Diri condemns attack on Diette-Spiff, warns against secret GMoUs

Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, has condemned the attack on the Amanyanabo of Twon-Brass, King Alfred Diette-Spiff, by youths of the kingdom.

King Diete-Spiff was the first Military Governor of the old Rivers State and current chairman of the state traditional rulers council.

Governor Diri expressed his displeasure, yesterday, during a meeting with leaders of Twon-Brass in Brass Local Government Area to resolve misunderstandings in the area.

In a press statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Alabrah, the governor acknowledged the right of people to embark on peaceful protests, but frowned at the recourse to misguided attack on the monarch. He warned the youths to shun violence, adding that government would not condone further attack on the revered king under any pretext.

Governor Diri also urged Bayelsans to explore other means of resolving grievances instead of the penchant to embark on protest at the slightest disagreement.

Diri  further disclosed that to forestall conflicts in communities arising from Global Memoranda of Understanding (GMoUs), government had made it compulsory that it would be part of the signing of GMoUs with companies.

“Part of what we did the moment we assumed office was to enforce a new system of signing GMoUs between community and all other companies, including oil companies operating in our state. To this end, I have instructed that all GMoUs that are to be signed would be witnessed by the state government through the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General’s office. No GMoU should be kept secret because we have seen that as a point of conflict between communities and companies operating in the state,” he said.

King Diette-Spiff stated that power supply, which led to the protest, had been restored  adding that the blockade had also been dismantled by the protesters. The monarch also noted that the protest must have been hijacked by youths who were not from his domain as he earlier had a peaceful and meaningful interface with the protesters, who had invited him to maintain peace in the kingdom.