Jonathan Nwokpor
The military is accused by the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) of invading Igbomotoru 2 in the Bomo-Ibe Clan of Bayelsa State early on Sunday, March 17, 2024, killing 40 persons. This accusation stems from the recent deaths of military soldiers in Okuama Community, Delta State.
As the council argued that Okuama is not a village in Bayelsa State, it denounced the recent killings of military personnel.
The killing of the military troops did not occur in Ijaw territory, and it has nothing to do with the Ijaw nation, according to a statement released on Wednesday by Dr. Alaye Theophilus, President of IYC.
The statement went on to say that the council has also assembled a fact-finding and investigative team that is willing to work with the military and other security services to identify the actual cause of the problem and maybe apprehend the murderers.
The council begged that the town as a whole not be devastated due to the actions of a few people while searching for the murderers.
It said: “We as a council condemns in its totality the killing of military personnel on official peacekeeping assignment at Okuama Community in Delta State.
“This incident is devilish and inhuman, and therefore, no sane-minded person can support such an act in any guise.”
The council emphasized that “whatever happens in any part of the region is of serious concern to us,” saying that as the largest ethnic block in the Niger Delta, it was worried about the stability and business-friendly climate of the oil-rich region.
It said that, as a people, what they experienced over time “is that when an individual does something bad to military men operating in the region, reprisal from the military is always against the entire community.”
The council further noted that: “As we speak, the fears of our people have shown up again as the said Okuama Community has been completely burnt down and all the occupants made homeless, and are now refugees in neighboring communities.
“We will also draw your attention to the onslaught going on in one of our Ijaw communities in Bayelsa State, Igbomotoru 2 in Bomo-Ibe Clan, where the Nigeria military evaded the community in early hours of Sunday, March 17, 2024.
“They opened fire on innocent men, women and children. They killed over 40 people and still counting without any form of provocation.
“As a council, we condemn what the military is doing in Igbomotoru 2 community.
“What is happening in this community is purely a humanitarian crisis. As we speak, they have held every member of the community hostage, as there is no entry or exit to the community. People are now starving to death.”
Calling the military to order, the council urged President Bola Tinubu and the Chief of Defense Staff to act.
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