By Emma Amaize Warri
THE people of Ogbe-Ijoh community in Warri South-West Local Government Council of Delta State, yesterday, raised the alarm over a looming inter-communal clash between the kingdom and neighbouring Aladja community, an Urhobo ethnic group in Udu Local Government Area of the state.

The Ogbe-Ijoh Governing Council in a letter, addressed to the Governor of Delta State, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, entitled, “Looming inter communal clash between Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja communities: Save our Soul”, and signed by the chairman and secretary, Dr. Clarkson Aribogha and Hon Friday Deinghan respectively, said tension was very high between the two communities.

In their words, “As we write this petition, no person is allowed to move building materials to Ogbe-Ijoh town through Aladja community, the only access road to Ogbe-Ijoh town. This unwarranted action by the Aladja community is generating tension between the two communities as indigenes of Ogbe-Ijoh, especially the youths perceive the action of the Aladja community as an invitation to war.

“This action by the Aladja community is provocative and meant to incite a clash between the two communities”, they stated.

According to them, “If not for the intervention of the leadership and elders of Ogbe-Ijoh kingdom, the situation would have degenerated into inter communal clash, if not Ijaw / Urhobo inter ethnic clash.

The situation at present is tense and calls for urgent attention. It would interest you to note that the 1996 inter communal clash between these two communities paved the way for the Warri crisis and later Niger Delta crisis”.

The Ogbe-Ijoh community, however, noted with dismay that “government has not taken serious interest in the resolution of this problem”, asking, “Is government waiting till when there would be a bloodbath before intervening? It would be recall that the 1996 crisis degenerated to loss of lives and destruction of properties because of the lackadaisical attitude of government”.

Consequently, it demanded among other things that Aladja community, through its leadership, should be called to order to avoid breakdown of law and order, especially in view of the fact that they have already taken the matter to court.

“Men of the Joint Task Force, should as a matter of urgency , be sent to patrol between Aladja and Ogbe-Ijoh to nip in the bud any act that would lead to communal clash and establishment of army check points in Aladja main town.

“Government should put more efforts towards the resolution of the problem”, they stated, reminding the governor that Ogbe-Ijoh town, headquarters of Warri South West Local Government Area is only accessible on land through Aladja community and being that Ogbe-Ijoh town is the headquarters of Warri South West Local Government Area, most of the local government workers and property developers transport their building materials through the land.

In their words, “The Aladja community has been taking advantage of their position as access community to stop the movement of people going to Ogbe-Ijoh town, especially property developers”.

They said that as a result of the strained relationship between these two communities, “Your government in 2010 set up a Commission of Inquiry to look into the remote and immediate cause of the problem. However, up till date government has not taken any step to address the issue and the situation is degenerating to a state of lawlessness”.

“As an interim solution to the problem, your government directed that the two communities should not do anything in the buffer zone in the land in dispute. However, despite this directive, the Aladja community continues to excavate sand from this part of the land. The Ogbe-Ijoh people have reported this incident to your government and security agents on several occasions, but the excavation are still on”, they said.

“Also, the Chief Tunde Smooth -led mediation committee, which you gave two week to resolve the problem sometime in March 2011, has not been able to resolve the dispute between the two communities. This is because the two communities could not agree on an acceptable boundary point”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/03/fresh-communal-crisis-brews-between-ogbe-ijoh-aladja/

The ijaw pple have a strong point here. Aladja community have no right to restrict pple or goods passing thru their land.

If I were a serious spongeDUPE Razistpant I would concentrate more on this rather than twisting what Omoluabi means or creating an infernal 'SSS/SSCE' internet alliance that's way off reality.

@topic
The issue is quite laughable .People seriously need to get a flipping life!