Edo police boss sues for peace over Ologbo community crisis

The Edo state Commissioner of Police, Lawan Jimeta has sued for peace in the crisis-prone Ologbo Community in Ikpoba-Okha Local Government Area of the state.

He made the peace overtures during a meeting with leaders of the community on Friday over the recurring crisis in the community.

Jimeta was accompanied to the meeting at Ologbo by top police officers in the command, including the Commander, Mopol 5, Benin, Habib Mohammad.

The community comprised of the Bini and Itsekiri tribes. Jimeta told the leaders that his major task is to ensure peace across the state,

“It is unfortunate that my first visit to this community is to broker peace, as peace has eluded the once peaceful community which has vast potentials for development,” the police commissioner observed.

He described the recurring crisis in the community as sad, disheartening and inhuman, and urged the warring ethnic groups to learn to accommodate each other and settle their differences peacefully.

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“No society can develop without peace. Crisis and unrest will prevent investors from investing and developing this community,” he said.

Jimeta lamented that crisis erupted few days after he met with elders of the community in his office, during which all resolved to live in peace.

The police commissioner said that the Friday meeting with stakeholders in the community is to fashion out ways of ensuring not just momentary peace, but lasting peace in the community.

“It is essential for all to embrace peace in the community to ensure and sustain development in this community,” Jimeta said.

While responding to the various issues raised by stakeholders during the meeting, the police chief said that he is in the community not to re-write the history of their forefathers, but to stem criminality.

“Crime is crime irrespective of who commits it. We are asking all of you that have lived together all these years to re-embrace peace and continue to live again in peace.

“We have arrested some persons in connection with crimes in the community and these persons have been charged to court. We will ensure that all those who are connected to crimes in the community are apprehended and brought to book.

“However, there is need for the tribes that make up the community to sit at a round table and resolve all frictions,” he stressed.

Earlier, the Divisional Police Officer in Ologbo, Musa Baraya stated that the latest crisis was started by youths from the palace of the Enogie, Jackson Akenzua.

Baraya said the youths were the first to attack the Itsekiri youths as well as other youths in the community, an action which led to counter -attacks by the various constituents that make up the Ologbo community.

He however, appealed for patience and understanding from leaders of the community so that lasting solution could be found by security agencies.