A Chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Ondo State, Chief Olusola Oke ( SAN) has condemned an attempt by one Emorioloye Owolemi to incite the Ilaje people against their Arogbo Ijaw neighbours over a pirates’ attack on Ilaje fishermen in Bayelsa State.
The Senior Lawyer who condemned the pirates attack on Ilaje fishermen in Bayelsa State said that it is inconceivable to hold Ijaws of Ondo State responsible for the actions of sea pirates in Bayelsa.
Oke said in a statement on Friday that statement is capable of distorting the existing peace between the inhabitants of Ilaje and Ese -Odo Local Government Areas and was not endorsed by Ilaje leaders.
He called on the Ijaw of Ondo State to discountenance the statement which he described childish and inciting.
He said, “This morning, a statement purportedly issued by Ilaje Leadership Forum, authoured by one Emorioloye Owolemi was forwarded to me. The said statement was in respect of the incident that happened in Bayelsa state. In the statement, the writer attempted to incite the people of Ilaje against their ijaw brothers here in Ondo state.
“As one of the leaders in the area, I have a sacred duty of speaking against any act capable of breeding violence.
“The killing and maiming of innocent Ilaje Fishermen in Bayelsa is an unfortunate incident that must be condemned totally by all persons of good heart.
“Condemnable as the gruesome killings are, the Ijaw people in Ondo state cannot be accused of any wrong doing or be visited with anger over the incident that occurred in Bayelsa that the perpetrators are not known yet.
“The statement, by its content is capable of distorting the peace of the two local government areas. I say with sense of commitment to peace that the statement in its entirety is not known to Ilaje leaders, it did not emanate from the leaders in the area and therefore can never be authourised by any person of good conscience.
“The author of the above violence – prone statement has no mandate of any serious minded Ilaje leaders to issue that volatile statement that he credited to a platform of Ilaje leaders. Responsible and respected leaders in Ilaje have a way of communicating their grievances to either government of Ondo or Bayelsa states and even the federal government of Nigeria. To issue press statement capable of daring security in the riverine area is an objectionable act anybody can indulge in at this time.
“We call on our Ijaw brothers and sisters in Ondo state to ignore the statement. It is childish, inciting and can never be endorsed. “
Oke called on the Ondo State Government to reach out to its Bayelsa counterpart to ascertain what happened and to bring the perpetrators of the crime to justice.