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Ben Dunno, Warri
Over 150 indigenes of Ugbeogungun community (an Itsekiri settlement) in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta State, displaced during the last leadership crisis in the area over two years ago have returned to their homeland.
This was a sequel to a series of stakeholders meetings summoned by the Warri Area Commander, ACP Mohammed Garba, based on the directive of the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Adamu, which led to the signing of a peace accord that guaranteed their safety.
The movement of the people back to their homeland which commenced from the NPA Jetty in Warri on Monday was supervised by a team of security agencies, mostly soldiers from the 3 Battalion, Effurun, and a police team attached to the Warri Area Command.
The displaced persons, mostly women and children were seen at the jetty as early as 6:30am in preparation to board the passenger boats that was arranged to convey them to their homeland to reunite with their families and the loved ones they left behind over 2years.
They were seen leaving the jetty as early as 7:30am in batches with security escort at both the departure and at the arrival end in the community.
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Reacting to the movement of his subjects back to their homeland, the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Ikenwoli, thanked ACP Garba for the laudable achievement in returning the people back to their ancestral home.
He described the feat as very significant in the sense that previous security chiefs in the area had done their utmost best to get the displaced people back home in the time past but could not achieve much until now.
Speaking on the remarkable achievement, Garba noted that the task was in line of his duty based on the fact that it was the directive of IGP Adamu, adding that he acted to ensure that the displaced people returned back home.
According to him “it was based on my oga directive to ensure that all stakeholders in the crisis sign a peace accord that would guaranty the safe return of the displaced indigenes back home that I acted on.
“This decision was reached after a series of meetings with community leaders, elders and youth bodies executives of both factions and in the course of brokering peace I realised that all those involved in the crisis were related in one way or the other.
“For now we are still experimenting with the process. We still have our men on ground in those communities to monitor both the safety and acceptance of the displaced indigenes and once we are convinced, we’ll then commence disengagement of men from the area,” he disclosed.
