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From Chijioke Agwu, Abakaliki
Ebonyi State Government has released a white paper on the report of the committee on the resolution of land dispute between Amana in Ezza South Local Government Area and Ohankwu in Ikwo Local government areas of the State which has claimed many lives with property worth millions destroyed.
This was as the committee set up by the government has recommended for immediate re-establishment of boundary pillars to end the crisis.
The Commissioner for Information and State Orientation in the state, Jude Okpor, disclosed this at a press briefing in Abakaliki on Friday.
He said “the White Paper dated 8th November, 2023 and endorsed by the Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, contained Government’s statements of adoption of the Committee’s recommendations and the Governor’s directive to concerned ministries and department to implement same.
“The Committee from their findings set aside the earlier report of the Ebonyi State Peace Committee which recommended government’s acquisition of the disputed land and properties and its subsequent partitioning between the contending Communities. They observed that the CAN committee did not consult archival evidence before arriving at its decision”, he stated.
Okpor noted that the committee further found out that the discovery of Lead, a mineral in commercial quantity in the area and the removal of the cement boundary beacons established by the colonial masters were the immediate and remote causes of the crisis.
He explained that the committee therefore recommended immediate re-establishment of the cement boundary pillars taking bearing from existing ones as such will automatically determine the owners of the disputed Lead site and surrounding farm lands under contention.
“Such determination, the Committee believes will enable proper delineation of the boundary, and thereafter, a directive for the encroachers to retreat to their own side for a lasting peace between the two communities”
