same Sunday morning.
Afenifere maintained that the carnage in Owo and atrocity in Kwara occurred because of the kid-glove manner with which the federal government and its agencies in charge of security have handled similar occurrences in other parts of the country in the recent past.