ODAHIEKWU OGUNDE, Yenagoa
The people of Bilabiri community in Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State have cried out over the reign of hoodlums in the coastal settlement.
They claimed that some bandits have unleashed mayhem on the community resulting in many of the residents fleeing their homes and relocating to other areas.
They, therefore, called on both the state government and the Federal Government to restore normalcy in the community following the disturbing criminal trend.
The Chairman of the Community Development Committee (CDC) for Bilabiri 1, Mr David Bazigha, who made the call on behalf of the community in Yenagoa on Saturday, said that the call had become necessary in the face of their security problems.
He said following the rise in criminal activities in the area, a former council chairman and other persons were murdered in cold blood, a development that compelled many residents to flee the area.
Bazigha stated: “We are appealing to the state and federal governments to salvage the Bilabiri Kingdom from criminal elements holding sway in the area and attacking residents.
“We lost the former Chairman, Aliebiri Rural Development Authourity, Bilabiri, Hon Frank Seide and two others. The development has led to the entire settlement taking refuge in other places leaving their community desolate.
“The community leadership, as we speak, are all in exile, and the criminals have chased residents away while they engage in their nefarious activities; that is why we are sending a distress call to the government.
“We had raised concerns earlier on the activities of these miscreants in a letter the CDC Chairmen of Bilabiri 1 and 2 wrote along with the monarchs to security agencies on March 19, 2021.
“We had appealed to the security agencies to intervene and sanitize the area by helping us flush out these undesirable elements among us, but nothing has been done. In fact, things have degenerated.
“The loss of lives would have been prevented but now those of us who have been championing to end criminality in the community have become their targets and we have to flee.”
He recalled that the community leadership had in the letter to the security agencies urged them to flush out criminals from its fold.
In the letter, the community appealed to the Joint Task Force deployed to protect oil facilities in the Niger Delta to deploy its surveillance boats to the area to fish out miscreants.
The letter was signed by Chief Peter Pinne, Amananawei (Paramount Ruler) in Bilabiri 1 and Chief Minna Fun, Amananaowei of Bilabiri 2.
Other signatories are Mr David Bazigha, Community Development Committee (CDC) Chairman, Bilabiri 1 and Mr Esau Joshua, CDC Chairman Bilabiri 2.
The letter stated that the community leadership had resolved to rid the area of pirates, militants, oil thieves and kidnappers who had brought the name of the area to disrepute.
It added that the development was an expression of the people of Bilabiri to support the government’s efforts at maintaining a peaceful atmosphere for legitimate economic activities.
However, when contacted for reaction on the development, spokesman for the Bayelsa State Police Command, Asinim Butswat, said he was awaiting details of the incident.
The JTF headquarters in Yenagoa declined comments, saying that only the Defence Headquarters has the mandate to comment on their operations.