Shops and other business premises belonging to Igbo traders at Biogbolo,
Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, have remained shut following attacks on
traders by aggrieved youths from the area.
Investigations,
Thursday, revealed that all the shops at Customs Road and Green Villa
extending to the Yenagoa-Mbiama Road could not open for business out of
fears that the youths were regrouping for fresh attacks.
The
attackers have been protesting an alleged ritual killing of 17-year-old
Faith Omosovu Pius by a 31-year-old non-indigene identified as Tochukwu
at the New Wapo Hotel located in the area.
Many traders have fallen victims of the attacks with their shops and business premises shattered and burnt by the youths.
The police and the army have been patrolling the affected areas to stop further damage and restore the peace in the area.
Government
authorities and security agents were said to have held meetings with
traditional rulers and community leaders to douse tension and prevent
the situation from snowballing into full-blown inter-tribal war.
The
authorities were said to be prevailing on the angry indigenes to stop
spreading hate speeches against non-indigenes especially Igbo traders
because of the misdeeds an individual.
The Ijaw Youth Council
(IYC) Worldwide, while condemning the killing, appealed to the indigenes
to stop attacking innocent people.
The Acting Chairman, IYC
Central Zone, Mr. Amiebi Turner, said instead of assaulting innocent
non-indigenes, the aggrieved persons should channel their energy towards
finding and bringing the culprit to book.
Turner said: “The IYC
central zone wishes to condemn in totality the murder of a promising
Ijaw daughter, while we also advise our youths to remain calm, peaceful
and avoid acts that may disrupt the existing peace in the state.
“We
understand the pains, we feel the rage, but we advise against taking
laws into your hands. As we push for moves aimed at apprehending the
culprit and to restore order.
“Since the incident, we have
engaged security agencies to intensify hunt of the suspected murderer of
our beloveth daughter, which they have promised to do, on our path, we
owe the duty to provide useful informations.
“The entire Ijaw
youths in Central zone wishes to commiserate with the bereaved family
and the entire Biogbolo – Epie community in the state capital, on this
sad and painful loss, we pray God to give you all the fortitude to bear
this great loss.
“We also use this opportunity to advise security
agencies to stop the chase and assault on youths of Biogbolo community,
so as not to aggravate the situation but to rather employ diplomatic
measures that will be void of martial law.
“We condemn this
dastardly and criminal act in very strong terms, but we must allow
security agencies do their work to unravel the mystery behind this
unjust killing. We also advise residents in the area to remain peace
abiding and not see it as an ethnic or tribal issue, for crime is
crime”.
Turner commended the Caretaker Committee Chairman of
Yenagoa, Mr. Oboku Oforji, for his timely intervention and advised
traders and residents to go about their normal activities.
Oboku
also called on the people of Biogbolo-Epie community to be peaceful and
law abiding insisting that efforts were ongoing to resolve the killing.
Oboku,
who spoke in after a meeting involving him, the police and the
community chiefs at Biogbolo Town Hall, described the incident as
“regrettable”.
He said that a committee was set up to handle the
matter with a view to bringing justice to the grieving family and the
community.
“We are working very hard, and we are gathering more
information. What we want to do is to see that justice is done by
apprehending the culprit.
“The committee has swung into action, and has started getting results only for violence to break out again today”, he said.
But
the council boss appealed to the Igbo traders in the community to stay
away in the meantime, adding that “it will not be long we will ask them
to return and start their normal businesses.”
“They (the Igbo
traders) are aware that somebody died and it’s painful, and that is the
reason why the shops should temporarily close down, and hopefully we
will call them to return to their shops”, he said.
Thenationonlingng
