Wike Suspends Chairmen In 4 Troubled Lgas, Orders Clampdown On Cult Gangs
BEVERLY HILLS, February 22, (THEWILL) – Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has suspended the caretaker committee chairmen of four local government areas (LGA) with inter-cult wars unabated within their LGAs.
The LGAs are Abua, Odual, Ahoada East and Ahoada West, for “failing to mobilise their stakeholders to attend a special security town hall meeting for Orashi region.”
Addressing thousands of people at Omoku on Monday, during a special security town hall meeting, Wike said the meeting was aimed at restoring peace to Ogba/ Egbema/Ndoni (ONELGA), Abua/Odual, Ahoada East and Ahoada West Local Government areas of the state.
The meeting had in attendance security service commanders and the state commissioner of police,
The governor disclosed that the insecurity in the four local government areas had nothing to do with politics, pointing out that it was a move to stem the tide of cult-related killings and kidnapping, armed robbery and communal clashes in the other three local government areas.
With respective to this, the governor thus instructed security agencies to clampdown on cult activities and violent crimes in the four affected local government areas and arrest the trouble makers.
“Henceforth, security agencies had been mandated to take appropriate actions against those who shield cultists, kidnappers and armed robbers in the four local government areas.
“Nobody will be allowed to stop the development programmes of the state government on account of insecurity.”
He also pleaded with the traditional, political and religious leaders in the state to work with the state government and security agencies to identify the criminals, for the purpose of restoration of peace.
“Nobody is happy. I am not happy. The service commanders are not happy. These cultists and criminals are not from Lagos, Kaduna or Ebonyi. They are indigenes of these communities, and the people know them. Therefore, everyone must cooperate with the security agencies to resolve these security challenges,” Wike said.
He reiterated that operations of commercial motorcyclists in the four local government areas remained banned between 5.pm and 8am daily, adding, “We must put an end to the ugly situation in these four local government areas. We cannot allow these criminals to kill innocent people.”
Story by David Oputah