Indigenes have reacted to protect their community. “The police, tipped off by local vigilantes, raided the hideout of the cultists, burning it down with about 15 litres of fuel,” said Eze Julian1 of the Mbuishi autonomous zone encompassing Umuagwu. “They also shot some members of the cultist group.”
The cultists got revenge, however. Through corrupt village informants, they found the vigilante leader and shot him and four others to death on August 22nd.
Eze Julian, who I met in 2017, is working hard to restore peace and security to his territory. “Recently, I met with the special advisor to the Imo State governor to consult with him on security matters,” Eze said in reference to training more local vigilantes.
The impact on MENPS students has been traumatic. “Some of our students testified to hearing gunshots and screams on the night of the attack and how their family members fled the village in terror,” said Sr. Anne Okwegi, MOJ and Matron of MENPS.
While another religious order might abandon such an environment and its people, not so the MOJ Sisters! In the spirit of Our Lord’s own Self-Emptying (Phil 2:6-11), the MOJ’s have borne the burdens of the village to help restore peace and hope for the children.
“Some of our children lost relatives to the crisis, and so we try to make them smile, live happily, and without fear,” Sr. Ann said of the MOJ’s efforts.
I just recently visited Umuagwu and MENPS in July, only a month before the violence. Walking with the children and carrying one of the young girls, I sensed their joyful hope in my presence but also their trepidation due to the dangerous activities lurking in the foliage surrounding their little school and shelter.
Like the MOJ Sisters, neither I nor HEAL will abandon Umuagwu! There are 123 poor children attending MENPS, including 36 orphans, who need food, clean water, light, medicine, and the religious and formal EDUCATION which is the key to their earthly and eternal destiny!
Join me, Sr. Anne, and Eze Julian in bringing life and hope to these children!