By Emma Amaize & Egufe Yafugborhi

WARRI—SUSPECTED gunmen have allegedly shot and abducted one Pius Okito, an indigene of Polobobo- Isekelewu, an Ijaw community in Egbema Kingdom, Warri North Local Government Area, Delta State, while fishing at a creek between Aladja and Ogbe-Ijoh communities in the state.

Arogbo and Egbema communities, in a joint statement by the President-General of Arogbo community Warri, Chief Olowo and Eddy Okito, respectively claimed that the victim was shot by Aladja youths, last Sunday.

Kidnap-syndicate

They said Okito’s friend, Perela Pounah, from Opuba community, Ondo State, who went on fishing expedition with him, narrowly escaped death.

But Urhobo leader and President-General of Aladja Community Council, Dogene Elias, and youth leader, Wisdom Onamtore, denied the allegation, saying that Ijaw youths were the ones that killed an Aladja native and his 10-year old son on May 3 and also razed their villages, Tuesday afternoon.

The Ijaw leaders asserted that both Okito and Pounah, residing at Fenegbene community in Warri Corner, hail from neither Ogbe-Ijoh nor Isaba communities, while Egbema Kingdom was not part of the war between Ogbe-Ijoh and Aladja, so there was no reason to have kidnapped and killed Okito.

According to them: “The case has been reported at the Warri Area Command and Marine Police Station, Warri, while a search team by Marine Police had visited the scene of the incident on Monday, but the victim and his canoe were not found, only the throwing net was found.”

Reacting to the allegation, President of Aladja Community Council, Mr. Dogene Elias, raised alarm about a planned attack on Aladja by Ogbe-Ijoh and Isaba in conspiracy with the Ijaw Arogbo, Ondo State and Egbema Kingdom, Edo State, over the allegation that Mr. Okito of Egbema Kingdom was killed by Aladja people.

Dogene said: “The Ogbe-Ijoh and Isaba people who killed an indigene of Aladja, Mr. Okoro Kagi and his 10-year- old son on May 3, 2017, may have killed this said Okito just to hoodwink the Ijaw of Egbema and Arogbo into a fight that has no business to do with them.

“We call on the Ijaw nation to investigate this matter properly to avert a situation where a small matter would snowball into an inter-tribal war between the Urhobo and Ijaw.”he said.

A youth leader from Aladja community, Wisdom Onatomre, told Vanguard: “These people have started again and honestly, I am tired of this. Someone already called me about this same matter that the people are from Aladja side, but we have Pessu, Aladja, Morogun and Ovwian in this area, so if a boat comes from Morogun or Ovwian corner now, that means it must be coming from Aladja?

“Would you believe if I tell you that those people burnt our villages down this afternoon (Tuesday)? Those houses near that river, behind the Harvard Supreme College, where that man and his son were killed last week, have been burnt down this afternoon. All the people there had fled the place since the incident, last week. By this last act now they have inflicted starvation on our people,” he said.

His words: “The truth is they are using this accusation to cover up for what they did last Friday because that Sunday they are alleging was the day a prominent man was hosting a wedding ceremony at Orokpokpo and everybody in Aladja went there. If you remember, I told you I was at an event when you called me that day. I was at that wedding ceremony. The whole of Aladja went to that ceremony, where was the time to carry out what they are alleging?

“The allegation is false and if there was any reprisal I would have told you. They should stop all these cover-ups.”