By CrossRiverWatch Admin
The early hours of yesterday, Tuesday saw fresh outbreak of hostilities between the Abonkib people in Obudu LGA in Cross River state and Mbezerem people in Vandeikya LGA in Benue State.
The perennial communal war, said to have been ignited as usual, after a fatal confrontation over farmland, has reportedly recorded two deaths. Mr. Undie Ferdinand Ishamali, the inlaw of Mr. Frank Ayade, was also shot in the neck and wounded. Ishamali was rushed to Obudu Clinic where he was stabilized before his transfer to an unnamed health facility in Abakaliki.
CrossRiverWatch gathered that tension started building at the boundary lines since Monday after news filtered into Obudu that an argument between some Obudu and Tiv farmers had resulted in the death of two persons.
A confidential source who is very familiar with the latest development, told CrossRiverWatch that “Some Tiv men started clearing land that had been retrieved from them for Obudu after the last boundary demarcation exercise. They resisted when Obudu people asked them to desist. There was an altercation and two Tiv men died. The patch of land in contention is a swamp after Girls Secondary School on the way to Adikpo through Mbape.”
Community leaders and social media users from the two warring sides have been circulating messages warning travellers to avoid that route and stay safe.
The state governor, Senator Ben Ayade is out of the country but his deputy, Professor Ivara Esu, held an emergency meeting with the Head of Local Government Administration HOLGA of Obudu, Mr. Raymond Etta, but details of their meeting were not clear at press time.
Security forces were yet to also move into the crises zone at press time and both sides continue to mobilize to the boundary lines.
The State Police PRO was also not available to respond to CrossRiverWatch enquiries.