The Civil Liberties Organisation in Akwa Ibom State is seeking the intervention of the state government in communal crises happening across the state.
The chairman of the organisation, Mr Franklyn Isong, cautioned the government against allowing the communal crises in Uko Akpan Enwang and Ntighe Uda villages in Mbo Local Government Area and other parts of the state to linger.
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He said allowing the crises to linger could snow ball into lasting security issues as experienced in Ika and Etim Ekpo Local Government Area, which took years to resolve.
Isong called on the government to take over the disputed land, which has led to deaths of some persons and destruction of property, adding that there’s the need to put a stop to the clashes.
He explained that the acquisition of the land by the state government would bring peace and economic benefits, not only to the communities but to the local government area.
“Allowing the land to become a source of anarchy where lives have been wasted is not the best.’
“We had a similar issue in Uruan, today the state government is planting tomatoes there. It is a very vast land, which is now feeding the entire state. So, instead of allowing lands in these communities to cause problems and become a source of anarchy, the CLO is urging the state government and governor, which holds the land in trust for every community, to take over and cite an industry or other economic activities for the youths,” he stated.
Meanwhile, the state government has condemned the rising incidents of communal clashes in the state and vowed to deal with the culprits.
The Commissioner for Information and Strategy in the state, Mr Ini Ememobong, said government “seriously frowned at frequent communal clashes witnessed in the state, and promised to decisively deal with culprits.”
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