By Peter Onyekachukwu 
By Peter Onyekachukwu, Asaba
Ten years after the abduction and gruesome murder of their traditional ruler, the people of Ubulu-Uku in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State say they are still battling for their lives as heavily armed herdsmen tighten their deadly grip on the community.
In a passionate Save-Our-Soul letter addressed to Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, the newly elected leadership of the Ubulu-Uku Development Council (UDC) raised alarm over an unrelenting wave of killings and kidnappings linked to armed men believed to be herdsmen.
The letter, jointly signed by UDC President General Mr. Peter Udene Ugbaja and Secretary General Dr. Chinedu Osaji, urged the state government to urgently deploy security forces to flush out criminal elements occupying their forests and farmlands.
“We are constrained to draw the attention of Your Excellency to the recent rise in attacks by armed hoodlums on Ubulu-Uku and its environs. Although the attacks had been going on for some years, there has been a remarkable upsurge in its frequency and severity towards the end of December 2024,” the letter read in part.
The community listed several flashpoints, including the Ubulu-Uku–Ubulu-Unor Road, Ubulu-Uku–Onicha-Ugbo axis, and the Issele-Uku route, where multiple fatal attacks and kidnappings have occurred. In one incident, a headless male body was discovered in a farm path. Another victim, a hunter, was reportedly gunned down and his motorbike stolen. Several travelers were also attacked during the Yuletide season by armed men said to be hiding in the forests.
The situation, the community leaders say, has instilled fear and disrupted farming activities — the lifeblood of the people of Ubulu-Uku.
The letter was also copied to key security agencies, including the State Commissioner of Police, the Department of State Security (DSS), the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Nigerian Army’s 63 Brigade, and Delta North Senator, Prince Ned Nwoko, among others.
The community’s trauma is rooted in a tragic history. On January 5, 2016, their monarch, His Royal Majesty Obi Edward Akaeze Ofulue III, a lawyer and Deeper Life pastor, was kidnapped while driving to Asaba. His decomposed body was later found in a forest near the Edo State border on January 22. It was one of the earliest high-profile abductions in the Anioma region.
Renowned journalist and community indigene, Pius Mordi, in a piece titled “A New Existential Threat,” recalled the horror. “Nearly ten years after our monarch’s murder, the community remains under siege. It’s like we have moved from one nightmare to another. The killers of the late Obi were only convicted in December 2024, almost nine years after the crime,” he wrote.
Mordi described the late monarch as a humble and disciplined man who lived simply and was known for driving himself around. “The irony is heartbreaking. His son, Obi Chukwuka Noah Akaeze, who succeeded him, had to speak up before the case gained traction in court. Yet here we are, a decade later, begging for protection,” he added.
The Ubulu-Uku Kingdom Descendants Central Union (UKDCU), the apex town union, acknowledged the efforts of Governor Oborevwori’s administration but appealed for swift and decisive action.
“Ubulu-Uku has always been a peaceful community. We desire to keep it that way,” the letter concluded.
The community now hopes that the state will not allow their pleas to fade into another decade of silence.