***Contaminate only source of drinking water to residents
***Federal, state authorities doing nothing- Community leaders

By Chioma Onuegbu

IKOT UKPONG IMAM—TENSION has mounted Ikot Ukpong Imam Community, Etinam Local Government Area, Akwa Ibom State, where the residents have been closed off from neighboring communities in the state following the dangerous excavation of their land by illegal sand dredgers. Investigations by NDV showed that the community has also been exposed to an ominous landslide, while its only link road with a bridge had collapsed because of activity of the quarry.

Sand Grabbers

Besides, sand miners have polluted the only source of drinking water to the people and the angry youths, restrained at the moment by elders of the town, are spoiling for a showdown.

Leaders of the community, who spoke to our reporter, pleaded with the Akwa Ibom state government to rescue the  community by checkmating the activities of the sand miners threatening their environment.

Govt pays deaf ears despite petition

An opinion leader of the community, Prof Gabriel Umoh, lamented that the devastation caused by the illegal activity,   which started in March,   this year,   has become worrisome to people of the community, expressing disappointment that no help had come to them,   in spite of several petitions to relevant state and federal authorities.

“We have written to Ministry of Environment and Mineral Resources in Akwa Ibom state, no response, we also wrote to Federal Ministry of Mines and Solid Minerals, Federal Ministry of Environment and even gone through our traditional leaders, but we are not getting any help from anywhere.

“And these are the kind of things that push community people to take laws into their hands because once their patience is overstretched, they will react. They are pushing the people to the limits,” he stated.

He asserted: “We have taken all the necessary steps that we needed to take, that is why we are bringing the matter to the public domain to see whether it is fair. This is about our right, it is about our life.”

Devastated

Prof Umoh said: “Our community is totally cut off from its neighbouring communities; we do not have water to drink because the only source of drinking water has been polluted by the illegal miners. The community is under serious landslide if urgent steps are not taken to stop the illegal activity. The roads have been completely devastated by heavy duty trucks and earth excavating equipment used by the miners.

“If the youths now take laws into their hands, that is when they will start to quote the law, but now that we are following the law, they will not do what they are supposed to do, this is not fair.

“The Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals is supposed to call the illegal dredgers to order to stop what they are doing.   The Federal Ministry of Environment is supposed to protect our environment, but they are not doing that. Environment is all encompassing, people’s welfare is paramount but they do not seem to be interested in our welfare.”

Alleged collusion between close by community, firm

A resident, Mr. Enobong, said that the illegal sand mining in the area has subjected the people to untold suffering as economic activities in the area have been crippled.

“The only link road to the community with a bridge has collapsed, forcing local farmers to resort to taking bush tracks to the major market in local government and our people are threatening to embark on a violent protest if nothing is done to check the menace.

“And they are even accusing the neighbouring Mbioto 11 community of conniving with the mining companies -Be-bina Dredging Company Limited and Gulf Juliet International to destroy our environment for money,” he alleged.

Monarch mediates

Enobong further hinted:   “Even the paramount ruler of Etinan, Edidem Ime Umoette, had summoned the two communities in order to avert war. We are not praying that there should be war, all I want is for the relevant authorities to do something to save our land from this continued destruction by illegal dredgers.”

Ill-fated Task Force/enforcement

NDV learned that the state Ministry of Works under Mr. Ephraim Inyang, had, last year, set up a task force to stop the sand dredgers.

A government source, who confided in NDV, said:   “The companies might have refused to comply with the state government directives to stop their illegal activities because there was no enforcement. Now that the Commissioner has just been reappointed, last week, and also sent back to the Ministry of Works, let us hope that he will do something to ensure that the issue is resolved.”