Peace is finally on its way to Okomu located in Ovia South West Local Government Area of Edo State after many years of communal crisis.
Signal to this was given by Lawrence Yanbor, who is known as the Chief Priest and Spiritual Master of the Okomu Ijaw Liberation Movement, in a message to Governor Godwin Obaseki on Monday morning.
Giving a narrative of what led to the crisis, Yanbor stated: “For many years we felt oppressed, neglected and also denied of our political and indigenous rights as the host of Okomu land in Ovia South West Local Government Area of Edo State.
“We have over the years not been given the basic necessities of decent living eg decent schools, motorable roads, industrial borehole, infrastructure etc.
“This perceived neglect and marginalisation of our people among several other reasons have since 2010 led to our agitation that the relevant authorities – the government and others like Okomu Oil Palm Company, Ose Rubber and Okomu National Park Service should hearken to our demands for a turn of the deplorable situation to a better one for the generality of the people. We did a publication in the Vanguard Newspaper of 24th May, 2024, where we highlighted our grievances.”
According to him, “if the situation is resolved amicably we are willing to drop our arms and ammunition to the governor and embrace peace such that there will be no victor and no vanguished at the end of the day.
“Considering that there is no alternative to peace and tranquility, we are appealing to the governor and the security agencies to intervene and resolve the issue. We are in full agreement with the governor to drop our arms in a proper reconciliation. We promise that we will adhere to the peace agreement.”
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