Edo killings: Arrest culprits in 7 days, Obaseki tells security agencies

Delta State Chairman of Committee for Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Prince Kehinde Taiga, has called on companies operating in Ekakpamre community, Ughelli South Local Government Area, to suspend further dealings with any of the warring factions involved in the crisis in the area.

He said the call had become imperative to stop further aggravation of the crisis that has led to frequent breakdown of law and order in the community. 

The CDHR chairman said it is the only way to avert hatred and pandemonium among members of the rural community.

The human rights body also appealed to the state Commissioner of Police, Muhammadu Mustafa, not to allow himself to be used by politicians to perpetrate injustice by arresting and intimidating innocent and law-abiding members of the community.

He pointed out that the action had led to the indigenes of the community abandoning their homeland for fears of being wrongfully detained.

Raising the issue as a matter of urgent public interest at its monthly congress in Warri at the weekend, the body also frown at the alleged oppressive tendencies of the governor’s aides, who were alleged to have engaged the instrumentality of the police to suppress the wish of the people and urged them to desist from such act for peace to reign.

He said: “The leadership crisis in the community needed to be addressed, as the tussle between the two factions is tearing the community into shreds.

“This drama unfolded early January of 2018 after the tenure of the out gone chairman. As he was preparing to leave, he instituted a conference committee as expected by every outgoing leadership of the community, with the responsibility of conducting fresh election for aspirants interested in occupying any position at the executive level of the community.

“The effort of the committee has been frustrated by violence carried out at different times by some suspected thugs from the two major political parties, All Progressives Congress and Peoples Democratic Party, in Delta state.”

Taiga disclosed that an illegal election was conducted by some PDP members without following due process as enshrined in the constitution of the community, and that the outgoing executive also went ahead to swear in their own executive that were positioned via election by the conference committee.

The chairman said the only solution to the crisis is for the two executives from the two factions to be terminated and the conference committee already instituted by the outgone executive,  be empowered and supported by the entire congress to organise an election that will give birth to a new executive.

The community had earlier called on President Muhammadu Buhari, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Idris Ibrahim and relevant authorities, to save them from those troubling the community.