PUNCH
Godfrey George tells the stories of casualties of the just-concluded general elections
The sun has stopped to shine on the household of a chartered surveyor and former Caretaker Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress in Ward 10, Ahoada West, Rivers State, Chief Chiosom Lennard.
Lennard’s life was cut short by gunmen, who abducted and killed him in cold blood on March 18, 2023, the day Nigeria held its governorship and House of Assembly elections.
Lennard was counting down to his next birthday on April 23 when he was killed.
His PhD defence at the Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, according to one of his close associates, Mr Frankie Code, was scheduled for Thursday, March 23.
He was gruesomely murdered for struggling with hoodlums who stormed his polling unit to disrupt the poll by snatching the ballot boxes.
“His wife just gave birth. The child is only 21 days old. She is still in shock at how a man she saw that morning was brought back, wrapped in bloodied wrappers for simply going out to exercise his right to vote.
“He is the only child of his parents. His mother died in 2019. This is a devastating tragedy, not just for his family, but also for us as a people who see him as the proof his father ever lived,” a community leader, who simply identified himself as Chinda, told our correspondent.
Eyewitnesses, who spoke to Saturday PUNCH, alleged that the gunmen were dressed in police uniform.
The incident happened while voting was ongoing at the Ubeta Community Primary School, Ibagwa Polling Unit Two, Ward 10 in Ahoada West Local Government Area.
“He (Lennard) asked the policemen, who came in with a van to tell him why they would want to take the ballot boxes and electioneering materials away. They told him to stand aside or get shot.
“He went in to call other APC agents who came out to confront the policemen to show them their identity cards. Before we knew what was happening, right before our eyes, they dragged him along with them, after they shot the other two complainants dead on the spot.
“Commotion set in and before we knew what was happening, the so-called policemen had shot Lennard multiple times. He bled till he died.
“All rescue attempts to resuscitate him failed as he had lost much blood,” an eyewitness, Mr Chude Muoka, said.
