The immediate past chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Victor Ndoma-Egba, has lamented the destruction of his personal residence in Calabar, Cross River State capital, by hoodlums, saying the intruders broke into his house “and looted it to the ground leaving only the bare floor”.
In a statement he personally signed and made available to journalists at the weekend, the former Senate leader also expressed shock at the level of aloofness glaringly displayed by security agencies during the carnage.
Recall that Ndoma-Egba’s home and that of other senators from Cross River State were attacked by hoodlums as a fallout of the #EndSARS protest.
The hoodlums also vandalised and looted public facilities, including the state-owned newspaper, the Nigerian Chronicle, and a popular entertainment complex, Tinapa Resort, in the state.
“All the toilets, baths, pumps and indeed every imaginable fitting were removed as were items of furniture, clothing, a huge collection of mainly rare, out-of-print books, documents and historic photographs. They also removed all the windows, railings, family pictures and burglar proofs. Even my private chapel was not spared,” Ndoma-Egba said.
“They set the cars ablaze and parts of the building after more than four hours of uninterrupted operations in my house. It was methodical. The destruction of my house was clearly premeditated, wanton and unjustifiable, but I understand the anger in the land, especially amongst our youths.
“However, if looting and burning my home will better their lives and bring positive change to our land, then it is a sacrifice my family and I gladly make,” he said.
He said the destruction happened despite the fact that he had earlier informed security agencies in Calabar on the planned attacks.
“At about 2 am (local time, as I was abroad) on Saturday, October 24, 2020, I received a text informing me that there were plans by arranged hoodlums to attack my residence in Calabar, that of Senator Gershom Bassey and a hotel owned by Senator John Owan Enor,” Ndoma-Egba said.
“I promptly forwarded the texts to Senators Bassey and Owan Enoh. I also called the security agencies in Calabar to apprise them of the information. Calabar, from my information, was already tense from the previous day’s break-in into warehouses storing Covid-19 palliatives and the subsequent breaching of shops and other businesses,” he said.
