It is no longer news that our dear community – Okomu has been embroiled in crisis recently which has led to burning of several houses and gun attacks on some military personnel, Edo State Security Network personnel and the most sacrilegious shooting of our revered king.

Consequently, early this month (August 2024) president of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) summoned us to a meeting with a view to resolving the crisis between we (Okomu community) and Lawrence Yanbor, the man who has been terrorising the whole Okomu and its environs. In his invitation, the INC President, in person of Prof. Benjamin Okaba informed us that three Ijaw top kings (one from Delta and two from Bayelsa) would be in attendance to carry out mediation roles while the Commissioner for Ijaw National Affairs, Bayelsa State, Chief Godspower Oporomo would host the supposed reconciliation meeting.

The meeting was slated for August 7th, so we took off as early as possible from here in Edo State en route to Bayelsa State. Our King, who has been in the hospital for treatment for all these months after the shooting by Lawrence Yanbor, also traveled to Bayelsa State (Yenagoa) even with his health condition. We are not resistant to reconciliation and putting an end to the lingering crisis in our community. This is why we were all happy to honour the invitation by the INC President; this is why our King, despite his present health challenge risked his health to travel to Yenagoa to attend the supposed reconciliation meeting.

READ ALSO: Okomu Attack: INC Talks Tough, Warns Those Twisting The Incident To Desist Or…

On getting to Yenagoa, we moved to the hotel we were informed as the venue of the meeting, but we were later told that the venue has been changed to Ijaw House which doubles as the national secretariat of the INC. When we got to the secretariat, in no distance time the meeting kick started, but to our uttermost surprise, the kings mentioned in the invitation as mediators in the reconciliation meeting were not present. The Commissioner who was mentioned as the host of the meeting in the invitation sent to us was not in attendance. The people we saw on the high table to mediate in a supposed reconciliation meeting where the other party in the crisis was not in attendance were Prof. Okaba, the National Financial Secretary of the INC and a few other persons. Where we initially suspected a foul play in the said reconciliation meeting was in the fact that Lawrence Yanbor, who has been perpetrating evil in Okomu, attacking our people and burning our houses was not in attendance in a supposed reconciliation meeting. He only sent representatives whose inconsequential names we will not mention because they played their master-payer role. The question every right thinking person will ask is, how can a reconciliation meeting be held when one party is absent.

Back to the meeting. The INC President gave our king a two minutes to narrate what had happened, and truly our king narrated how Lawrence Yanbor surrounded his palace with his gang and shot him to the point of death. The king also added that Lawrence Yanbor has been truly terrorising the community and its environs which has led to many indegenes fleeing the community. Prof. Okaba also gave room for representatives of Lawrence Yanbor to speak which they did. After that, the INC President in person of Prof. Okaba commenced his speech with a very undemocratic and dictatorial tone. We will quote him in a few lines: “This is Ijaw House, the headquarters of all the Ijaw homes and abroad; whatsoever I say here binds on all of you because I am the president of all Ijaw. I will be forced to lock this hall and the entire building until you agree to whatever decision is taken here.” He thereafter asked for those whose houses were burnt and we identified ourselves. Chief Freeman Cousin was about speaking as one of the victims but the INC President interjected that he does not want to hear how houses were burnt or how attacks were carried out, that what he wanted was the way forward. We then said, if you called us not to hear from us but to impose your will on us there wouldn’t have been a need to invite us here. Chief Nanaghan Rickson also said in the meeting that if Lawrence Yanbor was not in attendance we would not have anything to say because he was the one that attacked and razed our houses, but Okaba shut, humiliated him and asked him to sit down. Prof. Okaba thereafter said we all know why Lawrence Yanbor was not in the meeting. In a nutshell, our king, and the entire natives of Okomu were humiliated at the meeting.

READ ALSO: Okomu Attack: Edo Govt Has Failed In Its Responsibility; We Need Military Base – Community

We, therefore, want to draw the attention of the Bayelsa State governor, His Excellency, Douye Diri, our national leader, Pa Edwin Clark and the entire Ijaw nation to this development and the role the Okaba-led INC is playing currently in the Okomu crisis. We wish to reiterate that we are not opposed to reconciliation neither are we against the INC, but it must be stated that Okaba’s role in the Okomu crisis calls for concerns.

Our Position

We wish to state unequivocally as follows:

1. That we acknowledge and respect the INC as the umbrella body of all Ijaw sons and daughters. This is why we honoured the invitation. However, we want to state that the Prof. Okaba-led INC has taken side in the crisis. We, therefore, reject the outcome of the said meeting.

READ ALSO: Edo: Our Community Under Siege, Lands Destroyed, Okomu Leaders Cry Out

2. That the National Representative Council (IRC) which is constitutionally empowered to checkmate the INC should call Prof. Okaba to order.

3. We also reject the fact-finding committee to Okomu set up by Prof. Okaba during the meeting. Our reason for rejecting the committee is based on the fact that the secretary of the committee as set up by Prof. Okaba is the lawyer to Lawrence Yanbor, so there is no way the committee will come up with the true position of damage done to our community.

4. In the course of the meeting, the Lawrence Yanbor who was said to be in the bush was communicating on the phone with the INC President and his representatives.

5. That late Sani Abacha, former Head of State of Nigeria who was a dictator was more democratic than Prof. Okaba.

6. That Okaba gave opportunities to Lawrence Yanbor’s representatives to insult and humiliate our king while we were not given such opportunities to speak. Those of us who were given opportunities to speak were given a few minutes when compared to Lawrence Yanbor’s representatives.

7. The INC President giving room to some individuals to insult our king is unacceptable, sacrilegious in Ijaw culture and tradition.

8. That Prof. Okaba’s claim in the initial stage of the meeting that an outcome of a meeting held in Arogbo, Ondo State in 2022 in which a decision was taken that Lawrence Yanbor from that date of the meeting should stop attacking any Ijaw community including Okomu, and that if he carries out any attack, Ijaw kings and Edo State Government would declare him wanted, was what he (Okaba) would use as a guide was not touched. He only waved the paper of the meeting at the commencement of the meeting and thereafter did not make any reference to it.

Signed:

Chief Edwin Denmene,
The Ibe-uyadonwei of Okomu kingdom

Chief Rickson Nanaghan,
The Otugbu

Hon. Omokachi Perete,
SSA to Edo State governor on Waterways and Security Surveillance

Chief (Dr.) Atele Biriodoubrah,
The Ibe Bolowoniwei of Okomu kingdom