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From Judex Okoro, Calabar
No fewer than 35 houses have been burnt with 3000 persons displaced in Ovonum and Ofatura Local Government Area over land matters.
Checks revealed that Ovonum and Ofatura communities had been engaged in a fratricidal war over ownership of a piece of land, leading to the loss of lives in the last ten years.
The recent outbreak of hostilities started in April 4, 2023 when the Ofarura people invaded their Ovonum brothers, allegedly killed three persons, and brunt several houses including the ones belonging to Oyama Sunday Abeng, Zadok Anthony, and DS Cyprian Ovat just as Ovonum people also went for reprisal, burning some houses in Ofatura.
A source close to the village said the traditional council of Adon kingdom was not happy at the ugly incident and later fined the warring Ofatura and Ovonum communities a life cow and goat respectively with Ovonum refusing to pay the fine, complaining that Ofatura people, who were the aggressor, were treated with kid gloves.
According to the source, the leadership of both Ovonum and Ofatura living in Calabar followed up with a peace meeting. It resolved that those who already planted on the disputed land should be allowed to harvest and vacate the land and banned further destruction of crops by both communities.
The source further hinted that the leadership of both communities gave the traditional council two weeks to come up with a Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) on the way forward. Meanwhile, they have advised the head of the family in Ofatura, who is also the head of Ovonum, to demand that Ovonum people register with their family members at Ofatura.
Present at the Calabar meeting include Chief Sylvanus Odong, Bar. Emmanuel Ochaten, Collins Agbor Oyama, Elder Obem, Chief Oyom Enang (clan head of Ofatura), Chief Raymond Okpa (clan head of Ovonum), Dr. Alfred Mboto, retired Permanent Secretary and former State Security Adviser (SSA), Porf. Walter Mboto, Oyen Oyom, Jombo Ntimicchera, Abeng Enang, and Ntor Emmanuel, representatives of Adon community and youth leaders.
But barely a week after the Calabar meeting, the Ofatura youths, in the early hours of Nigeria’s 63rd Independence Day, attacked the Ovonum community, killing one Eko Eteng Ayo and destroying over 35 houses and property belonging mostly to prominent personalities.
An eye-witness, who simply gave his name as Enang Emmanuel Enang, blamed the latest hostilities on some of the elders who fed the Ofatura community leadership with lies that the Ovonum people had beaten up some Ofatura farmers who had gone to harvest their produce.
Narrating their ordeal, Enang, who hails from Ovonun, said: “Amid all these disagreements, one of the leaders of Ofatura village council, still went ahead and sold a Melina tree in an Ovonun person’s farm and when the person, who bought the tree, went to cut down it, the owner of the farm refused and drove him away.
He said the Ofatura village elders misinterpreted the incident and directed the youths to go for reprisals, which escalated the crisis more. According to him, an investigation by the police revealed that the Ofatura people lied and that their people were beaten and maimed. He explained that even when the culprits were arrested, the Ofatura community rallied round and bailed the culprits.
Another witness, Okonga Okpa, said trouble started brewing on Saturday, September 30, evening when information filtered out that a young man from Ovonum who was carrying a woman on a bike while returning from Apiapum with sacks of bags was stopped by the Ofatura youths and his bike seized.
According to him, Ovonum people sent an emissary to the chief of Ofatura, who immediately released the motorcycle. Okpa explained that the crisis climaxed in the wee hours of October 1, when Ofatura community youths and some mercenaries were sited at the border between the two communities with dangerous weapons. At exactly 12 midnight, the Ofatura militias invaded the Ovonum community and unleashed mayhem.
According to him, by the time the soldiers arrived, a lot of damage had been done to the Ovonum with thousands displaced and now taking refuge at Matter Mesricodia Catholic Church at Ovonum.
In an emotion-laden tone, Opka called on the government and other Non-government Organisations (NGOs) to come to their aid to avoid an outbreak of an epidemic.
The Cross River State Police Command’s Public Relations Officer, PPRO, Irene Igbo, said the Police crack team was already stationed at the warring communities, adding that peace had returned.
