₦airaland Forum

Following the explosion that rocked Okpella community in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, yesterday, the Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has directed the commissioner of police and the Director of Department of State Services (DSS) in the state, to commence search for explosives and other weapons and dis-arm the militia group operating in the community.

Obaseki gave the directive after listening to the traditional ruler of Okpella, His Royal Highness (HRH) Okuokpellagbe of Okpella, Alhaji Andrew Dirisu and chiefs from the different clans in the community who paid the governor a courtesy visit at the Government House.
He told his guests that the report of a bomb explosion in Okpella is disheartening and must be investigated.

It was gathered that a strange vehicle was seen in Okpella and when concerned people in the community stopped the vehicle, the occupants fled. In the process, one of the occupants set off a bomb which claimed the bomber’s life and his colleague in crime was apprehended. After interrogation, a bomb factory was discovered in the neighbourhood in the community.

In his response, Obaseki said he was worried about the events in Okpella, such as the reign of an armed group terrorising the community.

“We cannot pretend that things are fine. We must move arms out of private hands in that community and ensure peace returns to that domain.

“Your Royal Highness, if not for the explosion that rocked the community where one person died, you would not have known that explosives of such nature were in private hands in your domain. In the last one year Okpella has recorded the highest rate of incidents in Edo State. I cannot sit down without taking action,” the governor said.

He assured that his administration would do all within its power to ensure that all Edo people and residents in the state are safe and secure, promising to nip in the bud, the worrisome trend in Okpella.

He recalled the attack on his convoy by suspected members of BUA Surveillance Group during his recent visit to the palace of the Okuokpellagbe of Okpella, and described the attack as “unacceptable and an attack on the Edo State Government.”

He urged the managing director of BUA International Limited to come out and explain his role in the alleged sponsorship of a militia group in the community.

Earlier, the Okuokpellagbe of Okpella Andrew Dirisu commended the governor for his visionary leadership style exemplified by his consistent and swift responses to issues that threaten the peace of the state.

He called on the governor to put in place an alternative dispute resolution mechanism to address the Dangote-BUA issue, though the case is before a competent court.

Recall that the governor raised an alarm recently that some Edo youths in Okpella, were allegedly armed by BUA Cement, as a militia group based on intelligence report, a development Obaseki said could disrupt the peace in the area.


Source: The Eagle Online

https://theeagleonline.com.ng/okpella-explosion-obaseki-orders-search-for-bombs/

Some youths from Okpella community, in Etsako East Local Government Area, where the disputed Obu mine site is located, have cried out over attacks by a militia called the BUA Surveillance Group supposedly armed by BUA International Limited to move against its real and perceived opponents in the community.

Speaking with journalists in Benin City on Tuesday, the youths, who were sporting different degrees of injuries, bemoaned their ordeal in the hands of the militia, calling on the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, to maintain his stance on the disputed mine site to forestall further breakdown of law and order.

One of the injured Okpella indigene, Mr. Omoh Beture, who sustained a head cut, said that he had gone to welcome the governor when he came to shut down the mine site, only to be attacked by the militia when he asked that a barricade mounted close to the Okuokpellagbe’s palace be removed.

According to him, “I was at home when the Senatorial Youth leader, Blessing Dirisu, called me that the governor was coming to town. As a youth leader, he asked me to mobilise my people to cheer the governor.

“On our way to the palace of his Royal Highness, the Okuokpellagbe of Okpella, we saw some boys barricading the road. We asked them what they were doing there. They said they came to block the governor because he came to Okpella to shut the Obu mine site."

He said he advised the disgruntled youths to properly channel their concerns and that if they truly wanted to send a message to the governor, they should call a press conference and tell the world that they don’t want people working on the site to lose their jobs.

“Immediately, I called the youths to remove the barricade. The boys rushed out and attacked us. They rushed me and beat me up. I reported the matter to the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), Okpella Division. The matter was documented. I was initially at Auchi General Hospital. But I was only recently transferred to Benin City,” he added.

Another youth in the area, Akemokue Lukman, said that it was very wise of the governor to shut the mine as the activities of the BUA Surveillance Group was creating serious tension and endangering the lives of people in the community.

According to him, “It is no longer news that there is crisis between Dangote and BUA International Limited. One of them has armed a group of boys in our community and tagged them BUA Surveillance Group. They are armed with a Toyota Thundra Jeep with enough pump action guns. They have been hiding under the pretext of Surveillance and Vigilante. Their mission is to intimidate anybody who seems to be a perceived opponent of BUA, including the governor.”

He added that since the ongoing scuffle on the pages of newspapers, the community has discovered that each group is arming and recruiting boys for a showdown.

According to him, “There are two or three instances where boys went to that place to fight each other. What the governor did by shutting the mine site, is right. I believe the mine should be shut until the court gives its judgement.”

Some of the other youths injured in the attack include Sule Mohammed and Yusuf Afam.


PHOTO CAPTION
Mr. Omoh Beture (speaking to journalists), who sustained a head cut, narrating his ordeal in the hands of BUA Surveillance Group, a militia group allegedly armed by BUA International Limited to move against its real and perceived opponents in the community.


Source:

Nigerian Observer

http://nigerianobservernews.com/2018/01/brutalised-okpella-youths-recount-ordeal-bua-militia/

http://edoinfocus.com/brutalised-okpella-youths-recount-ordeal-with-bua-militia/

http://thebellng.com/brutalised-okpella-youths-recount-ordeal-with-bua-militia/

The Edo State Government said it has received complaints of how the Edo State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Dan Orbih, used his influence to convert part of the land belonging to Anglican Girls Grammar School (AGGS) Benin City, to private use.

The State Government said it is “looking into the complaints to establish the veracity and assured that the appropriate institutions of government will respond to all the issues raised.”

A statement issued by the Special Adviser on Media and Communication Strategy to the Governor, Mr Crusoe Osagie, said “The Edo State Government received complaints from a non-governmental organisation, Concerned Edo Citizens and some old students of the prestigious Anglican Girls Grammar School in Benin City. The Governor Obaseki-led administration is concerned about the issues raised and considering the personality involved in the petition, has raised a team to study the authenticity of the claims.

“The governor is very worried that if we allow people to continue to encroach on the lands meant for schools, hospitals and other public facilities in the state, there will be no space for the future expansion of these assets.

“This administration places high premium on education, the rule of law and due process, and will investigate the claims and all the issues raised. Much as we do not want to pre-empt the outcome of the investigation, we are however not surprised that again, the PDP is seen to be playing in its traditional and familiar territory where its members have won medals in illegally enriching themselves with public property. Their flare for avarice and excessive greed is without compare,” he said.

He explained that “Edo State is blessed with abundant land resource and the chairman of the former ruling party, could have built his house on any other piece of land, if not for their default knack and natural aptitude for fleece. The PDP’s insatiable appetite for stealing public assets is manifest in all sectors of the state.

“They misconstrue and misperceive leadership as an opportunity to become emergency big men that must be worshipped by the ordinary people they are stealing from. Most of them are not qualified to do decent jobs, which explains their desperation to come back to power and continue the looting game.”

Osagie stressed that “Even if he was illegally offered the piece of land by any government, he should have turned such an offer down, knowing that the school will need the space for expansion in the future. True leaders would reject such a gift in the interest of the Edo children in the school, who certainly would need more space for more educational infrastructure.

“True leaders do not appropriate public assets to themselves, they protect and increase the opportunities for the future generations. Obaseki is creating the enabling environment for everyone to attain any heights they desire and actualise their God-given potential.”

He assured that the state government through the appropriate channels will give all the parties a fair chance to explain their sides of the alleged land racketeering story.

By Crusoe Osagie, Special Adviser, Media and Communication Strategy to Governor Godwin Obaseki of Edo State


1. BUA cement factory in Obu Okpella is up and running as you read this piece.


2. Neither Governor Obaseki nor EDSG shut down BUA cement factory.


3. BUA has 10 (TEN) mining sites from where it takes limestone to feed its plant.


4. Only one of the 10 mining sites has a dispute.


5. Only the Federal govt is constitutionally empowered to allocate mine sites to individuals and companies.


6. The court and FG issued a Stop Work Order for only the disputed mine i.e BUA still has another 9 free mines.


7. BUA continued to mine at the disputed site despite the Stop Work Order using a militia group of innocent Edo youths and arming them to cover their activities at the disputed mining site.


8.Obaseki received SOS calls from some Elders in Afo Okpella who visited him in Benin to warn of an impending bloodbath.


9. Obaseki stopped all parties from working on only the disputed mine to prevent anarchy and senseless killings which is now common in Nigeria: remember what happened in Benue State, Rivers and Kaduna recently


10. The PDP is not interested in peace in Okpella or anywhere else in Edo State. They are just trying to get into the Edo treasury so that they can start looting again.


It is strange that a party of looters and criminals that fed fat from money entrusted in their hands for the development of Edo State has suddenly emerged as the spokesman for BUA. But Edo people know their history and will allow the court to decide on the BUA- Dangote issue.


PDP is indeed shameless for daring to say that it cares for Edo people. Since when?

PDP does not care about Edo people. It is tired and dying and looking for any event in the polity to comment on, no matter how uninformed the commentary. After losing out on all fronts, the once arrogant, lawless and shameless party is fast becoming a pressure group instead of a political party whose criminal records will continue to hunt


EDO PEOPLE SAY NEVER AGAIN TO CHRIS NEHIKHARE, DAN ORBIH AND THE OTHER DISPLACED PEOPLE IN THE PDP.

teemanbastos:
I hope his 'big man reputation' wouldn't get him off the hook?

Never. Not under Governor Obaseki's watch.

fergie001:
Forget all the English some are speaking up there,


Its all Dangote at work...
His extreme closeness to Obaseki is public knowledge

Dangote wants to monopolise everything in this country,
The way things are going I will not be surprised if by 2019,he will monopolise the air that we breathe...

Well,like I have said in the past,they will settle out of court,they are from the same,the same(you know)!

This is not about monopoly or Dangote or BUA. It's about law and order in Edo state.

Good thing we were wise enough to vote Governor Obaseki as our governor. He continues to impress Edolites with manfulness.

True talk sir

KenIsaacs:
You guys are getting it wrong. A matter is in court and one of the parties, BUA ignored a Stop Work Order and is mining at the site under litigation. When caught pants down, BUA resorted to recruiting militias to attack the Edo state governor's convoy and other govt officials, who merely intervened to protect Edo people in Okpella. Why the rush to quickly mine from the site in question when BUA has other mining sites in the same location. No amount of pity party or emotional blackmail can sway right thinking people. Wait for the court to rule on the matter. As for the attack on the governor, the MD needs to face the music.

True talk sir

KenIsaacs:
You guys are getting it wrong. A matter is in court and one of the parties, BUA ignored a Stop Work Order and is mining at the site under litigation. When caught pants down, BUA resorted to recruiting militias to attack the Edo state governor's convoy and other govt officials, who merely intervened to protect Edo people in Okpella. Why the rush to quickly mine from the site in question when BUA has other mining sites in the same location. No amount of pity party or emotional blackmail can sway right thinking people. Wait for the court to rule on the matter. As for the attack on the governor, the MD needs to face the music.

True talk sir

Good one my amiable Governor Obaseki.

It's no secret that Gov Obaseki is trying to restore law and order in Edo state. And outright transgression of the law like this will not be brooked anymore.

There's a court order in place that puts mining in abeyance in that particular mine. Why then was BUA still mining there even after Gov Obaseki instructed that the court order be complied with. Is BUA above the law.

I guess they never knew who they were dealing with. Too bad for them.

Carry go my wake and see governor...