Herdsmen killings: Police quizzes Ivwurie and Osanebi over their hard stance

———By Shedrack Onitsha———————

 

The Police authority in Delta State interrogated the Deputy Speaker, Delta State House of Assembly, Hon. Friday Osanebi and Hon. Evance Ivwurie, member representing Ethiope East constituency over their hard posture on the rampaging Fulani herdsmen activities in their constituencies.

The two lawmakers has openly condemned the mindless killing of their armless constituents and destruction of their farms by arm bearing herdsmen which has killed over 19 innocent farmer in the  state in the last six months.

 

Speaking to newsmen over alleged threat to his life, Ivwurie said that his life is under threat following his campaign against armed Fulani herdsmen in his constituency.

He stated that some powerful individuals from the north are using the security agencies to gag and intimidate him, in an effort to silent him over his position on the activities of armed herdsmen in his constituency.

According to him, these individuals used a, “Kaduna based group to petition the Minister of Interior and National Security Adviser accusing me and the Deputy Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Friday Osanebi over an alleged proclamation of genocide against Fulani’s and Hausas in our constituencies.

“The threat am currently facing is as a result of my decision to champion and stand in the gap for the people of my constituency who are killed and maimed daily by suspected armed Fulani herdsmen.

“I have been invited by the Delta State Police Command on several occasions and I made it clear to them that as a law abiding citizen of Nigeria with respect for the Nigerian constitution, I would not make such unscrupulous statement against any section of the Nigerian state.”

Speaking in the same vein Hon. Osanebi while denying the allegation through his media aide, Agbanashi Obinna said “the group’s allegations is not true and should be treated as a figment of the imagination of the authors.”

Mr. Zanna Ibrahim, Delta state commissioner of police, while confirming the questioning the lawmakers by the police said; “A civil rights movement accused the duo to the National Security Adviser over their utterances.

“We (police) have been tasked to investigate and report back to the Inspector General of Police but they both denied the allegations and investigation is still ongoing.”

However, a youth leader in Delta, Comrade Oke Onosigho berated the security agencies for trying to gag the lawmakers for speaking up for their people who are daily killed while the security agencies in are indifferent  to their plight.

He frown at the invitation  of the lawmakers for questioning following a petition written by a faceless group in Kaduna, yet the police in the state has failed to act on any petition written by different communities in Delta over the threat and activities oh herdsmen.

Onosigho noted that the police should channel their energies to arresting the murderous herders killing Deltans without provocation instead of harassing lawmakers who only voiced their people helplessness and failure of the security agencies to protect all citizens irrespective of the tribe.

According to him; “the swiftness with which the police and other security agencies comes with full force in the defence of these herdsmen whenever they raises alarm shows that the lives of Fulani herdsmen  are more precious than those that of Deltans.

“This impression been created by the police and other security agencies is a sad commentary on the project called Nigeria and this why some people are fed up with the country,” he added.