The people of Ondewari, a coastal settlement in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, Bayelsa are fleeing the area for safety over violent armed clash by rival youth groups over oil pipeline surveillance jobs at Agip’s oilfields.
Mr Alagoa Morris, a renowned Environmentalist, and Rights Activist who hails from the area said on Tuesday that the crisis had commenced on December 30, 2017 and left the community deserted.
He said that it was regrettable that the community lost two promising youths in the renewed clash which had earlier led to the death of two youths in July 2017, bringing the death toll to four.
He urged the relevant security agencies to urgently step into the community and restore hope to the freightened residents.
"Our pain is that this crisis was avoidable, the community leadership had cried out to state government , drawing the attention of the security community to the raging issues bothering on pipeline surveillance jobs at oilfields within the area but nothing happened.
"The situation would have been nipped in the bud, but here we are, four youths have been lost to the oil industry induced conflict that has left the community in a mourning mood, it is unfortunate that the only interest is securing oil assests and human lives don't count.
"I personally wrote a formal letter to the Department of State Services (DSS) in Yenagoa and sought their intervention to avert further degeneration of the crisis when it started in July 2017, if only they acted, this renewed bloodshed may have been prevented.
"Although I do not hold any leadership position, I participated in the process of seeking resolution to the crisis that engulfed my community, we held meetings in my office in Yenagoa and engaged on media advocacy as well.
"So the security agencies cannot claim to be unaware of the situation at Ondewari" Morris said.
It was gathered that most of the residents who deserted their houses and fled the settlement are taking refuge in bushes and farms and have spent the new year festivities without food in their hideouts.
Chief Peresho Erefawari, Acting Paramount Ruler of Ondewari Community, who decried frequent clashes by armed youth ganngs had urged the Bayelsa government to intervene to halt the bloodshed before the year end disaster occured.
“The clash was caused by protest by some youths in the community who are aggrieved over their exclusion in the petroleum pipeline protection jobs in the area, we have tried in vain to broker truce so that peace will prevail to no avail,” he said.
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