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Bayelsa Assembly Wants Troops Deployed in Ekeremor

Vanguard (Lagos)
NEWS
August 28, 2003
Posted to the web August 28, 2003

By Samuel Oyadongha
Yenagoa
ALARMED by the magnitude of destruction inflicted on Ekeremor Community in
Bayelsa State by armed Ijaw youths from Oboro and Ogodobiri in Delta State last
Saturday, the Bayelsa State House of Assembly has passed a resolution asking
the state government to deploy a combined team of the Nigerian Army, the Navy
and Police to protect the lives and property of the people of the affected
area.
The House which condemned, in very strong terms, the unprovoked attack on
Ekeremor community by sea pirates and the subsequent unlawful occupation of the
Riverine community over the weekend by the invaders also called on the state
Commissioner of Police and all other relevant security agencies in the state to
investigate the matter properly and bring the culprits to book to serve as a
deterrent to others. It further urged the state government to, as a matter of
urgency, send relief materials to Ekeremor town which could be described as a
disaster zone.
Raising the motion on the floor of the House yesterday, Mr. Dein Benadoumene,
representing Ekeremor constituency III and House Committee Chairman on Justice
and Judiciary in an emotion-laden voice narrated the sad fate that befell the
community.
According to the lawmaker, pirates attacked three speed boats belonging to
Ekeremor Council on Monday August 18, 2003 along the Bomadi Creek and killed
four persons on board the boats among whom were three mobile policemen on
escort duty. Benadoumene added that following the killing of the three mobile
policemen and a civilian from Ekeremor community, security was beefed up in the
town as the natives and the police commenced intensive surveillance along the
Ekeremor Creek in a bid to curb further killings by sea bandits in the area.
He told the House that the pirates were offended when they saw the surveillance
team along the waterways where they carried out their nefarious activities and
attacked Ekeremor in ten speed boats on Saturday and Sunday, killing several
persons and abducted many children after razing several buildings.
Speaker of the House, Prince Boyelayefa Debekeme who is also a native of
Ekeremor described the incident as unfortunate, adding that the matter was
sensitive and that the root cause of the unprovoked attack be investigated by
the relevant authorities to prevent a repeat attack in future.
A minute of silence was observed by the House for those who lost their lives in
the violent attack on the community.
Efforts to get to the community which can only be accessed by river proved
abortive as boat operators were not ready to risk any trip to the troubled area
even though armed mobile policemen have been deployed to restore normalcy.

   

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