The Ijaw Youth Council, IYC,
Friday, said it was behind ex-militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo, otherwise
known as Tompolo.
The group warned ‘laptop
fraudsters’ masquerading as militants in the region to leave him alone.
President of the group, Pereotubo
Oweilaemi, who made this statement yesterday, asked soldiers searching for
members of the Niger Delta Avengers to stop harassing innocent riverine
dwellers.
Oweilaemi said, “For the
umpteenth time, the Ijaw nation is appealing to the laptop fraudsters
masquerading as militants in the region to leave High Chief Government
Ekpemupolo alone.
“They can engage in whatsoever
business they so desire for the perpetration of their criminal agenda, but
Tompolo’s name should not be dragged in. The Ijaw nation is standing behind
him.”
“We cannot sacrifice Tompolo this
time around unlike the way our forefathers unknowingly sacrificed Maj. Jasper
Isaac Adaka Boro to the oppressive Federal Government, which had led to his
untimely death in 1968 in the cause of fighting for the survival of the Ijaw
nation in Nigeria.
“Tompolo has not done anything
bad to be facing the travails he is going through. His only sin we know is
because of his resolve to fight for the survival of the oppressed, dejected and
criminally marginalised/colonised Niger Delta people in Nigeria.
“The Ijaw nation in particular
should be grateful to have a son like him. A threat to Tompolo’s life is a
threat to the Ijaw nation,” he declared.
Oweilaemi said, “IYC has been
duly informed that soldiers from Operation Delta Safe in the name of looking
for NDA are harassing innocent villagers in Warri South West and Burutu Local
Government Areas of Delta state.”
“We acknowledged that the
military is constitutionally bound to checkmate criminal activities in the
creeks or anywhere in Nigeria. However, the discharge of its responsibilities
is not without limits. The military must draw a line between discharging its functions
and breaching human rights.
“It is unheard of for the
military to be terrorising innocent communities under the guise of looking for
Avengers whose whereabouts remain a misery to the ordinary man.
“The people of Beneth Island in
Ogbe-Ijoh Kingdom, Ogulagha community and Gbaramatu Kingdom, to the best of our
knowledge did not harbour the so-called Avengers. Disrupting the peace of these
innocent communities… is to say the least an unprofessional propaganda.
“If there is any criminal in
those communities, let the military get the person arrested, but we cannot
accept calling the people in Ogbe-Ijoh, Ogulagha and Gbaramatu Kingdoms as
Avengers.
“Do not subject Ijaw people as
the sacrificial lamb for the purpose of prosecuting the war against criminals
in the Niger Delta.
“IYC is ready to collaborate with
security agencies for the onerous task of securing lives and property in
region, but that can only happen if the military adhere to the rules of
engagement,” he stated.
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