…after exit of military
One person has been reportedly killed and three others seriously injured in communal clashes that erupted shortly after the military vacated the embattled Okuama Community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State.
The soldiers had entered the community and cordoned it off for weeks to investigate the gruesome murder of 17 of their officers and men who were ambushed by miscreants on March 14 on their way to make peace between warring groups of locals.
Okuama, an Urhobo enclave, and Okoloba, an Ijaw territory in Bomadi LGA of Delta State, have been at each other’s throat over a piece of land.
The soldiers vacated Okuama on Tuesday. Now Okuama indigenes returning to their community on Thursday morning were said to have been embroiled in a fresh crisis which led to skirmishes in which dangerous weapons were deployed.
The skirmishes were said to be on two fronts, one being between returning property owners and suspected looters and the other being between rival clans in resurging claims and disputes.
It was also said that residents who fled the community during the military raid attacked those who were said to have strayed into the wasteland to loot what was left of the ruins.
Tempers are said to be on the rise as recriminations are bandied left and right over bad blood and claims to lands and assets.
This is said to have led to a second wave of flights by hapless indigenes of the community and adjoining areas for fear of a spread in the fighting, especially at night time.
Several persons with machete wounds are said to be receiving treatment in medical facilities in and around the area.
Sources say there are fears that the situation could spiral out of control without adequate intervention from state security.
“We were surprised to see the soldiers pull out on Tuesday. Some indigenes of Okuama immediately went back to the community. But, as I’m talking to you, there is a problem; three indigenes of our community have already been ambushed and attacked with machetes by Okuama returnees,” a source said, according to Daily Trust.
“They (the victims) were on their way to Ezebiri community along a bush path linking various communities when they were attacked.
“One of them, who escaped with machete cuts, narrated that they were attacked by the Okuama returnees at gunpoint while on their way to Ezebiri. Others were led towards the jetty at the community waterfront. A victim is in a critical condition at a hospital.”
Daily Trust further reports that a native of another neighbouring community, who confirmed the attack, said, “Yes, they (soldiers) pulled out of Okuama Tuesday around 5 to 6 pm. A soldier said that they received a signal from above to leave the community immediately.
“On the crisis between Akugbene and Okuama returnees, those youths went to Okuama to loot upon hearing that soldiers had left the community. Armed youths of Okuama accosted and shot at them and some were said to have been macheted. Two of those Akugbene youths escaped unhurt and we’ve already sent them back to their community.”
According to Daily Trust, a source from Akugbene said that “one of the two victims, who escaped back to the community after the attack, is dead”.
As the clamour heightened to get the military to vacate Okuama over the weeks, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Lt. Gen. Christopher Musa, had said the siege by the federal troops would be sustained until operations in the area were concluded.
Musa, in reviewing the efforts of the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) to arrest suspected killers of the troops and recover arms and ammunition snatched from the slain soldiers, said the troops would not vacate the community until what he termed “cordon and search” of the Urhobo community was concluded by the DHQ.
Stakeholders had been demanding an end to the military exercise to enable the natives of Okuama and adjoining communities return home in the aftermath of the March 14 bloodbath, in which four officers and 13 soldiers of the Nigerian Army were killed.
Musa’s statement came on the heels of the demand by Lagos lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana, SAN, for access to the detained traditional ruler of Ewu-Urhobo kingdom, HRM Clement Ikolo, Urukpe 1, who surrendered himself to the police and was subsequently turned in to DHQ for interrogation, in connection with the fate of the fallen soldiers.
Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, had announced days back that military had finally withdrawn from the troubled Okuama Community in the state.
Addressing a press conference at Government House, Asaba, Governor Oborevwori indicated that this would create the atmosphere for residents of Okuama who had fled in fear to return to their homes.
The governor further said that the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) Camp set up by his administration to ensure a smooth and seamless resettlement of the displaced Okuama residents was up and running.
The military had taken over the community after 17 Army personnel were gruesomely killed on the 14th of March, 2024 in the riverine community in the Ughelli South Local Government Area of the state, causing many residents to flee into the creeks and other neighbouring communities.
The 17 personnel — the Commanding Officer of 181 Amphibious Battalion, two majors, one captain, and 12 personnel of the battalion — were later buried at the Military Cemetery in Abuja.
The burial was attended by President Bola Tinubu, the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa; Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-General Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar, and Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla.
The Deputy Senate President, Jibrin Barau; and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, led members of the both upper and lower chambers to honour the slain military personnel.
Governors Sheriff Oborevwori (Delta), Duoye Diri (Bayelsa), Usman Ododo (Kogi), Uba Sani (Kaduna), Hope Uzodimma (Imo), and Abba Yusuf (Kano) were also present alongside other members of their state executives.
