Land tussles : Obanyantor Elders Sue for Peace, call on aggrieved Community Members to Shield their Swords

By Itohan Audrey & Issioma Egbunike

The People of Obayantor 1 Community of Ikpoba Okha Local Government Area, Edo State especially, those that stayed away from the community since 2020 has been called to come back home and join hands to promote peace and development that the community is known for in the past years.

Elder Godwin Aghimien , the Ozukpogieha of Obayantor 1 stated this while debunking allegations of land grabbing and intimidation of residents made against security operatives in the community. He described the allegations as a figment of imaginations of some unscrupulous elements from the community.

Speaking , he painfully narrated the ordeals that had transpired in the last three years where the residents of Obayantor 1 Community in Ikpoba Okha local government area in Edo State took to their heels for safety of their lives over leadership tussles of who becomes the rightful Okaighele .

He explained that the crisis started when the late Odionwere, Pa Omorose Omoruyi passed on ,then the Elders met and directed the Youth to choose among themselves who they deem fit to take the position of Okaighele which eventually they presented one Osatohanwen Oduwa to the council of elders and the Enogie, Idu Akenzua including the past CDA Chairman, Kenneth Amadin who endorsed him publicly in the full glare of all and sundry in the community.

According to Elder Aghimien ,about 16 Youths led by Endurance Omorogie ,a.k.a Ajala came forward after seven months of installing Oduwa as the new Okaighele alleged against him that he sold 270 plots of lands to Prince Builders without the knowledge of the elders of Obayantor 1 Community.

The Elders in Council met and set up a committee that investigated the allegations leveled against the Okiaghele ,Osato Oduwa, and the committee came up with a report that revealed that the allegations were all fabricated, merely seeking to indict the integrity and personality of Oduwa in other to unrobed him of his title .

The committee further reported that the Community,not( Osato Oduwa )sold 150 plots of lands to Prince Builders and that the proceeds were paid into the bank account of Enogie, Idu Akenzua before his death.

Speaking further, he emphasized that having failed in a bid to indict Osato Oduwa in the sales of land without the knowledge of the Community, One Rollins Obazee and his alleged gang came forward to allege that the Enogie and the Elders of the community do not have the right to install the Okiaghele in Obayantor 1, adducing that the Youths have the right to install the Okiaghele .

These actions of theirs got the Elders piqued whereby they informed the Youths that is against the Bini tradition for Youths to install the Ohkaighele, he stressed that Youths can only present who they want to lead them to the elders which the Obanyantor 1 Elders believed that it has been done when they presented Osato Oduwa to the Enogie and all these happened during the End Sars period.

Again, Elder Aghimien stated that the same gang of Youths on their own brought another person called Endurance Omorogie aka, Ajala to be the Okiaghele, though his presentation was resisted and rejected by the elders after realizing that the alleged gang of Youths are up to some sinister activities.

According to him, the gangs forced one of the elders , Pa Iyamu Emokpa to install Endurance Omorogie as the Okaighele after chasing away the alleged recognized Okaighele ,Osato Oduwa that was installed by the Community and also further chased away the elders that resisted Endurance Omorogie’s installation from Obanyanto1.

While in their hide outs, the elders advised Osatohanmwen Oduwa to seek redress in the court of law which he did in the High Court of Justice,Benin City and was eventually declared the Okaighele of Obayantor 1 village in Ikpoba Okha Local Government by Hon. Justice A.N Erabor on the 24th of October, 2022.

According to Elder Aghimien, all through the period Endurance Omorogie served as Okaighele after chasing the elders and the alleged original Okaigele out of the community , alleged hoodlums and non indigenes were however hired to take over the community as Obayantor 1 eventually became known for kidnapping, arm robbery, gun racketeering and other criminal activities that attracted the DSS to investigate the community .

Going forward, other security agencies were also invited to work with the DSS as a team to quell the criminal activities and the leadership tussle in the community, which led to the increase of security checkpoints in the community to ensure law and order is restored.

As a result of the daily gun shooting from the hoodlums, there was a shot-out between Security Personnel and the hoodlums which eventually led to the death of one of the security operatives’ of which as at this Press Time, his corpse has not been found to be given to his family for proper burial.

Following the death of one of the Security Operatives, the presence of security check points increased in the community that scared away the Endurance Omorogie’s alleged gang from the community. Their exit from Obayantor 1, paved way for the coming back of the elders and the alleged original Okiaghele of the community.

Upon returning back to Obayantor 1, the elders realized that most of the lands that were sold by the community before the insurrection have also been resold by Endurance Omorogie a.k.a. Ajala and his team and as a result of the findings, the elders issued a press release through Radio and Televisions calling on those who bought lands in Obayantor 1 to come forward with adequate proofs of ownership and go through verification excercise to ascertain the rightful owners of the lands.

Ozukpogieha of Obayanto 1, Aghimien pleasantly appeal to all Sons and Daughters of Obayantor 1 to shield their swords and embrace peace because Peace is the fulcrum of development.

Meanwhile,it was gathered from our security sources who prefer to be anonymous that the Obayantor 1 Community was out-runned by alleged hoodlums who were involved in all manners of criminal activities that led the residents deserting or fleeing from the community.

According to our security source, the elders of the community invited the security operatives to increase the presence of their check points in the community in order to scare the hoodlums from carrying out their heinous activities. This has contributed to the fragile peace in the community where most of the indigenes that had ran away for safety of their lives when the community became a theater of war are gradually returning home to live their normal lives.

Further investigations have revealed that some members of the community that ran away due to the presence of security operatives are not comfortable with increase presence of security check points of security operatives in Obayantor 1, thereby seeking for ways security check points can be totally removed to aid them to further carry out their heinous activities,

Speaking with some members of the Obayentor 1 community, Mrs.Osariemein Eromosele, a farmer commended the presence of security check points in the community. According to her, the residents of the community can now go about their normal lives compare to as it were before the increase of the security check points .

“ In fact, I am happy that life is gradually becoming peaceful and normal compare to how it was before now. The Okaighele tussel has destroyed the peace we used to enjoy in Obayantor 1 and I am appealing to the security officers to ensure they sustained their check points here or otherwise,we the ordinary people will be forced to leave the community for hoodlums. I am also using this opportunity to appeal to our Royal Father, O’ OMO ‘NO ‘OBA, OBA EWUARE 11 to help us call Endurance Omorogie and his men to other to enable us have Peace again.” She said.

Another resident, Osazuwa Osaretien, a business man and a Farmer expressed happiness that Peace is gradually returning to Obayantor 1 due to increase security check points in the community, however he appealed to the warring factions to respect the Court Judgment issued in Favour of Osato Oduwa on the 24th of October 2022 and give peace a chance that will promote meaningful development in the community.

“ The Issue of Okiaghele tussel in our community is quite disheartening to me because during the period of this crisis, I almost lost all my family fortunes including my inherited lands from my forefathers. As I speak to you, they have sold my lands and I pray that I will recover them”.

Mrs Adesuwa Eghosa,a pretty trader also noted that it is time for fighting members of the community to respect the Court Judgment declaring Osato Oduwa as the authentic Okaighele of Obayantor 1 Community.

According to her, there is no point crying over a spilt milk as such would result to endless crisis which is not necessary for the wellbeing of the community generally. She further called on the elders of the community to call for a peaceful meeting where all the involved actors would be allowed to air their grievances and then resolve the crisis amicably.

Also speaking in the community, Osarobo Omorodion, a farmer appeals to the declared Okaighele, Osato Oduwa to work with the Elders closely and call Endurance Omorogie for a Peace Meeting to resolve the crisis and allow Peace to reign again in the community.

“We used to be in Peace in this Community until strangers started creating enmities among us, we can not continue like this, we need to go back to our old ways of living so that we can remain as a progressive front as we use to be in the past,” he said.

All efforts made to reach representative of Endurance Omorogie who alleged land grabbing by security personnel proved abortive as at Press time when contacted on mobile call.

” When we are ready, we will invite you because we don’t want hurry hurry story”