Rivers
Communal Crisis: B-Dere Demands N1.5bn From K-Dere
As the Justice Georgewill led B-Dere and K-Dere Crisis Commission of Inquiry continues sitting the people of B-Dere community have demanded for a N1.5 billion compensation, accusing K-Dere people of devastating their properties and being the mayor aggressors.
Spokesman of B-Dere Community, Chief Godwin Toange Didi while presenting his memorandum at the commission’s public sitting Port Harcourt, made five prayers as measure towards ensuring lasting peace in both communities.
Chief Didi urged the Panel to investigate, fish out and punish the people of K-Dere, while paying adequate compensation to the people of B-Dere, and recovering all the alleged the sophisticated arms used by K-Dere against B-Dere.” Didi also called for the siting of a police station and other security agencies in the area.
The B-Dere spokesman also urged the commission to declare the community a disaster area and provide relief materials to affected victims.
The commission had admitted a video tape played in the hall as Exhibit BD5. The video was a conciliatory meeting convened by the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People (MOSOP).
In the tape, president of the movement of the Survival Ogoni People (MOSOP), Ledun Mitee at a conciliatory meeting condemned youths from K-Dere for the violence that erupted in the area last October.
The MOSOP leader, who sued for peace, also promised that the body would do all it can to fish out the perpetrators of the violence in order to prevent such orgy in the future.
In his remark after the first witnesses were admitted for the day, a member of the panel, venerable Igwe Dike appealed to both communities to embrace peace.
Ven. Dike who sought both communities to tow the Biblical injunction of seeking for peace at all times, warned against the legacy the blood bath would reserve in the future.
Noting that at this time, when the South-South region was experiencing political and economic rejuvenation, he stressed that communal crisis would drive away investors, thereby affecting the fortunes of the people.
“This is a time of divine visitation in the region, and unless we are ready to tap from it, it may come and go without benefiting from it”, he said.