28012020

Crisis looms in troubled Delta
kingdom over deposed monarch
Continues from Page 28
withdraw our membership from
Isoko Development Union.”
He, the Secretary-General,
Apostle Patrick Omoweh, Oletu-
Odhe, Uzere Clan, Chief
Fredrick Uyeh and three others,
alleged that Amadhe "is involved
in gross misconduct and is one of
the persons responsible for the
continuous crisis in Uzere clan."
How fresh trouble
started —Enwenede
Speaking on the development,
President-General of the
community, Enwenede, said: "In
August 2019, we had a petition
from the youth leader then and
other groups over some money
that came from NPDC and meant
for a skills acquisition
programme. While we were about
to start the skills acquisition
programme, the youths said the
money must be given to them,
which is not supposed to be. This
is the beginning of the crisis.
“The matter that brought crisis
in 2011 is in the court. It is a
kingship matter, but every now
and then, High Chief Amadhe
will always come up with one idea
or the other, trying to bring the
other Ovie in exile by force.
"We have to pull out of IDU
because we cannot have
someone like Amadhe, who is
from Uzere and he is the one
sponsoring the crisis."
NDV learned that the state
government waded into the
matter and set up a peace
committee, but Enwenede
claimed that Amadhe did not
allow the committee to work.
We’ve a snake with
two heads—Amadhe
Reacting to the allegations,
Amadhe described Enwenede as
a dictator promoting crisis in his
own community, adding “the
crisis of Uzere has been on for a
very long time. There are two
kings in the community and if the
President-General of the
community is organising himself
and align with a particular one,
there must be issues in such a
community.
"There have been other
presidents-general in Uzere and
they did not have this kind of
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Jimitota Onoyume- Warri
Gabriel Enogholase- Benin City
Festus Ahon- Asaba
Egufe Yafugborhi- Port Harcourt
Emmanuel Una- Calabar
Akpokona Omafuaire- Warri
Paul Olayemi- Sapele
Harri Emmanuel- Uyo
Chioma Onuegbu-Uyo
Ike Uchechukwu-Calabar
Davies Iheamnachor-P’Harcourt
Emem Idio- Yenagoa
Brisibe Perez- Ughelli
Theresa Ugbobu- Agbor
Ochuko Akuopha- Oleh
Chancel Sunday - Bomadi
Alemma Aliu- Benin City
Nath Onajoke- Asaba
Chijioke Nwankpa- P'Harcourt
problem that Enwenede is
introducing. The community is
divided and as a man, who has
settled cases in 15 different Isoko
communities, I cannot be a new
man in my own community. I
should be able to advise my
people on the right thing to do.
The king that is recognised by
government has staff of office and
the other one in the community
has no staff of office.
"If I advise and my advice is not
taken, you can be on your own
since a prophet is never
recognised in his town. There was
problem in Uzere in 2011 that led
to the installation of a parallel
king, but Uzere people are all
aware that if a king does not die,
you cannot have another one.
“Because of what happened at
that time, some people said since
the king cannot listen to them, let
us have a parallel king. They put
a parallel king believing that that
the one recognised by
government would work out
modalities to resolve the matter.
That is why the matter has
lingered on.
"They did it out of annoyance
and if you know that something
was done wrong, can we not say
since the other one cannot be
recognised by government, let us
settle the whole thing ourselves
because you cannot have a snake
with two heads?
"The situation in Uzere is that
we have a snake with two heads,
but the difference in the heads is
that one head is recognised by
government because a staff of
office was presented to that one."
On the withdrawal of the clan
from IDU, he said the community
has not withdrawn as it was well
represented at the just-concluded
annual conference of the union.
A lot of unruliness in
Uzere— Ikpokpo, LG chair
On his part, Chairman of the
Isoko South Local Government
Area, Sir Itiako Ikpokpo, said:
"The fact of the matter is that there
is a traditional ruler brought in
By Perez Brisibe
ABRAKA—THE murder of a
member of Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP, in Abraka,
Ethiope East Local Government
Area, Delta State, Iroro Wisdom
Ovie, has taken a new twist with
the police and his immediate
family currently enmeshed in a
war of words over the
circumstances surrounding his
death.
The late Iroro, who is a father
of two, was beaten and shot dead
by unknown gunmen, last
Wednesday, at his Lucas area
residence, along the Police
Station axis of Abraka, host
community of the state-owned
Delta State University, DELSU.
Describing his murder as a
heinous crime, Delta State
by the people, recognised by
government. There is a gazette,
there is no lawless community.
“Unfortunately, they also have
a President-General (Enwenede).
Of course, you will recall that in
one of our security meetings, he
was suspended because of his
attitude. There is no community
that is isolated from the laws and
constitution of Nigeria. The
leadership of the community,
when we met, appealed that
when the suspension is over, we
should call him back so that he
can begin to ensure that there is
peace in the community.
"There is so much grievances
in the community; there is a lot of
lawlessness, people are taking
laws into their hands and we have
called in the security agencies to
help ensure that people are free,
irrespective of their differences,
to move about freely in their
community.
"Why will people take laws into
their hands? Why will people
create fear in a community that
belongs to all of them? I will not
stand for that and will do my best
and I have done so. If not for the
support of His Excellency, we
would not have got this far,
because any time I call, he
responds.
“Even the Commissioner of
Police, Department of State
Services, DSS, have been very
fantastic in trying to nip things in
the bud."
On his decision to disband
youth activities in the community,
Ikpokpo responded: "The reason
is simple. It is not the old men or
women who are destroying
people's properties and we do not
want a situation where different
youth groups, whether in the
name of good governance or
freedom fighters, will take
advantage of what they have in
their possession to create havoc
in the community.
"We need to let them know that
we no longer recognise their
unions or activities and that is
why we disbanded them."
Commissioner of Police, Hafiz
Inuwa, who disclosed that he had
directed the Area Commander
and Divisional Police Officer,
DPO, in charge of Abraka, to
ensure that the perpetrators were
brought to book, said the victim
was a “notorious cultist and
fraudster” and the killing had no
political coloration.
His words: “I do not know the
political party the person (victim)
belongs to, but all I know is that
he is someone who I was made
to understand is a notorious cultist
and a fraudster.
“From the information I
gathered while he was being
dragged into the bush, witnesses
at the scene of the incident heard
him pleading with his assailants,
saying ‘do not worry, I will pay
you back your money’.
Niger Delta Voice, TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, , 2020—29
DEATHTRAP IN EDO:
Obaseki residents cry to Gov
Obaseki over gully erosion
EDO... HEARTBEAT
OF THE NATION
By Gabriel Enogholase
BENIN
CITY—
R E S I D E N T S
of Obaseki Street,
Oregbeni, Benin City, Ikpoba-
Okha Local Government Area,
Edo State, have complained to
Governor Godwin Obaseki to
urgently come to their aid over
the menace of gully erosion,
which they described as a
deathtrap in the area.
A visit by NDV to the area
revealed that the gully erosion
has sacked many property
owners and rendered the street
un-motorable.
Govt paid deaf ears
to our plight— Bello
Secretary, Landlords and
Landladies group in the area,
Mr Imasuen Bello, who have
lived there since 1985,
attributed the gully erosion that
has made the street
uninhabitable to occupants to
negligence by both past and
present administrations of the
state.
He said: “This gully was not
here when I came, the street
was very motorable. But when
it started we cried out and
government never listened to
us. We, on our own, have been
carrying out palliative measures
to rehabilitate the street, that is
why people can still trek
through the street.
“Look at the gutter we did. We
have always done our best, but
it did not work. We cried to our
Endangered Obseki Street.
Family of slain PDP member, police differ over killing
“So, with him being a fraudster,
we are looking to see if he
collected some people’s money
and refused to pay them. But that
notwithstanding, a heinous crime
has been committed whether he
is a criminal or not, murder has
been committed and we are
hunting for the perpetrators.”
Family threatens legal
action against police
However, the outburst of the
police boss was greeted with
angry response from the family
and friends of the victim, who
described him as an easy-going
jolly fellow that did not indulge
himself in any form of criminality,
as alleged by the police boss.
Threatening, legal action
against the police boss over his
utterances, wife of the victim, Mrs.
neighbouring company,
Guinness Nigeria Plc, Benin, to
assist us to solve this problem
as part of its community
relations.
“We even went as far to the
Palace of the Oba of Benin, who
gave directive to the company
to rehabilitate the street and two
others in the area, but Guinness
abandoned our street.
Travails despite
Obaseki’s intervention
"The present government sent
officials from the Ministries of
Infrastructure and Environment
and Sustainability; they came to
see the street, but up till now
there is nothing to show for it.
“We are suffering here, you
can see some house are already
caving in. We do not even know
how and what we will do when
the raining season we start. Few
months ago a little boy was
found inside the gully, swept by
erosion and died inside.”
File disappears
at govt ministry
Elder Joe Ereoah and other
inhabitants lambasted the
government for saying that the
file used in evaluating the street
by the officials of Ministry
Environment and Sustainability
has developed wings.
"We went to Ministry
Environment and
Sustainability, they told us the
file is missing after the approval
by the governor. They told us
that; we did not see the file," he
asserted.
NDV’s efforts to get comment
from the affected ministries were
abortive at press time.
Precious Ovie, wants the police
commissioner to retract his
assertions against her husband,
describing them as baseless and
unfounded.
She said: “My husband is
neither a fraudster nor a notorious
cultist as claimed by the police
commissioner. The police should
stop saying those nonsense about
my husband because I am very
angry and mad at them and I will
sue over this matter.
“I am not up to 30 years and
have already become a widow.
So, you can imagine how painful
it is. They just cut my husband’s
life short just like that, yet the
police are coming out to say all
these nonsense. This is too bad
and I am using this medium to
tell the police to retract that
statement or face legal action.”