THE Army Command in Rivers State has backtracked on its recent threat to invade eight communities in Emohua Local Government Area, Rivers State if they failed to surrender the gunmen that killed a soldier and police officer on lawful duty on Emohua-Kalabari road in the area, recently.
The turnabout came just as the Centre for the Vulnerable and Underprivileged, CENTREP, Warri, Delta State, also threatened to file a complaint against the Brigade Commander, Rumuokoro Army Barracks to the office of the United Nations and the International Criminal Court, ICC, if the army attacked the people.
Niger Delta Voice reported the tension that enveloped the communities after the army commander, who visited the Emohua monarch, dropped the threat. A source hinted that the community sent a delegation, last week, to meet with the Brigade Commander at Rumuokoro Army Barracks and beseech him to abort the plan.
What the Army told us- Enyi
One of the delegates, Chief Gabriel Enyi, the Onuegburu Emohua, told Niger Delta Voice, “The paramount ruler and the entire Emohua traditional institution sent Chief Obilor, Vincent Chukwu, Engr Nnamdi Abah and myself to the brigade commander.”
“The brigade commander came here and issued a seven- day ultimatum to the people of Emohua, stating that we should produce the killers of one soldier and one policeman whose bodies were found along Emohua-Kalabari road.
His words, “Emohua was thrown into panic by that singular visit. That ultimatum was scary. It was quite provocative, our royal father sent us to go begging. Good enough, when we got there, we met a very intelligent, Lieutenant Colonel O.A Lawal. “Lawal saved our fear, stressing that the army cannot come to our community. He said we should go back to our community tell them that the army will not invade them. Rather, he pleaded that we should help them locate the killers if we can,” Enyi asserted.
“Lawal has understood our plight and has promised that there will be regular patrol on that road. That will go a long way in solving our problem. “Our mission to the army command was successful. Lawal has assured us that they are not going to attack us. We are very happy about that. This means that Emohua safe,” he voiced.
Why we were afraid
According to him, “Ordinarily, we would have rebuffed them (army), why, because that place is open to the entire world, that road leads into three different local government areas, which means it is a very busy highway. If the army found corpses along the road, what makes them think that our people did it? They came into Emohua in an awfully, fearsome manner with a lorry load of their men to the royal father, demanding that the community must produce the killers.”
He said, “Anybody from anywhere in this world could have killed those persons and dumped them there, but because Emohua has been wrongly labelled a bad name. Why would they not go to other communities and give such charge? There is no community on this earth that does not have bad boys, but the army came and singled Emohua.”
“That Emohua-Kalabari road is safe haven for hoodlums, which is why security agents are now on serious patrol there. Our own son, Progress Onuekwa, is missing on that road till date,” he added. The community leader, however, said the royal father decided there was need to dialogue with the army.
Cleansing ceremony
He disclosed that the traditional institution in Emohua performed Ogbanjor, (cleansing of the land) when the corpses were discovered. He asserted, “Despite the fact that Emohua is a Christian community, we placed a curse on anyone who may have done that to give Emohua people a bad name.”
“The fact that the royal father is a Christian did not stop the traditional institution from performing its duty on this matter. “They collected water from the land and other things from shrine and altars in the eight communities of Emohua to do that and it is very effective. “They placed a curse that the gods should not spare anybody responsible of that devilish act. That is a very bad curse, it has ruined families,” he lamented.
Miscreants cause fresh panic
Enyi uttered, “In a way, Emohua has done her part. The soldiers should carry out their own part. If we see such hoodlums as we have commissioned the Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, in the area to go searching, we will hand them over to the army.” Niger Delta Voice gathered that after the ultimatum, now revoked was issued; some wayward boys took advantage of it to cause more panic in the community.
“Last Wednesday night, around 12 midnight, some boys entered the community shouting that the army men have come to attack Emohua. There was pandemonium everywhere. People started running for their life,” a villager disclosed.
Group spits fire
Executive director of CENTREP, Barrister Oghenejabor Ikimi, who spoke to Niger Delta Voice before the army backed down, said, “The attention of CENTREP has been drawn to the 7- day ultimatum handed down to eight communities in Emohua local government area of Rivers state by the brigade commander in charge of the Nigerian Army, Rumuokoro Barracks in Port-Harcourt.”
