The Chairman of Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area in Enugu State, Mr. Chijioke Ezugwu, recently escaped an ambush by kidnappers. These gunmen, who have been troubling the area, tried to stop his convoy as he was returning from a security meeting in Umulokpa, the council’s headquarters.

Reports say the attackers, dressed like herdsmen and carrying guns, jumped onto the road to stop the vehicles. But the chairman, who was once in charge of local security before becoming chairman, quickly acted. He and his security team got out of the car and fought back. The attackers ran into the nearby bush after a short gunfight.

Eyewitnesses said the kidnappers fired at the chairman and his team, but they responded strongly, which scared the criminals away. The chairman and his team even chased them into the bush before returning to the road and continuing their journey.

Following the attack, Mr. Ezugwu gave orders to the newly formed vigilante group and farm protection squads to search the bushes and catch the criminals.

This is not the first time the chairman has acted to improve security. He has earlier recruited and restructured local watch teams, improved intelligence gathering, bought new security tools, and worked closely with security agencies and community leaders.

Sources say the chairman is now actively patrolling both day and night with local security teams in areas known to be unsafe.