Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State.

…Says we cannot continue to live like refugees in our state

The people of Deibiri community in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta who have been sacked from their community by the Aladja people for the past twenty one years, have once again appealed to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa to resettle their people or they will be forced to take laws into their hands.

This appeal is coming on the heels of the recent panel of enquiry set up by the Delta State government to look into the Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja crisis which erupted some months ago without including the Deibiri community who have been sacked from their ancestral home by the Aladjas in 1995.

But the Deibiri Community Governing Council Chairman, Deacon Igetei Bob Wellington, who spoke to news men in Warri, wants the state government to include Deibiri community as part of the communities to be looked into in the enquiry with a view to finding solutions on how they could be re-settled in their community.

Wellington said it was disheartening to see that the state government has swooped into action and set up a panel of enquiry to look into the recent crisis between Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja communities barely three months ago while the people of Deibiri community who have been sacked since 1995 are yet to be resettled.

He also wondered the rationale behind the speedy set up of a panel of enquiry to immediately look into the Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja communities boundary disputes without including Deibiri community.

He said, “Enough is enough, and we can no longer tolerate what the state government is doing to us. How are we going to tell our children that we do not have a community? What is the government taking us for? This time around we have decided to take matters into our hands if they refuse to listen to us. Though we are a very peace loving people, if they do not treat us as such, then we are going to resort to violence just like as the others have done.

“It is very sad that despite the fact that Deibiri community is host to Batan flow station, the state government has blatantly refused to listen to us. We are using this opportunity to call on the state government once again, that they should listen to us for peace to reign.

He added, “I am here because of the recent crisis between Ogbe-Ijoh, Aladja and Asagba. In 1995 Aladja, and Urhobo Community, invaded and sacked Deibiri community in Warri South West and 21 years after, successive state government has refused to resettle the people of Deibiri community.

“But to our amazement, the same crisis erupted in Isaba community just some few months ago and the state government has called for several security meetings between both communities because they took laws into their hands. But up till this moment the state government has not deem it fit to invite the people of Deibiri community to any meeting.

“It can be recalled that in 1996, the then military administrator set up a panel of enquiry to look into the matter. In 1999, a second panel was also set up and both panels recommended that Deibiri Community should be rebuilt. But up till this moment, nothing has been done.

“So we have decided to use this recent crisis between Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja to once again draw the attention of the state government to our plight. We want the state government to include us whenever it invited both parties for talks.”

Continuing he noted, “We have written several protest letters to the state government informing them about out plight but they did not listen to the people of Deibiri community. Recently we heard again that there is another security meeting between the government and the two warring communities, yet we were not invited.

“We want to use this medium to appeal to the state government to include us in the series of security meetings been held between the government and Aladja and Ogbe-Ijoh communities.”

“Maybe the state government wants us to take up arms like the Ogbe-ijoh and Aladja people did. I believe that is why they have refused to listen to us. We want them to include us in these security meetings and if they do not include us in these meetings, then we are going to take laws into our hands like the rest have done.

“Maybe by the time too we carry arms – since that is the only language they understand, then they will listen to us. Our people have been sacked from their communities by the Aladja and for the past 21 years we have been living as refugees in our own state,” the Deibiri Governing council chairman added.