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By Christopher Oji
The Ubulu-Uku people living along the Ubulu-Uku-Onicha-Ugbo road in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State have raised the alarm over the invasion of their farmland by gunmen.
The community has made a passionate appeal to the Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, to come to their rescue.
Residents, under the aegis of Onicha-Uku Quarters, Ubulu-Uku, alleged that gunmen allegedly sent by an Onicha-Ugbo-born billionaire have forcefully taken their farmland, as his company’s name was clearly written on a signpost on the farmland.
Spokesman for the community, Mr. Chiedozie Okolie, said, recently, while his people were working on their farmland, gunmen armed with AK47 rifles and pump-action guns stormed the farms and “started shooting in the air.”
He said: “Our people took to their heels. The gunmen sacked the farmers and took over the large expanse of land where over 20 farmers earned their living. When the farmers, some of them who were injured while running for their dear lives, came home and reported to us, we sent some spies, thinking that the gunmen were herdsmen, but on getting there, our people saw some security agents guarding some workers who were using bulldozers to clear our land. They cleared our economic trees, cassava, yam, plantain, oranges, ogbonor trees, etc. We started investigation to know what was happening and later discovered that they were sent by an Onicha-Ugbo-born billionaire.
“Ubulu-Uku and Onicha-Ugbo people have been living in peace for centuries as neighbours. We have a boundary that was demarcated by our ancestors.
There is no contention about it. So, we sent emissaries to the Obi of Onicha-Ugbo, who assured us there would be an investigation, but while he is still investigating, work is still going on there. We are predominantly farmers. Some of those who have been sacked from their farms are now doing nothing, while some others have taken to commercial motorcycle riding (Okada). This is not good for the economic growth of our land.
“We have made efforts to reach the billionaire, but his family members don’t want to give us his contact. We were told that some people sold the land to him, but none of our people collected money from him. We have procedures for selling or leasing out land, but nobody came to us. In fact, we have never sold land to anyone. We have an elder in charge of the farmland. Except people are deceiving the man with fake receipts, but there is no way an educated man will purchase land of such magnitude without doing thorough investigation.
We feel that he is undermining us and counting on his wealth. This is oppression.
“We are calling on the Governor to intervene because we don’t want to take the law into our hands. We don’t want bloodletting. Even if we are not billionaires, we still have millionaires who can also help us to acquire rifles, but our elders have asked us to remain calm and appeal to our Governor, who is the chief security officer of the state. After this appeal, we shall resort to the traditional ways of settling land disputes. We have trusted and tested deities that we can cry to, but we want to first toe the line of peace before we resort to that. Our Governor should wade into the matter.
“As at today, work is continuing on our ancestral land with impunity. No one has approached us for land and no money was paid to anyone. Our Governor should step in and first withdraw the security men on the farmland. He should order the state commissioner of police to do his work. How can gunmen occupy a place that is a few kilometers away from the police command’s headquarters without the knowledge of the CP? He should police the state well.
“We were struggling with the issue of bad road, and the billionaire has added another burden on us. Our people are now facing two challenges. On the issue of bad road, our road has been neglected by successive administrations. We have been contributing money for temporary repairs of the road. Now gunmen have invaded our community, sacked us from our farmland and taken over our land. Please, we need urgent intervention.”
