Inyali Peter, Calabar
A chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) and the governorship candidate of the party in the 2015 general election in Cross River State, Mr. Odey Ochicha has slammed Governor Ben Ayade’s silence over the communal war between Onyadama village of Obubra local government area and Nyima and Nko Community of Yakurr local government area of the state.
In a statement released in Calabar, Ochicha accused Ayade of playing dangerous politics by feigning ignorance of the war which is consuming the lives of many ignorant Cross Riverians.
He said, the essence of government was to protect lives and properties of citizens therefore, the Governor has no moral justification to keep mute and allow the two communities to slaughter themselves.
The APC chieftain who maintained that there’s no good war or bad peace, noted that the state Governor must do everything to return peace to the warring communities as lives and properties have been lost during the unfortunate incident.
While reminding the Governor that the people would hold him responsible if he continues to overlook the negative impact of the war, he said that any government that cannot protect the lives and properties of the people has no business talking about development.
According to him, “It is an act of irresponsibility for the Governor to have feigned ignorance of the communal war going on between Obubra and Yakurr communities pointing out that development strives in peaceful environment not in war”.
For Ochicha, as the former Prime Minister of Britain opined “It is better to jaw jaw than to war war” and urged the Governor to quickly wade into the conflict with a view to reconciling the warring communities and finding a permanent solution to the conflict.
“I heard so many people are feared dead. I was also informed that an entire community, that’s Ebo community which is under Onyadama in Obubra has been sacked as a result of the war. This is unacceptable. The Governor must do something to put an end to this conflict”.
The former governorship candidate noted that the government led by Ayade is insensitive to the plights of people living in rural communities as all his priority projects are too elitist.
“During the government of Senator Liyel Imoke, people living in the rural communities felt the essence of government unlike now where the Governor has concentrated his entire efforts on urban areas. If the war I’m talking about was in Calabar, you would have seen the government intervening but since it’s in the “village” nobody wants to show concern.
“Whether we like it or not, the ugly incident has affected economic activities in the entire state as Obubra and Yakurr are the economic hub of the state. Students are starving because traders can no longer supply garri and other consumable goods. The state government should seek support from Federal Government if the government can no longer protect the lives of innocent Cross Riverians”, he said.
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