Senator Peter Onyekachi Nwebonyi, Deputy Chief Whip of the Senate and representative of Ebonyi North, has condemned the reported assault of an Ebonyi man, Mr. Michael Eje, by youths in Nkpor, Anambra State, over the killing of a snake regarded as sacred.
A viral video showed Eje being beaten, mocked, and paraded through the community after killing the reptile while working at a construction site.
He later said the snake had lunged at him, forcing him to act in self-defense.
Expressing outrage, Senator Nwebonyi described the incident as “barbaric” and urged Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra to publicly denounce the act and prevent a recurrence.
“I wonder why a man should be subjected to such a harrowing experience for killing a snake that posed a threat to him,” he said, adding that the matter should be handled with the same urgency as the recent renaming of Abakaliki Street in Awka.
The senator also directed the chairman of the Ebonyi State Indigenes Association in Anambra, Chief Moses Ofoke, to meet with Eje and his wife for a full account of the incident.
Narrating his ordeal, Eje, a native of Onueke in Ezza South Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, said he was unaware of the cultural taboo and was shocked at being forced to chant dirges for the snake, paraded around the community, and fined ₦50,000.
Thanking the senator for his intervention, Eje appealed to authorities to ensure justice and safeguard the rights of non-indigenes living in Anambra communities.