PHOTO:AFP
• Ijaw youths vow reprisal on OPC threat
Residents of Kaiama community in Kolokuma Opukuma Local Council, Bayelsa State, where the Adaka Boro Avengers threatened to proclaim the Niger Delta Republic today, are fleeing the town for fear of hostilities with security agencies.
Spokesman of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Mr. Eric Omare, said it is regrettable that the massive movement of residents from the community is coming on the heels of apprehension by Ijaw people in the South West, as a result of the expiration of an ultimatum issued by the Reformed Odua Peoples’ Congress (OPC), following attacks by unknown gunmen in parts of Lagos and Ogun States.
The IYC urged residents of Kaiama to be calm and go about their normal activities, saying there is no plan by the Ijaw people to declare a republic and that the threat by the Adaka Boro Avengers should be ignored.
The IYC also urged security agencies to stop threats and attacks on Ijaw and other Niger Delta communities because of the activities of faceless groups. “The Ijaw nation has a leadership and they should check with the leadership on issues of security, instead of threatening or attacking the innocent,” it said.
The Council urged OPC members and the leadership of the Yoruba nation to allow security agents perform their constitutional duty of apprehending criminals responsible for the Ogun and Lagos attacks.
Omare said: “As at this morning, information at the disposal of the IYC indicate that some Ijaw people in Lagos and Ogun States, for fear of attack, are already relocating to the South South.
“The IYC seriously warns against attacks on innocent Ijaw people in the South West, as it would result in reprisals in the South-South where Yoruba people are also resident. An inter-ethnic clash between the Ijaw and Yoruba is totally unnecessary. The Ogun and Lagos attacks are clear cases of criminality and should be treated as such, instead of threatening to attack innocent Ijaw people and their businesses
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