LANCEGUARDS- UPDATE

Why we deployed troops in Rivers’ community, by Omehia

RIVERS State Governor, Celestine Omehia, at the weekend explained that the murder of three chiefs and discovery of decapitated human heads and female bodies were responsible for the presence of the Joint Task Force (JTF) in Ogbogoro, near Port Harcourt.

And despite pressure from ethnic organisations like the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People, Ijaw National Congress and the Wakirike Ethnic Nationality Survival Organisation, the governor said there was no going back on the planned demolition and transformation of the waterfronts.

Omehia stated this at a state banquet held at the Government House, Port Harcourt to mark his administration’s first 100 days in office. In attendance were chiefs, government officials and other eminent persons in the state.

According to the governor, all government’s efforts would amount to nothing if cultism which threatens internal security is not decisively tackled.

His words: “We have today taken over Ogbogoro and from what we saw, only God knows how people who live there manage. When JTF took over Ogbogoro, skulls were

discovered in different parts of the place, dead women without breasts, corpses floating on water, hands and legs tied.”

Omehia stressed that it was the sole responsibility of government to protect life and property, adding that “it is pertinent to warn again that this government is against cultism and frowns at criminality. As it is now, this state is free from cultism.”

He explained that the on-going clampdown on cultists would continue because their destructive activities were antithetical to the development objectives of his government.

He reiterated that government’s decision to impose a nine-hour curfew beginning from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. on Port Harcourt and its environs was necessitated by the desire to continue to consolidate on the gains of the relative peace achieved so far.

He added that the indefinite curfew had to stay even if it meant extending it.

Omehia said he was ready to grant amnesty to any cultist who openly and genuinely renounced cultism and violence. He, however, warned that the government would not fail to clamp down on those who fail to denounce violence.

He lauded President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua and the security chiefs for their commitment to the restoration of peace in Port Harcourt and the entire state.

He also thanked them for discarding the clamour for the imposition of state of emergency on the state.

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Terror threat: IG meets embassies’ security officers

The Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro, on Monday met with the chief security officers of all the embassies in the country.

The meeting came barely four days after the United States warned that Nigeria risked being attacked by terrorists.

A standing committee and a joint operational room were set up after the meeting in Abuja to check any form of threat to security in the country by terrorists.

Okiro said that the meeting reviewed the existing security arrangement at the embassies.

The IG, who had held talks with police chiefs in the Lagos and Abuja commands, added that recommendations made at the meeting with the security chiefs had been implemented.

Those that Okiro also met with were the Commissioner of Police, Lagos State Command, Mr. Muhammed Abubakar; his Abuja command counterpart, Mr. Haruna John; and the deputy Commissioners of Police in charge of operations in the Lagos command and the Federal Capital Territory.

Although Okiro reiterated that the police had always taken the security of the embassies seriously, he assured foreigners in the country of their safety.

He said, “My attention has been drawn to some publications alleging that the United States Embassy issued a press statement alleging that there is a possibility of terrorist attack on American interests in Nigeria.

“The Nigeria Police wish to state that the security of embassies, especially the American Embassy, has been on constant review.

“Series of security meetings have been held between me and the chief security officers of embassies.

“The Nigeria Police wish to assure all the embassies that there is no cause for alarm and that adequate arrangements have been made for the safety of their citizens.”

Okiro, however, advised Nigerians and foreigners to be security conscious and not to allow “themselves to be used by self-seeking, unpatriotic elements to feather the nests of foreign powers.”

The Deputy Spokesman for the US Department of State, Mr. Tom Casey, had said on Thursday that the warning was necessary to put diplomatic staff and Americans in Nigeria on their guard.

The Department issued the warning ahead of the 6th anniversary of Al-Qaeda’s attack on the World Trade Centre and Pentagon in New York and Washington D.C.

“On September 6, the US mission said it received information that American and other Western interests in the country are at risk of a terrorist attack without giving the name of any group behind the pilot.”

It added that potential targets included diplomatic buildings and businesses in Abuja and Lagos.

A similar warning in June 2005 resulted in the closure of US missions in Lagos and Abuja.

In Lagos, the State Government also on Monday convened an emergency Security Council meeting to find ways of further securing the lives and property of the residents of the state.

The meeting was attended by members of the security agencies in the state and the representatives of the service chiefs.

Before journalists were asked out of the meeting, the state governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), said his government viewed the US warning with all seriousness.

Fashola said, “The emergency security meeting was convened because we have taken the terror warning of the US seriously.

“Although we are still studying the statement, our government is serious about protecting the lives and property of the citizenry.

“ We will assess the situation to ensure that the lives of our people are not in danger.

“In the course of the meeting, we also decided to raise awareness and ensure that the security agencies are up to the task and on the alert always.”

The Commissioner for Information and Strategy,

Mr. Opeyemi Bamidele, told Journalists after the meeting, that the government resolved to collaborate with security chiefs to curb social vices in the state.

Opeyemi said since the state was hosting many expatriates it was necessary for the government to place security above any other thing.

He advised members of the public to call the following numbers – 01-4931260 ; 01-4978899 ; 01-4931261 ; 01-7745705 – if they noticed any security threat around them. Multilinks subscribers are to call 100.

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Obasanjo imported 80,000 rifles to rig election for Yar’Adua — Buhari

The presidential candidate of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), General Muhammadu Buhari, on Monday told the presidential election petition tribunal that former President Olusegun Obasanjo imported 80,000 rifles to rig the April 21 elections in favour of President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua.

This is coming at a time the tribunal has granted more time to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to file its response to the petition by Buhari.

Responding to a motion opposing the application for the invitation of Obasanjo to testify in the petition, counsel to Buhari, Chief Mike Ahamba (SAN), alleged that the former president imported 80, 000 rifles for the purpose of rigging the April election and therefore needed to appear before the tribunal.

He told the tribunal that Obasanjo brought the police and the military unlawfully to intimidate voters in the last election. He said Section 308 does not cover the president in matters that has to do with election.
His words: “What makes a party desirable or necessary in any case is the allegation made against him. Allegations were made against him (Obasanjo) that he participated in the conduct of the election.

We have proved in our application that he participated in the conduct of the election.
“Under the 1999 constitution, nobody can bring out soldiers or police except the Commander-in-Chief. He brought soldiers out unlawfully to rig election for his party (the PDP).

“Once it is an election petition matter, Section 308 does not apply. There is no way the tribunal can determine this petition without looking at what the police and soldiers did. We pleaded that they (police and soldiers) were specifically brought out to do what they did. We have pictures and publications to prove all this.
“Obasanjo bought 80, 000 rifles for the purpose of the election. He told Nigerians that the election was going to be a do or die affair.”

Buhari had filed an application asking the tribunal to cause the appearance of Obasanjo to explain the role he played in allegedly influencing the result of the presidential election in favour of Yar’Adua.
In a swift reaction, Obasanjo brought a motion asking the tribunal to strike out his name from Buhari’s petition. Counsel to Obasanjo, Ade Okeaya-Inneh, while moving the motion, told the tribunal that Obasanjo cannot be joined as a respondent in the petition because he was not the person that conducted the election.

He argued that the time Obasanjo deployed the military and the police as security agents during the election, he was covered by the immunity clause in Section 308 of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria.
He said: “You have to look at the allegations properly before you can decide whether to join Obasanjo as a party in this petition. He was not the one that conducted the election and therefore should not be joined as party. Section 308 of the 1999 constitution gives him immunity from being prosecuted while in office. All the acts he was alleged to have committed were done when he was in office as the president.”

The military on Sunday announced that it has uncovered fresh plots by three cult groups in Rivers State to blackmail it and raise public sentiment against its men in the on-going hunt for cultists involved in the recent mayhem in Port Harcourt and the environs.

One of such moves to portray the Military Joint Task Force, “as an occupational force that kill at will” is the alleged use of Army uniforms in inter-cult crisis in parts of the state.

This was contained in a statement issued in Port Harcourt in apparent reaction to allegations that members of the task force were responsible for the recent killings in Tombia community in the state.

The reaction came just as the Army authorities announced the appointment of a new Commander for the 2 Amphibious Brigade in Port Harcourt, Brigadier-General Sarkin-Yaki Bello, hitherto, Director in the Department of Army Operations at the Army Headquarters in Abuja. He replaced Brigadier General Samuel Andrew Salihu, now posted to Defence Headquarters.

Spokesman for the JTF and the Army in the state, Major Sagir Musa, said the cult groups, led by Ateke Tom, Soboma George and Farah Dagogo, now adorn military uniforms and unleash terror on innocent people in a bid to create public resentment of security agents involved in the pursuit of fleeing cultists.
“In order to succeed in their nefarious activities and to beef up public sentiments against the security agents involved in the restoration of law and order in the state, they resort to illegal use of army uniforms in their inter-cult crisis and in the process unleash terror on innocent people with loss of lives and properties.”

Major Musa said the military had no hand in the “purported killing of 12 suspected cultists” in Tombia community.
“This is to inform members of the public that the JTF Operation flush out 111 currently in operation in the state is yet to patrol or deploy troops to Tombia and is therefore not responsible for the reported killing. “As a well trained, responsible and disciplined force, we are mindful of our noble responsibilities to the Nigerian people and Rivers State in particular.”
Consequently, the task force advised members of the public to, “be wary of miscreants masquerading in Army uniforms that engage in wanton killing of innocent people”. It assured that “this menace” would soon end.

As part of the ongoing efforts to rid Rivers State of miscreants and their hiding places, Governor Celestine Omehia yesterday ordered the demolition of all waterfronts in the state and their replacement with modern housing units.
This is as he stated that the attention of the security men in the State would soon be directed to rural communities where the cultists who disturbed the peace of the town had fled to for cover, vowing that he would not leave any stone unturned in ridding the State of trouble makers.
When completed, the housing scheme which would be in phases would still occupied by those displaced from the new development. The first phase will see the building of 6,000 units.
Omehia gave the order yesterday at a stakeholders meeting in Government House, Port Harcourt where he directed the Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development, Mr. Chidiebere Okwuolu four months which needs December 2007 to complete the demolition of the structures in the area.
He premised his action on the fact that total peace would not be achieved unless the hoodlums were totally dislodged from their hiding places which the waterfronts is notorious for As part of measures to ensure total restoration of peace in Port Harcourt and its environs, the Rivers State Government says the waterfronts which served as haven for the activities of criminals would be replaced with modern houses.

He again, pleaded with the people of the State to bear with him on whatever pains his decision may bring upon them saying it was part of the sacrifice to ensure that the return of peace to the State was not temporary.Expected to come under the hammer of the demolition order are Abuja/Prisons, Reclamation, Borokiri, Elechi, Afikpo, Timber, Abonnema wharf, Okirika, Captain Amagala, Dockyard Creek, Rex Lawson, Enugu, Ojike and Abba, Ndoki, Marine Base, Bundu, Nembe, Belle and Bonny waterfronts with a collective population of over a million.He particularly thanked President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua for his support and assured him that the peace achieved in the State was irreversible and further expressed commitment to ensuring that people who come to the State carry on their businesses unmolested by anybody. Omehia who lamented that the insecurity in the State has given it a bad name both within and outside the country said it raised a lot of concerns at the Gulf of Guinea Security meeting after all efforts to placate the miscreants failed and they were shooting at soldiers sent to maintain the peace.Responding to the manner in which the governor lampooned Ijaw leaders for calling for the declaration of Stat e of Emergency, Gubernatorial candidate of Action Congress in the April Polls, Prince Tonye Princewill demanded for an apology from Omehia’s government saying though he did not agree with the elders, they deserved more respect that the way they were addressed. “I am disappointed but not surprised by the unguarded and undue verbal attack on the elders of our region. Even though I am not convinced a State of Emergency on its own will solve the problem in Rivers, there are better ways to go about agreeing to disagree. Our generation must remember to do unto others as you would want them do unto you. I expect a quick and unreserved apology in the not too distant future or …”, Princewill said. Chief Edwin Clark, a notable Ijaw Elder and Leader had in a conference, canvassed for the declaration of State of Emergency in Rivers State saying that Omehia has displayed inability to deal with the situation to return peace to the State.The State government had replied through Mr. Emma Okah who lampooned the elders as living out of tune with the present generation who ought to have expended their energy to reform the people who were causing the trouble.In a related development, royal fathers in the State yesterday commended Omehia for the steps he has so far taken to restore peace in the State where they also charged him to seize all opportunities to ensure that there was no relapse into previous situations.Speaking at the forum, he Chairman of Rivers State Council ofTraditional Rulers and the Amayangbo of Grand Bonny Kingdom, King Edward Asimini William Pepple called for the sustenance of the action against cultism, pointing out that the fight should go to the waterways where they have fled on the crack down against them in town. He conveyed the position of the chiefs to the governor who he assured that he enjoyed their confidence in his ability to steer the ship ofstate successfully “Those of you who have aided and abated these activities, those of you who have been sponsors, by omission or commission, I think this is the time for you to turn a new leaf”, the head of the royal fathers charged.Others who spoke in the same vein are Eze Gbakagbaka of Evoland, Eze Frank Eke who told Omehia to do everything in the interest of the peace and tranquility of the town as the were behind him. The Oba of Ogbaland, Oba Chukwuemeka Nnam Obi II said the action of the governor has restored hope in the resolution of the problem created by militancy and cultism in the State.

emergency rule in Rivers —Federal lawmakers

SENATORS and House of Representatives members from Rivers State, kicked, yesterday, against Monday’s call for emergency rule in the state by some Niger Delta elders.
They dismissed such calls as parochial, self-centred, and politically-motivated and said the main challenge was for the armed forces to flush out criminals making life difficult for residents.
The state government in its second reaction in as many days to the Niger Delta elders’ position said it was pushed to the wall by the criminality and unrepentant- actions of some youths to invite soldiers to restore sanity to the state.
Meanwhile, residents have been advised not to make or receive calls while passing through the numerous barricades mounted by soldiers deployed on the streets of Port Harcourt to check last week’s violence.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja, the Rivers State Federal legislators said: ‘The presence of the military might cause some inconveniences in the state but it is important that more effort be put in to bring about stability as continued instability in the state will definitely affect the stability of our nation.
“This mayhem, which has taken an ugly dimension in the state is unprecedented and should not be allowed to continue. As a nation, no one can bring us peace but ourselves. It is in this view we strongly solicit that the Armed Forces in the state be encouraged to take this battle head on and bring to book everyone involved.
“They should show more commitment and fish out the perpetrators as the common goal of every Rivers man is to have peace now,” the caucus said.
The Rivers lawmakers in rejecting the call for emergency rule remarked that the problem of youth militancy was not created by the present administration in the state. They, therefore, urged the people of the state to support Governor Celestine Omehia, in his search for a solution.
The Rivers State caucus warned against viewing the problem as part of the legitimate agitation by the Niger Delta people, adding: “The government and the good people of Rivers are not part of this ugly carnage. It is not a fight by the militants who claim to be fighting for either resource control or the emancipation of the of the Niger Delta people.
“It is a struggle for supremacy of cult groups trying to define their territory or domain. It may also be politically motivated,” the lawmakers opined, throwing their support behind President Umaru Yar’Adua’s effort “to eliminate youth hooliganism, kidnapping, killing and maiming”of innocent citizens.
Govt seeks divine intervention
The state Deputy Governor, Mr. Tele Ikuru, at a prayer session by the Solemn Assembly for Peace at the Souls Ablaze Ministries, Port Harcourt, said government had to invite soldiers because “some of our youths are determined not to listen to counselling.”
Although he regretted the inconveniences government’s decision was “causing well-meaning people of the state,” he said: “No government would sit and watch criminals destabilise the economic and social life of its citizens without taking proactive action. We were pushed to the wall.”
He said the Omehia administration had at inception put up viable structures to counsel and rehabilitate the erring youths but they were “unappreciative, hence their decision to continue on the path of evil.”
He said “the problem has gone beyond the physical and consequently requires spiritual warfare to dismiss the hold of the devil in these youths. The time for tea- party is over, it is now time for spiritual warfare and I urge all men of God to bring the situation before the Almighty.”
Government, he said, was prepared to adopt any viable option that would return permanent peace to the state capital and environs. “Governor Omehia is doing everything a father can do to his child to make him change but unfortunately some have chosen to continue on the path of evil,” he said.
Residents warned on mobile phone use
Meanwhile, residents of Port Harcourt have been told not to make or receive calls while passing through any of the barricades mounted by soldiers on the streets of the state capital.
In a memo tagged “Security message” pasted on the notice board of Agip Oil Company Nigeria Limited in Port Harcourt, the security department of the company appealed to staff and visitors to heed the advice for their own safety
According to the memo signed by Chijioke Henry Amadi, somebody was shot dead by men of the Joint Task Force in the state recently while reaching for his handset from his pocket after it rang.
Incidentally, the person was said to be walking from one end of the barricade to the other when he got the call. Effort to get the phone was mistaken by the soldiers on red alert that he wanted to bring out a dangerous weapon so they reportedly opened fire.
The memo was silent on where in the state the incident happened. Effort to get the army PRO in the state, Major Sagir Musa, to comment on the alleged incident was futile as he did not pick his call.
Although, residents of the state capital have started decrying the attitude of some mobile policemen attached to the Joint Task Force. They said they sometimes arrest people relaxing in front of their houses from 7pm.
“On our street, Ojike, yesterday evening, mobile policemen just came minutes after 7pm to start arresting people sitting in front of their houses relaxing. They were forced to bail themselves with money that night. Government should call the mobile policemen to order. This is not what they were asked to come and do on the streets,” one resident said.
At some markets visited yesterday, traders complained of a down turn in business. They heaped curses on cultists that landed the state in its present condition just as they thanked the Federal Government for responding to save the state from the hands of the brigands.
According to a trader who simply called himself Christopher, “whoever is alive to see today should be happy. These cultists held the state hostage, they became law unto themselves.”

Omehia accuses Ijaw elders of sponsoring violence

RIVERS State Governor, Celestine Omehia yesterday condemned the call by some Ijaw elders for emergency rule in the state, accusing them of sponsoring youth unrest in the Niger Delta region.

Omehia has also ordered the demolition of thousands of houses along the waterfronts in Port Harcourt, the state capital, as part of efforts to rid the city of gang members.

Meanwhile, the state Police Commissioner, Mr. Phelix Ogbaudu, has expressed doubts over claims that wanted militia leader, Soboma George is dead. The Joint Task Force (JTF) yesterday extended its raid of suspected cult members, who have in the last week thrown the state into turmoil, to Okrika community.

Addressing a meeting of Rivers State stakeholders on the recent spate of unrest that had culminated in the declaration of a one-week curfew in Port Harcourt and its environs, Omehia yesterday expressed regrets that the security measures taken so far were not being appreciated by some Ijaw elders within and outside the state who had selfish goals.

Omehia said: “Some people from Rivers State and some from outside Rivers State who wanted to control Rivers State from their state where criminality is worse, decided to hold a meeting in Lagos, calling on the Federal Government to declare state of emergency in Rivers State.”

He continued: “Those people are enemies of Rivers State. They are the sponsors of the criminal activities in Rivers State. Any person who believes that we should not end the criminal activities going on in Rivers State does not mean well for all of us.”

The governor urged the presidency and federal agencies to ignore the call by the Ijaw elders and focus the enhancement of the security situation in the state.

Some Ijaw elders, led by Chief Edwin Clark had on Monday asked the Federal Government to declare emergency rule in Rivers State and after six months, conduct a free and fair gubernatorial election for the people to pick an acceptable governor.

Omehia said on the assumption of office in May, that he had set up the peace and reconciliation committee primarily to rehabilitate and economically empower youths involved in militancy and hostage taking, but this gesture was rebuffed by those whose activities had continued to dent the image of the state locally and internationally.

He said: “The miscreants, criminals, I won’t call them the militants, decided to shoot sporadically all over the place including the front of the Government House, took over the streets of Port Harcourt and all they were asking for was give us money.”

The governor said the miscreants had sponsors outside the state who want to sustain their loot for their own benefit. Omehia noted that to check the menace, he contacted the Federal Government, which directed the Chief of Defense Staff and the Acting Inspector General of Police to visit the state.

Omehia described the attack on Port Harcourt by the miscreants penultimate Saturday while the two security chiefs were in the city as disrespect to government and the highest level of lawlessness by persons who were not legally qualified to carry arms.

The governor, who explained that the recent disturbances had led to the deployment of soldiers in the state, noted that while this might seem unusual and improper, it was the only viable option to rid the state of miscreants.

On the curfew declared last Friday, the governor said it might be extended by additional three days depending on the progress made by the security agencies in their effort to rid the state of those behind the recent disturbances which has claimed over 70 lives.

Omehia said the fight against criminal activities in the state would not end if the government did not immediately embark on its plan to clear urban slums. To that effect, he declared that the demolition of slums along the waterfronts would begin between now and December.

The affected slums include Aggrey, Ndoki, Marine Base, Bundu, Nembe, Belle, Bonny waterfronts. Others are Abuja/Prisons, Reclamation, Borokiri, Elechi, Afikpo, Timber, Abonnema Wharf, Okirika, Captain Amagala, Dockyard Creek, Rex Lawson, Enugu, Ojike and Abba waterfronts.

The Amanyanabo of Grand Bonny Kingdom and Chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council, King Edward Asimini Dappa William Pepple said the people were in complete support of the government’s efforts to secure lives and property.

The Eze Gbakagbaka of Evo Kingdom, Frank Eke assured Omehia of the support of the people of the state in the efforts to end cultism and militancy.

The Amanyanabo of Kalabari, King Theophilus Princewill described the imposition of curfew in the state as a welcome development and suggested that whatever action was being taken to restore peace to the state should also be extended to the rural communities.

The Oba of Ogbaland, Chukwumela Nnam Obi II, commended Omehia for his maturity in handling the situation, saying that the governor’s action had rekindled hope in the people of his capacity to lead the state to greater heights.

Ogbaudu yesterday confirmed that George is alive.

The Commissioner of Police disclosed in Port Harcourt that contrary to speculations, George was not killed during a raid last Thursday by the JTF on a hotel the gang leader was presumed to be taking refuge in.

Ogbaudu said there was no evidence presently to ascertain the veracity of the claim that George was killed during the raid. He explained that some persons who know the warlord had confirmed to him that he (George) was still alive.

The Acting Inspector General of Police, Mike Okiro, had last weekend said a deoxyrabonucleic (DNA) would be conducted on the dead bodies recovered from Iyala Hotel to ascertain if Soboma was among the victims.

Spokesperson for the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), Gbomo Jomo, who condemned the attempt on the life of George, at the weekend reaffirmed that he was alive.

Meanwhile, the JTF has intensified its search for suspected perpetrators of the recent disturbances in the state. Sources disclosed to The Guardian that the soldiers in the early hours of yesterday raided Okochiri-Okrika which is the home of the leader of the Niger Delta Vigilante, Ateke Tom.

The JTF raided the hotel where one of the leaders of the groups which signed a peace deal with Ateke was suspected to be residing but narrowly missed him.

The Guardian learnt that the JTF seized a sports utility van (SUV) and other items belonging to the militia leader who has since renounced violence. It was learnt that he was targeted by the JTF, which believed that he would have led them to Ateke’s hideout.

However, the leader of the Niger Delta Solidarity Front, Mr. Abiye Abaku, which is one of the groups that signed the Okirka peace agreement last month, has distanced himself from the recent crisis in the state.

Abaku, who described himself as a freedom fighter, said he renounced all forms of violence during the peace brokered by former President Olusegun Obasanjo in 2004 between Mujahid Dokubo-Asari and Ateke Tom.

Abaku, who was a former member of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force (NDPVF), described as disturbing the allegation by the Commander of the JTF, Brig.-Gen. Samuel Salihu, that the Okrika peace deal was aimed at getting a common front to attack Soboma

Acting Inspector General of Police (IG), Mike Okiro, has pledged the determination of the security agencies to flush out gangs in Rivers State that have been killing people and destroying property for two weeks running.

He drew the battle line on Saturday after a meeting of top military and police officers in Port Harcourt.

The meeting reviewed the crackdown on insurgents and took further steps to strengthen security in the entire Niger Delta.

It was the second such meeting in a week, and was also attended by Chief of Defence Staff, Lt. Gen Andrew Azazi, Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Lukas Yusuf as well as other senior officers from the Air Force, Navy, and the police.

The meeting held at the headquarters of the 2nd Brigade of the Army in Port Harcourt, which also serves as the base for the Joint Task Force (JTF) battling the death gangs and hostage takers.

The security officers later met with Rivers Governor, Celestine Omehia, and inspected scenes of violence in the state.

Okiro informed journalists that the Federal Government would crush criminals making life uncomfortable for the rest of the people.

“We have met to review the security situation in Port Harcourt, and we have decided to continue to push the criminals out so that there could be peace in the state”, he assured.

The meeting coincided with the second day of the dusk-to-dawn curfew declared by the Rivers Government to nab those who have been engaging security agents in fierce gun battles for the second week, leaving behind scores of deaths.

Terrified residents have no option than to flee the streets, to avoid being hit by security agents acting on instructions to tackle the bandits head-on.

Omehia also explained that the soldiers would stay for six months in the first instance, and that he is satisfied with the steps so far taken by the federal authorities to restore peace in the state.

He wondered why a few criminals opted to attack the state and its people instead of renouncing violence and embracing peace.

He stressed that, contrary to reports, he as a person had nothing to do with gang leaders. His administration too has no links with hoodlums, he added.

Omehia recalled that he had made it clear during his election campaign that he would not deal with any cult group, a promise he said he has kept.

“I cannot speak for any other person. But whoever is implicated in the crisis will be fished out by the security agencies for reprimand,” he stressed.

The governor has however embraced two former cult members that renounced violence and has offered to foot the bill for their training as pilots.

The development coincided with clarification that the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have not informed the government that they are on the trail of the former governor, Dr. Peter Odili.

Apart from saying that the EFCC does not have any reason to look for Odili, the government said, contrary to insinuations that the former governor cannot travel outside the country, “the former governor has no need to do so.”

The state Information Commissioner, Emma Okah, offered the explanation in an interview with Sunday Independent in Lagos where he also confirmed that the government had undertaken to train two cult members from the state who want to become pilots.

The two indigenes believed to be notorious cult members were said to have won the heart of Omehia recently when they denounced cult practices, and he promptly offered to pay their way through in a pilot school.

The boys were said to have willingly denounced the “cult trade” and opted to pursue a career that will give them a new lease of life.

Touched by the unusual show of interest in transforming from bad to good boys, Sunday Independent learnt that the state government got them admission in a pilot school in South Africa where they will be proceeding to any moment from now.

A Rivers State government source disclosed to this newspaper within the week that a whopping sum in foreign currency was paid as tuition and upkeep for the duo, just as the governor is said to be determined to invest in other youths who are willing to make a U-turn from their bad ways by pursuing means of livelihood that will bring them respect within and outside the state.

The source who described the scholarship as “full” with the state government paying every fee needed to run the programme, noted that it was part of the present government’s efforts to stamp out cult activities in the state in particular and the nation in general.

When this newspaper took Okah up on the scholarship for the cult members, he confirmed the development, saying that the government is determined to train as many indigenes of the state as possible that are ready to pursue good source of livelihood.

Okah, who was Odili’s Chief Press Secretary, further said the EFCC is not after his former boss and that Odili has not travelled out of the country because “the former governor is not someone who likes travelling out. Even when he was in office, we can count the number of times he traveled out.”

The Information Commissioner, who described as laughable the insinuation that Odili is instrumental to the raging crisis in Rivers, explained that “it is unfortunate that many people have been misled into believing this nonsense. These things are figments of the imaginations of people whose job is to permanently give a dog a bad name in order to hang it. It is not correct.

“In any case, even if it were correct for the purpose of argument only, is that why those who are saddled with the responsibility of peace and order turn a blind eye to festering problems of insecurity in the Niger Delta when they know other persisting problems are there? Tackle oil bunkering and 60 per cent of the problems will be over.”

Okiro parades three alleged kidnappers
By Olusola Fabiyi, Abuja
Published: Tuesday, 21 Aug 2007
The Acting Inspector General of Police, Mr. Mike Okiro, on Monday paraded three men who were alleged to have kidnapped a three-year-old girl.

The three men are Sampson Michael, Ogechi Umah and Ibiyekaribo Dappa. Three other members of the gang were said to have been killed during a shootout with the police while four others were still at large.

They were alleged to have also been paid the sum of N3.3m by the parents of the girl as ransom before she was released.

The kidnappers were said to have asked for N150m.

The girl, whose name was not disclosed due to security, was kidnapped with her nanny on the way to the daughter’s school.

The kidnapping was said to have been coordinated by Michael, who was a driver to the girl’s father. He was said to have recruited other members of the gang, who allegedly told them that the girl’s father had the financial clout to pay the ransom.

Okiro told newsmen the kidnappers, after receiving the N3.2m, were still mounting pressure on the girl’s father, demanding the payment of the balance.

The three suspects admitted receiving the sum of N300,000 each from the money.

He said, “Police investigation led to the arrest of Michael, a driver to the girl’s father. The kidnap plot was hatched by the said driver who confessed when evidence against him was presented.”

The IGP also said that the three suspects would be charged with conspiracy, kidnapping and extortion, as soon as the police were through with investigations.

News & Security Updates

Soldiers, gangs clash in Rivers

ONCE again, the streets of Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, turned a theatre of war yesterday. Guns boomed and the shrill cries of wounded persons sent chills down the bones of residents, many of whom were trapped indoors.
The gun duel was, however, not between two rival gangs, but between a combined team of the Army, and the Air Force on the one hand, and a suspected gang of militants on the other.
The state government, in a press statement last night, put the casualty figure at 32, including the leaders of the militia group, Soboma George. But the Movement for the Emancipation of the Nigeria Delta (MEND), in another press statement, claimed that George was still alive and that its members rescued the gang’s leader from police detention.
The troops, named Joint Military Task Force (JTF), carried out the attack in a bid to root out the gangs that had since last week held the state capital hostage in their street gun duels.
Yesterday’s attack on George’s group is expected to be extended to the rival gang, Ateke Tom’s, according to military sources.
The fresh fighting erupted following reports that George had been killed by the JTF.
The recent upsurge in violence, in which about 40 persons have been killed, was said to have been triggered off by the attack and subsequent razing down of a hotel where George was suspected to be taking refuge.
The JTF cordoned areas surrounding the Rivers State Government House, which the militants had made attempts to attack. Residents around the area were said to be packing out to other parts of the city in droves.
Major Sagir, JTF’s spokesman, disclosed to The Guardian that some suspected militants came out to the streets and started shooting around the Marine base area which is the suspected abode of George, who the JTF commander, Brig.-Gen. Samuel Salihu, had accused of triggering off the recent insecurity in the state.
According to Sagir: “Due to last week’s mayhem which was attributed to inter-cult crisis between Ateke Tom and Soboma George’s groups, we moved in to restore law and order. And as we were doing that, we were gathering intelligence report as to the hideout of the militants.”
He continued: “We were lucky we got the hideout of Soboma George and we went to attack it and cordon it. In the process there was exchange of fire between the militants and the Joint Task Force troops.”
The Guardian learnt that when security operatives arrived at the hotel where George was staying at about 3.00 a.m., they interrogated the owner who denied that the wanted warlord was residing there. As the inquiry was going on, some gunmen were alleged to have opened fire on the security operatives.
The security agents retaliated and in the process, the hotel located at the Makoba area of Port Harcourt, was razed down.
A JTF source disclosed that three persons were killed during the attack at Iyala Hotel, while Sagir confirmed that over 20 suspected militants had been arrested in the ongoing raid in Port Harcourt .
The report of George’s death was said to have triggered off shootings around the city. Residents told The Guardian that persons suspected to be his allies went on rampage shooting guns and detonating dynamites.
An eyewitness in the Amadi-Ama axis of the city said two persons were struck by stray bullets, which killed them instantly. Sporadic shootings were reported around the Eastern By-pass, Trans-Amadi, Rumubiakani, Lagos Bus stop, Creek Road and Bonny Street. Thousands of people started packing out of Marine Base yesterday afternoon while many more were trapped indoors.
JTF sources told The Guardian that a gunship also attacked three boats conveying some suspected militants to Port Harcourt. Over 30 occupants of the boats were killed in the attack close to Abuja Estate along Creek Road. Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Phelix Ogbaudu, described the attack as a JTF operation.
He said: “We got two boats. They had disembarked before we got them. There was shooting that lasted for sometime, it lasted for about five hours or thereabout. The security situation is okay, calm now and we are properly in full control and we are not resting on our oars as they might come back because of what happened today.”
The JTF spokesperson said over 20 suspected militants were arrested during yesterday’s raid, which was on as at press time. He said that the JTF would not relent in its raid on the hideouts of the suspected gang members until the state is rid of them.
But MEND’s spokesperson, Gbomo Jomo, said George was rescued from police detention and was hale and hearty.
He accused the military of not behaving better than the gangs they were claiming to hunt for. According to him: “If the military is not kept in check, we will be forced to get involved more visibly.”
Sources disclosed to The Guardian that the JTF had been deployed to Okirika, the abode of the leader of the Niger Delta Vigilantee, Ateke Tom.
Ateke Tom and leaders of six other groups that recently signed a peace agreement, namely: Outlaws, Niger Delta Solidarity Front, Klans Men, Green Landers, Black Axe, and Icelanders in Okrika have denied involvement in the on going bloodbath in Port Harcourt.
The soldiers were reported to have used rockets and machine guns in dawn raids on criminal hide-outs after six days of street battles between rival gangs last week. The gangs responded by invading five districts across the city, including the area around the state government headquarters.
“The military suffered several fatalities after the initial encounter and have resorted to the use of choppers and gun boats,” said a private security source quoted yesterday by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).
Sagir Musa, spokesman for the task force, said the troops killed some suspected “bad boys” and arrested others, but declined to give figures.
A resident of the old district of Borokiri said he heard intense automatic gunfire all morning.
“A group of men drove past my house waving guns and blood-stained knives while a helicopter gunship hovered overhead shooting,” he was quoted as saying.
“Before nightfall, the gunmen retreated back into the creeks around the city, which is home to Royal Dutch Shell among other big energy companies.”
The state government described the military action as successful and that peace would soon return to Rivers: “The military operations that were carried out by combined force of the Army and the Air force successfully dislodged the cultists, who prefer to call themselves militants. The operations were decidedly a success and the cultists suffered heavily in men and materials,” the government said.
It disclosed that the decision to carry out the operation was informed by the need to carry the war to the cultists and their den, adding that the desired result was achieved, to say the least.

Remain Beyond 6 Months

The deployment of troops in Port Harcourt, the troubled capital city of Rivers State, may go beyond the initial six-month projection, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Luka Yusuf, disclosed yesterday.
The Army chief said the decision to withdraw the troops would be taken in conjunction with the governor of the state, Sir Celestine Omehia.
This is coming on the heels of the state government’s condemnation of the call by some Ijaw leaders for a state of emergency to be imposed on the state.
Soldiers, who were deployed in the city following weeks of shootings and gun battles between suspected cult groups, are not guaranteed to leave after the initial period of six months, although Omehia said at the weekend that the soldiers would be in the city for that period.
Yusuf made the announcement while briefing the Minister of Defence, Alhaji Ahmed Yayale who was on a working visit of the Army, Navy and Airforce.
He said if the governor, as the chief security officer, “feels that the security situation has improved he will ask for the pulling out of the solders to the barracks”.
He said the Army would not flood troops to Port Harcourt so as not to create the impression of a state of emergency there.
Yusuf lamented that even though the police were saddled with the responsibility of internal security, “the Army is now taking a very big chunk of it even without being supported with additional logistics”.
The army chief informed that the Army was now fully involved in internal security as part of their assistance to civil authority.
He disclosed that most of the soldiers in Operation Restore Hope were being moved to support the ongoing operation in Port Harcourt “until peace returns”.
Most of the serviceable boats are being moved from Calabar to Port Harcourt to support the operation to block the creeks to prevent the militants from infiltrating the state capital, he disclosed, revealing that more operational vehicles and Armoured Personnel Carrier (APCS) were being moved to Port Harcourt because “it will take time to restore hope and return things to normalcy in the region”.
Yusuf, however, charged the political class to do their own beat insisting some of the crisis had political undertone.
Reacting to the call by some Ijaw Leaders especially Chief Edwin Clark, Chief Albert Horsfall, and Alabo Tonye Graham-Douglas for the declaration of state of emergency and cancellation of the April 2007 elections in the state, the Rivers State Government said the people of the state “are surprised and embarrassed that persons who call themselves elders would make such calls to cause disharmony and promote ethnic friction at this time without any justification”.
Clark, Chairman of Ijaw National Congress (INC), had yesterday called for the imposition of a state of emergency.
Clark, who spoke to newsmen in Lagos, said it was high time President Umaru Yar’Adua declared a state of emergency owing to the escalating war between the rival cult gangs.
He promised to lead a delegation of Ijaw leaders to Abuja to meet with the President on the issue.
According to him, “the state of emergency should at the first instance last for six months because as things are now, the state government has lost full control of the situation.
“So rather than the situation degenerating, the federal government should just wield the big stick by immediately declaring a state of emergency in Rivers.”
Clark, who was in company with other Ijaw leaders, said the state of emergency, when declared should be headed by a General or an Admiral equivalent so that he could be in full control of the security situation in Rivers.
He said that at the end of the emergency rule, a fresh election should be conducted in the state “because the current Governor, Celestine Omehia and his arch rival Rotimi Amechi, are all boys of the former governor, who would not be able to assert their authority in the state”.
But responding through Barrister Emma Okah, the Commissioner for Information, the Rivers State Government said it was interesting to note that “the recent disturbances in Port Harcourt which is part of the broad Niger Delta problems is certainly not up to what has happened in some other Niger Delta States and yet nobody including these ‘wise men’ called for a state of emergency. It is for this reason that we view this call as senseless, irresponsible, self serving and politically motivated”.
“It would have made sense if the call from these elders was directed at our derailed children to enable them live responsibly and appreciate the virtue that life does not begin and end with violence. We expect a legacy of peace and honour and not shame from our elders. This is because, in all situations, constructive engagement and dialogue remains the best option in resolving problems. Genuine elders over the world seek unity and reconciliation and not anarchy.
“The Government of Rivers State hereby restates its irreducible commitment to continue to pursue her policies to rehabilitate and reform the derailed youths, deliver good governance, enthrone economic prosperity, reduce poverty incidence, develop the state and put smiles on the faces of the people of Rivers State to the glory of God.
“For the avoidance of doubts, we call on these elders to leave Rivers State and Dr Peter Odili alone as we believe that they can live normal lives without the disrespect they have been inflicting on him.
“Finally, let us use this opportunity to say that no amount of intimidation by persons who are no longer of this age and whose stock in trade is the pursuit of “pull him down” syndrome will reduce the focus of His Excellency, Sir Celestine Omehia, to lift Rivers State to the next level of development,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Defence, Mrs. Fidelia Akuabata Njeze has condemned in strong terms the militancy in the Niger Delta regretting that it has turned the genuine course to milking cow.
In a chat with newsmen yesterday, she assured that the Federal Government was sincere about finding lasting solution to the crisis especially in the development of the area hence the called on the youths in the region to lay down their arms and embrace dialogue.
Njeze said no meaningful achievement would go on without peace in the area stressing that the present crisis was already affecting the economy.
“The Niger Delta issue has become a national issue and nobody is happy including those living in the area. We all agree that the area is underdeveloped, yes they live below human level but you cannot have development in trouble waters. No ship can sail smoothly on trouble waters. Even though there is clear evidence of neglect but it is clear from Mr. President’s position that this administration is sincere in tackling the problems. One way to solve the problem is through dialogue and the government is already demonstrating its willingness to embrace that.
“I am appealing not only as one serving in government but also as a mother and as has been disclosed during the retreat at the weekend, that the Niger Delta indigenes have respect for mothers, they should lay down their arms and embrace dialogue. The President said he took an oath that he should be judged based on his performance and even made this one of his seven-point agenda. We all swore to uphold the peace of this country and promised equal development I think this government should be given a chance to live to its expectation”, she said.
The Minister also commended the efforts made by all stakeholders especially the military and the police in bringing peace to the area and assured that Mr. President and the Vice President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, were ready to serve alongside all committed Nigerians.
Aside the issue of troops in Port Harcourt, however, the army chief also disclosed that a new Armed Force structure would take off in December, as the Nigerian army would now have only four divisions.
He lamented that the Nigerian Army equipment holding was very low due to lack o f maintenance and appealed that efforts should be intensified to procure more military vehicles for the army, as a situation where civilian vehicles are used to move troops to operating areas did not augur well for the image of the army.
In his remark, the Minister of Defence, Yayale, noted that the army had challenges in three main areas, training, equipment and welfare and assured that adequate attention would be paid in those areas.

Despite heavily armed government troops manning roadblocks and patrolling the streets of Nigeria’s main southern oil city Port Harcourt, many locals say the militias which the troops have been fighting, are still located in and around the city and that the current peace is temporary.

“What we have here is a war over who controls the various rackets that are going on in this city,” Abel Wogu, a Port Harcourt resident and businessman, told IRIN.

“Every evening you have people representing the most powerful gang leaders going round the filling stations to collect payments,” said Wogu, alleging that the owners of a large petrol station destroyed in August had either failed to pay one of the armed groups or had come under the control of a rival group.

Analysts and human rights activists say the violence that has constantly threatened Port Harcourt in recent years has been perpetrated by militias competing for control of the illegal sale of crude and refined petroleum products, who are also involved in gun-running, kidnapping and narcotics trafficking.

In the latest round of violence, which broke out on 11 August, fighters armed with automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades and dynamite, launched attacks on various buildings. The violence has claimed at least 32 lives, according to the Rivers State government located in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

Behind the violence

The army said the fighting has been largely between supporters of the two biggest militias operating in the vicinity of the city, one led by Ateke Tom, the other by Soboma George.

The most ferocious fighting occurred on 16 August when troops besieged a hotel where George and his supporters were believed to have been hiding. The troops razed the hotel.

Maj. Sagir Musa, spokesperson of the joint military task force charged with security in the Niger Delta, later told reporters that George had been killed in the attack.

However the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), a shadowy militant group that purports to be fighting to win more local control of oil wealth for the impoverished inhabitants of the oil region and claims George as an ally, denied the army’s claim.

MEND said that those killed in the assault on the hotel were mostly innocent civilians. “The army fired rockets into a hotel where Soboma (George) was suspected to be hiding, disregarding the safety of other guests,” MEND spokesman Jomo Gbomo said in an emailed statement.

“Soboma is alive and well and will speak whenever he chooses to,” he added.

The price of elections

MEND denied it was directly involved in the fighting and attributed the violence to rivalry between politicians who had funded different armed groups during Nigeria’s general elections in April.

That view is supported by the Niger Delta Civil Society Coalition, an association of civic groups. The militias were originally armed by politicians to help them win elections but have since turned their weapons to criminal activities, according to a statement on Sunday by the coalition chairman and human rights lawyer Anyakwe Nsirimovu.

“Wiping out Soboma George and his followers cannot return peace or normalcy in Rivers State,” said the statement. “Dealing equally with the power holders who aid, abet, appease, motivate and - most of all - pay and benefit immensely from them, would”

The statement urged President Umaru Yar’Adua to crack down on local politicians linked to the various armed groups.

Rivers State Governor Celestine Omehia has not directly admitted to having dealings with armed groups but has acknowledged politicians’ efforts to engage militia leaders in the past.

“It is like the carrot and stick,” he told reporters after a meeting with top army and police officials in Port Harcourt on 18 August. “We gave [armed gangs] the carrot and they never changed. Now we are giving the stick and we will continue with the stick and it is going to be permanent.”

Curfew

Omehia, who declared a night-time curfew during the fighting last week, said the curfew would likely be lifted soon but he said he did not expect soldiers to leave Port Harcourt for another six months at least. “The peace in Rivers State is the peace in the Niger Delta,” he said.

Many residents say they take little comfort from statements by the state authority claiming that the militias have been routed. “Expect some random skirmishes throughout Port Harcourt environs,” according to a text message Port Harcourt residents have been sending each other by mobile phone. “Advised to limit all non-essential movements and remain in a secured location. Please forward this message to friends and family,” the SMS continued.

It is not known where the message originated.

Many people in Port Harcourt are relocating from districts where some of the worst fighting took place to areas considered relatively safe.