Ayerite Moses And Gangsterism Against Opu-Nembe Leaders in Yenagoa:Why Gov. Diri Is Silent
1. The primary responsibility of any government is to protect lives and property. It is for this reason that the State government appropriates what is called "security votes", which is money appropriated for the purpose of securing peace and protecting lives in the State. Now, we cannot blame the third-tier of government because the people superintending the LGAs are stooges appointed by the governor on the recommendation of stakeholders. While we eagerly await the Supreme Court to pronounce the autonomy of LGAs, the State Government is solely responsible for the security of lives and property in the State.
2. Since the Opu-Nembe crisis began last year, 2023, Bayelsans and the general public are aware of efforts made by the Diri administration to destroy the will of the Opu-Nembe people. Severally, the people complained about government's inability to bring to book Mr Moses Ayerite, the deposed Youth President of Opu-Nembe, who with the support of government wrecked havoc in the Community: Flogging Chiefs, hijacking monies meant for Community Development and dividing the Community through unmitigated violence. When efforts were made to resolve the crisis, the body language of Governor Douye Diri was clear. For political reasons, the governor preferred that Opu-Nembe ( Bassambiri) remained divided for government to implement her agenda of chaos, Political expediency was given privacy over the well-being of the people. Thanks to the Inspector General of Police, who deployed the SWAT Team to restore peace in the Community.
3. When efforts were made to arrest Moses Ayerite, the State government housed him in Creek Haven, the seat of power. When he was eventually arrested by the Police for sundry atrocities, the State Government again deployed the Attorney General of the State to secure his release. Since then the Diri Administration has Commissioned more than a dozen CBO's to petition the IGP to demobilize the SWAT team in Bassambiri. This however will not succeed because of the peace the Community has witnessed since the SWAT Team came to the Community.
4. Since 2024, Mr. Moses Ayerite has embarked on a campaign of terror against leaders of Bassambiri in Yenagoa. He moves around Yenagoa and it's environs equipped with Ak 47 and other lethal weapons threatening and molesting peace loving Bassambiri people. Examples of Ayerite Moses' acts of violence include:
I. In about February, 2024, Ayerite Moses and his gang of ruffians abducted Mr. Telimoye Chiefson, son of King Awululu-Paramount ruler of Oluasiri Ibe. He was beaten to stupor and should have been killed but for some people who reported to the Police.
ii. In March, Chief Kienghosuote Degi was kidnapped and beaten. At the point of been killed, some people reported the matter to the local vigilante, and the gang escaped. He was found in a pool of his own blood.
iii In June, 2024, a University Lecturer and one time regent of Bassambiri, Chief (Dr) Ikabaworio Eferebo-Igoma was abducted and beaten by Ayerite Moses and his killer gang. As usual, the killers left their trademark. The University Don was brutalized, with gun injuries and machete cuts.
iv. Every week, Ayerite Moses and his gang threatens one Mr. Ebieteli Degi and his family in Azikoro community in Yenagoa. They brandish guns, axes and matchettes but cannot carry out their dastardly act because of the presence of Azikoro Community youths.
Other prominent Bassambiri indigenes on the list include a Deputy PDP leader of the Bayelsa East Senatorial District and several others.
5. What is worrisome is that Ayerite Moses and his gang sometimes drive around in vehicles with government plate numbers. They move around freely with lethal weapons, under the prying eyes of the Bayelsa State Community Security and Safety Corps members and the Vigilante. The perception of the public is that Mr. Ayerite and his miscreants perpetrate these atrocities under the protection of the State government. Now that the elections are over what political capital does the Diri administration want to make of sponsoring Ayerite Moses to embark on this level of lawlessness? The State government cannot claim to be ignorant because these incidents are reported everywhere on the social media.
6. The people of Opu-Nembe deserve to live peacefully in any part of Bayelsa State including Yenagoa. The IGP has entrenched peace in Bassambiri and the people are savouring the peace that abound. If the State government continues to equip Moses Ayerite to continue with his vile motive of humiliating prominent Opu-Nembe indigenes in Yenagoa or other parts of Bayelsa State for that matter, some people may resort to self-help, and this is an invitation to anarchy.The Bayelsa State government should take measures to clip the wings of Mr. Moses Ayerite, her ally to stop this variety of terror in the LAND.
We live in a world where peace is the keynote of development and any State sponsored violence will only throw society into a cycle of instability, tension and insecurity. State sponsored terrorism is like a double-edged sword. Governor Douye Diri should leave Bassambiri people alone. They are law abiding people who deserve the protection of government.
Dr. Idumange John
For and on behalf of Herdadi
Sunday, 16th June, 2024.