A dreaded Niger Delta militant group has taken
over two local government areas in Cross River
State forcing people to flee for their lives.
Niger Delta militants armed to the teeth have
taken control of two local government areas in
Cross River State and displaced virtually every
civil authority in the area.
According to ThisDay, the group alleged to be
members of Bakassi Strike Force, had been
operating in the area for some time. But they
recently seized control of Bakassi and Akpabuyo
local government areas, displacing both civil and
traditional authorities in the councils.
This has forced the elected chairmen of the two
local governments to flee for their lives as many
others in the community had since fled for many
months now while the councillors hold their
legislative sittings in Calabar. The secretariats of
both local councils have also been deserted by
civil servants for fear of being kidnapped or
attacked by the militants.
As a result, the state governor, Professor Ben
Ayade, has appealed to President Muhammadu
Buhari to extend the activities of “Operation
Delta Safe”, a security taskforce protecting oil
installations in the Niger Delta, to Cross River
State. Ayade said his state should not to be
isolated in the battle to keep the Niger Delta
safe. He also promised to increase the firepower
of the state’s security taskforce, “Operation
Skolombo.”
Militancy has gripped Cross River State for the
past few months. And militants are being blamed
for an increasing wave of kidnapping, armed
robbery, and other criminal activities, especially,
in Calabar, the state capital.
But Bakassi and Akpabuyo local government
areas, which share maritime boundary with
Cameroon, recently became a lawless, anarchic
zone in which militants rule. It was discovered
that the militants collected rents and levies from
people doing business in the council areas,
which they termed “protection money”, a
situation that has made many people to flee.
The militants are said to have also rendered the
state judicial organs and the traditional
institutions in Akpabuyo and Bakassi local
governments impotent, as the militias now
handle matters that should otherwise be handled
by the conventional courts, village heads, clan
chiefs, and paramount rulers.
Speaking on the matter, Chairman of Bakassi
Local Government Area, Mrs. Edisua Usang Iso,
admitted that militants were operating in her
council area. She, however, denied that the
activities of the militants were affecting the
administration of the council. Iso said, though,
the council had lost substantial revenue to their
activities, the federal government should grant
amnesty to them and incorporate them into the
federal government’s amnesty programme for
Niger Delta militants.
However, Governor Ayade confirmed that the
militants have taken full occupation of some of
the local governments and vowed that the
militants will be dislodged from the area.
The governor said, “The three kingpins, we have
identified their homes, we have the coordinates of
their armoury, we have a clear picture of their
modus operandi and we are working on a massive
attack. I speak as the United States would do. They
let you know that they are coming for you and they
will come after you.
“We are coming after them. We know all the
militants who are now parading and taking full
occupation of Bakassi. We would free the people of
Bakassi. The people of Bakassi have seen enough
pain. Lands taken, oil wells taken, reduced to want
in spirit, body and economy, we cannot afford also
to create a perilous nightmare for the same
people.”
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