•  C’River lawmaker, other victims of communal clash lament

From JUDEX OKORO, Calabar

In the last decade, some Cross River communities have been embroiled in series of internecine war over farm lands. This has led to incessant killings of innocent persons and wanton destruction of property and crops.

Investigations by Saturday Sun revealed that most of these communities including Ekori, Nkpani, Nko, Obubra, Ikom, Etung all in central senatorial district, as well as Boki, Obudu, Obanliku, Bekwarra, Ogoja and Yala in Northern senatorial zone have never known peace as they have been engaged in fratricide over land dispute.

It was gathered that Ebijakara community in Abi local government area has become a waste land as a result of communal clash between them and their Ebom brothers. Today, Ebijakara people are now refugees in Abi.

These developments have thrown up a good number of IDPs across the length and breadth of the state just as thousands of victims are lamenting their woes.

The latest communal conflict between the two communities of Wanihem and Wanikade in Ukelle, Yala local government area seems to be the climax as scores were reportedly killed with over 3, 000 persons displaced and about 200 houses destroyed.

The conflict between the villages, located less than 20 kilometers away from Oju local government in neighboring Benue, which occured between June 27 and 30, erupted as a result of land dispute between both communities.

Giving a narration of how the clash started, Chief Obok Okem, a traditional ruler in Wanikade community, said trouble started when a man from Utolo village in Wanikade cleared his portion of land in readiness for cultivation. Okem said surprisingly, a man from Wanhihem, a neighbour, claimed the land belongs to him and went ahead to cultivate the piece of land cleared by the Wanikade person and this led to altercation between the duo and involvement of the youths

According to him “The youths from Wanikade in anger moved in and levelled the heaps planted by the Wanihem people on the piece of land cleared by the Wanikade person. The Wanihem youths on their own launched a reprisal and then eventually led to a fight.

“The fight which lasted four days degenerated into the use of guns and machetes and subsequent killings and destruction of over one hundred houses and property worth millions of naira and rendering over three thousand people homeless.” He said efforts by elders on both sides to stop the youths did not yield any positive result as it led to full scale war among over five villages on both sides.

Another witness, James Onah, from Wanihem, said the mayhemraged until last Saturday when soldiers and policemen who came in from Okpoma Area Command could not quell the conflict. According to him, the clash has also affected socio-economic life of the people as well as farming activities just as hundreds are in dire need of urgent medical care.

Some of the houses destroyed include a Primary Health Centre built by the administration of former Governor Liyel Imoke and a primary school in Wanikade.

Victims lament

Lamenting their woes, some of the victims, who are camping at Efiola-Emokpe community in Oju local government area of Benue State, described the conflict as one of the worst they have seen as almost all their life endeavours have been destroyed.

Some of them, who said their hope has been shattered, decried the poor condition of the camps especially lack of drinking water and poor health condition.

One of the victims and a member of the member Cross River House of Assembly, Honorable Ogana Lukpata, expressed sadness at the extent of damage as a result of the conflict.

Lukpata, representing Yala II where the two warring communities are located, and whose house was vandalised by the irate youths, said: “I am devastated; I am sad. The level of destruction demonstrated the deep hatred and animosity between the two brotherly communities.

“We have made several attempts to nip this war in the bud to no avail. We even brought the surveyors from the ministry of land and they came up with recommendations that the disputed land belongs to Wanihem.

“And in 2012, the traditional ruler of Yala went ahead and implemented it by ceding the land to Wanihem, but Wanikade people objected and said over their dead body would the recommendation be implemented. This has led us to the present situation of bloodshed.”

Another victim, Immaculate Akpala, said: “I can’t imagine why they should visit me with this type of wickedness. My family house and my elder brother’s house have been burnt. We are now refugees in our own land. It’s incredible because nobody ever thought of this kind of carnage in our community at this modern time. We are finished and it would be difficult to forget.”

Also speaking in an emotion-laden voice, Ogar Mathew, whose farm was damaged and house burnt, said  “I am doomed. I have nothing on earth as all my sweats have been brought down to rubbles. Where do I start from and where do I run to with my family?

“I can’t believe my family and I are now in IDP camp for an offence we didn’t know anything about. The scar cannot be erased. Our community is gone and would take millions of naira to rebuild. It would be difficult to regain what we have lost. But we thank God that some of us survived.”

A lady, who claimed she lost a dear sister in the conflict, Josephine Oko, said: “I lost my younger sister who went to farm and never returned.  She was killed by the Wanihem warriors. And since then we have been mourning her. Our mother has not recovered from the shock.

“I doubt if we can relate well again with our brothers from Wanikade after what they did to us. Even generations yet unborn will never forget the destruction visited on us because of common farm land. There is total hunger in the land now because our farms and crops have been destroyed. We will face severe famine as we are agrarian community. But it would take time to return to farm for fear of another attack.”

Call for help

Following the clash, the member representing Ogoja/Yala federal constituency in the green chambers of the National Assembly, Hon. Jarigbe Agom, has called on groups, political office holders and voluntary organisations to come to the aid of the victims.

Agom, who made the call during a visit to both communities, challenged the chiefs to stop the war, adding that “it is un-African to fight and destroy property over land which we all met and would leave and go.”

He made an undisclosed cash donation to the village heads to help treat their wounded people which they pledged to do. Disturbed by the mayhem, Hon Ogana Lukpata, an aide to Governor Ben Ayade on electronic media, Beatrice Akpala as well as other appointees have reached out to several government officials to intervene.

They argued that it was high time permanent solution was found to curb the incessant clashes. Responding to the call for help, Governor Ben Ayade had directed the Ministry of Health and the Cross River State Primary Health Care Development Agency to dispatch emergency teams to render medical services to avert health crisis.