There are strong indications that the religious crisis between Christian community and the Muslim faithful in Ezinifite town in Nnewi South local government area of Anambra State is far from over as measures aimed at achieving peaceful and amicable resolution have all been reported unsuccessful.
It will be recalled that the crisis which started following the death of Aisha Idris Abdulkarim, a Muslim woman who met her untimely death when a farm truck belonging to a commercial farmer Simeon Ifeakandu Madueke had a ghastly accident with another car driven by the husband of the deceased woman.
It was gathered that the deceased Aisha Idris Abdulkarim and her family were returning from the prayer ground on May 13th 2021 where they had gone to observe prayers as part of activities to mark the Eid-Fi-tri celebration.
According to a source in the community who pleaded annonymity, the deceased woman immediately after the accident was in a critical condition when frantic efforts were made by sympathizers who rushed all the accident victims to a nearby hospital for urgent medical attention where she was confirmed dead while others with different degree of injuries including the farmer were urgently attended to reduce fatalities.
Meanwhile, it was said that the Muslim faithful in Ezinifite town responded instantly with violence when news of the death of Aisha Idris Abdulkarim broke as they immediately stormed the house of Simeon Ifeakandu Madueke to attack his family members who, according to reports, had gone to seek refuge elsewhere in order to avoid the wrath of the angry mob.
The Christian community in Ezinifite town, according to local report, made desperate efforts to resolve the crisis amicably with their Islamic counterparts but to avail as property and belongings owned by Christians became targets of attacks while the house and farmland belonging to Simeon Ifeakandu Madueke were not spared as they were all destroyed and burnt down by the irate mob.
Frantic efforts by community heads and law enforcement officers to restore peace and tranquility in the once peaceful and serene Ezinifite town has so far not yielded the desired results as the wanton destruction of property on a large scale proportion continues to rage on sending many families fleeing for safety to seek refuge elsewhere.
Meanwhile, as local residents of the community flee in droves to avoid violent attacks on their lives, the uneasy calm pervading the atmosphere in the community is a clear indication that restoration of peace and normalcy in the community seemed distantly elusive in a once peaceful community that has provided shelter to people of different ethno-religious until recently.
However, recent findings revealed that the commercial farmer Simeon Ifeakandu Madueke and his family have abandoned their family house in Ezinifite town as part of desperate measures to guarantee their safety as his immediate whereabouts remain largely unknown to anyone.
