The Union of Udu Communities, administrative organ of the Udu people of Delta State led by Omiragwa Austin Emaduku has described the clashes between Aladja in Udu Local Government Area and Ogbe-Ijoh in Warri South-West Local Government Area of the state as unfortunate, calling on the state government to wade into the crisis and do what is necessary to put a permanent stop to the perennial bloodletting amongst the two neighbours.
In a statement issued on Saturday and signed by the President General of the Union, Omiragwa Austin Emaduku and the Secretary General, Hon Patrick Okorugbo, UUC maintains that the state government must be bold enough to identify the original owners of the land, prevail on both parties to be generous enough to accept the position of government and put a permanent stop to the protracted crisis which, it noted, has claimed many lives over the years.
The statement which was issued in reaction to another round of hostilities on Saturday resulting in injuries to several victims reads: ‘’The Union of Udu Communities, the administrative organ of the Udu people of Delta State have observed with grave concern the recent outburst of hostilities between our people of Aladja in Udu Local Government Area of Delta State and her neighbor, the people of Ogbe-Ijoh in Warri South-West Local Government Area of the state.
‘’We are gravely concerned with the safety and welfare of our sons and daughters in Aladja as well as settlers from other parts of the state and beyond, whose source of livelihood are endangered by the incessant crisis from time to time over the protracted land dispute between the two neighbours.
‘’The report of another round of hostility today Saturday July 22, 2023 is worrisome resulting in fears and deep psychological trauma in the people. It is trite to note that over the years, many lives have been lost, property worth millions of naira destroyed, with the resultant cases of social-economic dislocation, acute hunger and pains to homes, individuals and business places.
‘’We note with some degree of consolation, the various efforts of government towards resolving the crisis in the area of setting up of panels of enquiries and boundary adjustments initiatives which have not yielded the permanent solution to the crisis.
‘’We are therefore constrained to appeal to the Delta State Government to be bold enough to end the crisis by taking decisive action towards putting a permanent stop to the contentious boundary dispute.
‘’The dispute is not beyond the capability of the state government. What is needed at this juncture is the establishment of the truth as to the issue of the true owners of the disputed land, prevailing on both parties to bend over to accept some generous concessions brokered by the State in the interest of peaceful co-existence and creating the window for the warring factions to embrace each other towards a permanent solution to the issues at stake.
‘’We wish to reiterate the position of the Union of Udu Communities for government to be bold enough to establish the true owners of the disputed land and thereafter work towards permanent peace, for there can’t be peace without justice.
‘’Our people of Aladja have suffered untold pains and avoidable psychological trauma over the generosity of their forbears for too long. The Union of Udu Communities is saddened that till date, government have not been able to put the crisis behind the people for peace to blossom. The time to act is now.
‘’We therefore appeal to His Excellency, Rt Hon Sheriff Francis Orowhedor Oborevwori to be firm enough to break the boil, speak truth to the situation and appeal to both parties to accept the position of government on the matter for a permanent solution to the perennial crisis. Enough is enough of the unpleasant security situation between both communities.
‘’We are fully prepared to work with the various organs of government to address this matter and put a permanent stop to the crisis. In the meantime, we appeal to our people of Aladja and to cooperate with the security agencies while we take steps to address the matter at hand. We also appeal to the security agencies to be fair in their interventions’’, the statement added.
Pic: Omiragwa Austin Emaduku, UUC PG
