By Festus Ahon

A storm of discontent is presently brewing in Ohorhe village, Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State as the Nigerian Army moves to demolish all the buildings in the area. Last week Uvwie women, numbering over 3,000, blocked the ever busy East/West road in protest, describing the move as wicked and inhuman.

The women, who came out as early as 6:30am with placards, barricaded the road for several hours, thereby causing serious traffic jam. Chanting songs such as ‘Soldiers oleh; leave our land’, the women called on President Goodluck Jonathan to come to their aid, decrying that Ohore village was at the verge of being sacked by soldiers.

Marching through the Council Secretariat Road to the palace of the Ovie of Uvwie, HRM Emmanuel Sideso Abe I, with placards which bore various inscriptions such as: “Our land is our heritage, abi na soldiers get am?”,

“We need our arable farmland for farming”, “You cannot acquire existing villages,” “Stop this inhumanity and return our land” to express their grievances before the monarch, the women said they would not leave any stone unturned in getting the soldiers to stop further encroachment into their land.

Speaking during the protest, Woman Leader of Uvwie Kingdom, Mrs. Sarah Agoda, said: “We are protesting against attempt by soldiers to demolish Ohorhe community.  Soldiers are selling all our land to foreigners. They are telling us indigenes to pack to enable them sell the land. We don’t know where the Ohorhe people will pack to. Federal Government should tell us where we will be taken to”.

One of the protesters, Mrs. Mary Unuagba who also spoke said: “We came out to block the road in protest against illegal sales of our land by the soldiers. We did not give them land to sell but for the purpose of establishment of Nigeria Defense Academy. We no longer want soldiers in our land. We want President Goodluck Jonathan to intervene by withdrawing the soldiers from our land”.

Mrs. Margaret Aka said: “We no longer want soldiers in our land because they are trying to take all our land away from us. They are raping married women and young girls. They should leave Uvwie for peace to reign”.

An indigene of Ohorhe community, Chief Jimoh Eshenake, while addressing newsmen, informed thus: “About a week ago, the Army came to Ohorhe and marked all the houses for demolition. In fact, they gave our people 48 hours to move out of their houses, that the Army is coming to demolish the place. They told us that their reason was that the land being occupied by the community belong to the army. That it is part of the army acquisition. But I must tell you the story behind it.

“In 1975, that land was acquired for the army by the defunct Mid-Western government but before 1975, Ohorhe and other villages around that place had been in existence. The law is very clear on this: you cannot acquire a land already occupied by people. If there is even a need to occupy it, you must re-allocate them but this didn’t happen. And somehow our king wrote to the Acting President then in March 2010 to complain about this acquisition.

“The truth is that the army acquired over 2,000 hectares of land, and the area they have occupied, the army barrack, mammy market is less than 10 percent of the land but they are now selling it to private companies and individuals.

They have turned to landlords in our own land. We the original landlords have turned to refugees in our own land. We are calling on the Federal Government to look into this issue critically. We, Ohorhe people, are farmers who need enough land for farming.

The Federal Government must immediately come to our aide.  The land was acquired for Army Barracks, Market and Defense Academy but they didn’t build the Defense Academy. The area occupied by them is less than 10 percent of the over 2000 hectares acquired, they are now selling the remaining part to private developers”.

On his part, the President General of Uvwie Kingdom, Chief MacDonald Ugbewanku, said the people had decided to embark on the protest to ask for justice.

“Government usually acquires land for a purpose, the purpose was definite, they wanted to put a Defence College which they did not do. What has been put into use is less than 10 percent of the total land acquired. We have been asking government to dis-acquire the area since the purpose for which the place was acquired has not been achieved.

“But instead of doing that we now found that the army has now incorporated a property company and through that they are now selling Ohorhe land to their cronies. Even we the indigenes are not even privileged to buy”.

Addressing the aggrieved women at his palace moments after, the Ovie of Uvwie Kingdom, HRM Emmanuel Sideso Abe 1, said: “The Ministry of Defense needed land to establish the NDA, the community generously gave out land for that purpose.

All along we have been looking at development at the area for the past years. Of recent it was observed that the place is now being commercialised, being sold to companies, and administered by the army.

“That was not the purpose. Of course no reasonable community will accept that.  This is our place, we welcome development, investors but at the same time people should not cheat, marginalise us in our own place. You could see most of the houses there are not meant for the army. They are owned by private individuals.

“Our people cannot get a shop there, they are being thrown away but in the actual fact they supposed to benefit from it. We will continue to protest this marginalization and oppression peacefully because we want peace and dialogue in Delta state. We are not against any development but do not go outside the agreement.

Can you imagine that a village is on the verge of being thrown away? All the houses where marked for demolition. Where are they going to stay if you throw them out? This is what they have just came to tell me.

“Although in the past, I have written several letters but I promise that I work with those in authority here to take the message of their protest to the Presidency. We want our undeveloped lands back so that we can make use of it. We want Nigerians to come tour aide”.

Effort made to reach the Commanding Officer of the 3 Battalion, Effurun, Lt Col Ifeanyi Otu proved abortive as he told newsmen on phone that he would not entertain questions on the matter.

A military source, however told newsmen that they have acquired the land, adding: “No amount of protest will change it. They are just making noise; perhaps they want their voice to be heard, hence the protest. We have given them notice and we hope they abide by it”.