Posted by Comrade Derrick Oritsematosan Agberen, a human rights activist, has requested CP Wale Abbas, the commissioner of police in Delta State, to find the firearms that were used in the confrontation between the Aladja and Ogbe-Ijoh communities in the Udu and Warri South-West local government areas.
In a statement on Thursday, he announced the decision.
“One could tell that the weapons being used are sophisticated and as such, shouldn’t be in the hands of people,” he said. “From the sound of sporadic gunshots, being shot at retaliatory (attack).
He pointed out that the ongoing land dispute between the two communities has recently resulted in property destruction, the displacement of thousands of people, and the loss of life.
He recalled that in May 2016, the just-retired governor, Arthur Ifeanyi Okowa, had established an eight-person panel of inquiry to examine the problem and suggest long-term remedies, with the communities committing to cooperate if the recommendations are carried out.
According to him, Okowa did not implement the panel led by Prof. Abednego Ekoko’s White Paper report.
“The findings would have been executed and the peace between both groups would have been restored if there really was a serious desire to resolve the long-standing dispute.
If the government had tackled these issues with the honesty, objectivity, and urgency they merited, they would have been settled long ago.
“The crisis persisted through 2018 and has persisted to this day,” he stated.
Agberen encouraged Sheriff Oborevwori, the governor of Delta State, to review the panel’s report and make sure it is carefully considered and executed, or, even better, to form a new commission of inquiry and put the disagreements to rest once and for all.