•Wants govt to bring
perpetrators to book
The Governor of Delta State,
Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, yesterday, said militants had no justification to kill
Nigerian soldiers carrying out lawful duties in the State. The governor,
who was reacting to Wednesday’s killing killing of Nigerian soldiers, other
civilians by militants in a houseboat at Omadino, Warri South local government
area, said such rascally action could turn the state into a theatre of war.
In a statement, he
noted: “This killing is criminality carried too far as nothing justifies the
taking of lives of uniformed security men who are out to protect the common
property of Nigerians.
” “ Your activities
could turn Delta state into a theatre of war and this portends great danger to
the whole population aside from casting the image of the state as insecure and
unfit for investment. We cannot, as a state, afford this rascality if we hope
to make progress,” he said.
Governor Okowa, who
recalled his earlier appeals to any aggrieved member of the society, including
Niger Delta militants, to embrace dialogue, said this informed the decision by
his government to constitute an Advocacy Committee against Oil Facility
Vandalism.
He said the committee
went round the creeks and oil producing communities, in the last few weeks, to
canvass support for a violence-free Delta, as a precondition for development.
He reiterated that no
society would develop in an atmosphere of chaos and criminality, adding that no
government would fold its hands in the face of this high level of aggravation
and utter disregard for the sanctity of human lives. “For the umpteenth time, I
wish to call on well meaning people of Delta State to speak up and not only
condemn the activities of these militants, but also offer their best counsel
and commitment towards resolving this crisis.” Governor Okowa extended the
condolences of his family and the people of Delta State to the families of the
victims and prayed God to grant them eternal rest, while urging the security
agencies to ensure that the culprits do not go scot free.
He advised also
members of the Niger Delta Avengers to embrace dialogue as a means of resolving
the crisis, adding that a peaceful and secured Delta was what is needed for
development to thrive.
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