FACTIONS SPLIT ISOKO DEVT UNION CONFAB

 
UGHELLI- Isoko traditional rulers and Presidents-General of Isoko communities, weekend, shunned the conference called by embattled President-General of the Isoko Development Union, IDU, Elder Peter Erebi, to avoid being in contempt of a court order.

Chief Charles Akeni had dragged the Elder Erebi-led executive of the IDU to court, contending that it had been dissolved and he (Akeni) had been made caretaker committee chairman of the umbrella body of the Isoko people.

The body, it will be recalled, had been factionalised since 2009 following the leadership tussle between Elder Erebi and Chief Akeni.

Akeni got a court order on August 3, 2009 which confirmed him as the caretaker committee chairman of IDU.

Vanguard gathered that only five clan presidents out of 19 and seven branches out of 18 attended the conferen-ce. It was also gathered that no clan had the ten mandatory delegates requi-red for such a conference.

Erebi, in his address at the event, said the conference was called in line with the constitution, insisting that his executive had not contravened any court order as speculated in some quarters.

However, speaking to newsmen at the end of the conference, Akeni commended traditional rulers, clan presidents, branches and delegates for not attending the conference.

According to him, the use of police and soldiers during the poorly attended conference was to intimidate Isoko people. He added that it was a wrong signal of war which does not exist in the Isoko nation.