Gov. Bassey Otu.
By Anietie Akpan
In the past 35 years about 150 innocent persons are feared to have lost their lives to series of communal clashes involving different communities in Odukpani Local Government Area (LGA) of Cross River State.
Some of these communal conflicts include Odukpani Qua Town/New Netim in Odukpani LGA in September 2016 and about six persons were killed and even beheaded. Same community was attacked in December 2015 and two persons died.
New Netim was completely wiped out by their Odukpani Qua Town brothers and they are scattered, squatting in different parts of the state.
It was gathered that the clashes were as a result of a long standing land dispute and the people of Odukpani Qua Town have severally been regarding the people of New Netim as settlers hence should leave.
Between June 13 and July 23, 2019, it was a case of attack and reprisal attacks that sacked villages of Mbiabo Edere, Ediong, Obomitiat, Idim Ndom, Mkpanuruk, Etehentem, Ikot Otu, Ikot Efa, Ikot Iwatt, Ikot Offiong, Ekpene Eki, Obodio and Obionno in Mbiabo Ebom and Eki wards of Odukpani council.
Ekpo who is also a community leader in Akpap Okoyong, had in 2019 said, “from 1990 to now (2019), close to 100 people have died as a result of the crisis. The Comprehensive Community School erected by us (Obom Itiat and Mkpoete) for more than 36 years has been pulled down.
“The health centre and schools which are not for the ObomItiat people alone have been destroyed and we have been crying. What offence have we committed? As we are here so many people have been displaced. The crisis affects not alone Obom Itiat but has degerated to Mbiabo clan, Ediong clan and part of Eki. So many communities have been wiped out and millions naira lost”.
In the wake of the 2019 clash, over 50 persons were said to have been killed and about 3,000 rendered homeless as houses, schools and health centres were completely ravaged and raised down. The fight was between villages in Mbiabo Obom Itiat ward, aided by the squatters from Ikot Offiong, and Eki council ward.
The then Governor Ben Ayade’s government had set up a seven man committee led by the former Managing Director of State Water Board Company, Chief Victor Effiom Ekpo to settle the feuding communities and to a certain extent, peace of the graveyard returned to the areas as some of the sacked communities are yet to return.
Another incident was in May, 2021 and four persons were feared dead including a pregnant woman following a communal clash between the people of Ikot Offiong and Akpap Okoyong in Odukpani LGA.
Chief Ekpo had then said that, “the people of Ikot Offiong were displaced from their ancestral home of Ikot Offiong in Oku Iboku in Itu LGA of Akwa Ibom state following series of clashes and were given where to stay in Akpap Okoyong but now they have risen against their host”.
Just few weeks ago, in the latest of the crisis in Odukpani LGA, the Ikoneto and Ubambat people clashed over palm estate with a spillover in Akpap Okoyong.
Recall that same displaced Ikot Offiong people had three years ago invaded Ubambat, burnt almost all the houses there and took over Ubambat.
So in this latest conflict, the people of Akpap Okoyong who are not sharing boundary with Ikoneto or Ubambat, were attacked in the spillover. Two persons were said to have died in the attack. One each in Ikoneto and Ubambat while one was hospitalized. The third person who was shot along side the woman later died in the hospital. Both of them were said to have been attacked in Ikoneto.
The Ikot Offiong people are scattered all over Odukpani communities like, Ikoneto, Ubambat, Obomitiat, Eki, Mbiabo and others.
Commenting on the crisis then, the Clan head of Obom Itiat Edere clan, Etubom Effiong Asuquo Nyong said, “the conflict that engulfed my area, ObomItiat Edere is as a result of people claiming that I and my community must not exist. That we must go back to Calabar were we came from and they erroneously said the land which we live belongs to them which is a baseless information. By origin I am an Abayen man and our neighbours in Eki have attempted to annex us by force and our objection to their annexation bid led to this crisis
Commenting this latest clash, an indigene of Ikot Offiong, Etim Okon said, “for years we have been suffering persecution in Oku Iboku and now in our state, our brothers do not want us to co-exist with them. This is wrong and the state government should step in and give us a permanent place to stay since we were displaced in Oku Iboku in Itu LGA of Akwa Ibom state”.
In an interview with Pillar Today, the former MD of Water Board, Chief Ekpo who is also the MD CEO of South South Alliance Nigerian Limited, charged the state government led by Senator Bassey Otu to intervene and put an end to the incessant conflicts in Odukpani LGA
“I am from Akpap Okoyong in Odukpani local government. To the best of my knowledge, the crisis that people are talking here and there, we have Ikoneto, we have Ubambat Okoyong, we have Esuk Ubambat and this crisis thing is within Ikoneto and Ubambat, It has to do with the palm fronds and all that is what they are having little issues over.
“So for what I know, the people of Akpap Okoyong are not sharing boundary with Ikoneto. We don’t have boundary with Ikoneto or Ubambat. Akpap has boundary with Usung Udua Okoyong. You pass Akpap which is supposed to be a traditional headquarter of Okoyong. But whoever that has any little issue with any village in Okoyong within Ubambat, Usung Udua, all their attempts is to attack Akpap Okoyong”.
He queried, “The question is why are they channeling their their anger to Akpap Okoyong? That is the problem we the people of Akpap Okoyong are facing. Why are they channeling their issues to Akpap Okoyong where I am from? If they have a boundary problem or any issue they have between Ikoneto and Ubambat, the leadership of those two communities should solve their problems and not escalating and expanding it.
“I only call for a stop, nobody should fight and kill each other again. The economy of Nigeria is already biting in the life of people, so we should face it without transferring aggression within ourselves”.
Pillar Today gathered that both Ikoneto and Akpap Okoyong were in the process of settling the dispute before recent escalation.
Ekpo advised that a police station should be established in the crisis areas and a buffer zone established by the state government to check further reoccurrence.
Pillar Today further gathered that the state government has waded into the Odukpani crisis particularly the latest incident to restore peace and stop the blood shed.
