Asks leaders to flush out criminals from their midst
Fidelis David in Akure
Ondo State Governor, Mr. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu (SAN) yesterday lamented the complicity of some Ebira people in the June 5 attack, which killed over 40 worshippers in St. Francis Catholic Church, Owo.
With the revelation, Akeredolu challenged the leadership of Ebira, an ethnic group from Kogi State, living in the state to flush out criminals from their midst.
Akeredolu expressed grave concerns about the complicity of some Ebira people in the June 5 massacre during a meeting with their leaders in Akure, the Ondo State capital yesterday.
At the meeting with the governor yesterday were the leaders of Ebira in the state led by the Odeyani Anabira, Zubair Dan Musa and State Chairman of Ebira, Alhaji Abdulazeez Majeobaje, among others,
The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Lucky Irabor had revealed that those arrested in connection with the June 5 attack on St Francis Catholic Church, Owo are Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza (a.k.a Bin Malik), Momoh Otohu Abubakar, Aliyu Yusuf Itopa and Auwal Ishaq Onimisi, all from Ebira in Kogi State.
At the meeting, the governor stressed that the people of Ebira “have lived together with the indigenes of the state for too long,” challenging them not to deviate from the farming trade.
Akeredolu said the meeting was summoned in the light of the recent development of the June 5 attack in Owo and other kidnapping cases in the state.
He challenged the leaders of the Ebira community “to rid themselves of criminals and deal with the situation the best way, so as to protect their name and integrity in the state.”
He said: “We summoned this meeting with our brothers. They are not new here but because of the recent developments that have to do with the owo massacre and kidnappings.
“We have to call ourselves. I can assure you all that we have had very frank discussion with ourselves and the leader of the Ebira in Ondo State spoke on behalf of the Ebira people and few other persons
“It is clear that the message from us to them is well understood and we have assurance from the Ebira people who are living in Ondo State that they would corporate with the security agencies and that the incident in Owo was something that they themselves felt very bad about.
“I also have received a letter from Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, that is the leader of Ebira in the world, commiserating again and expressing his own embarrassment on what happened.
“We leave here today with the belief that our brothers, Ebira that are here, would at the least work to ensure that there is security in Ondo State and in doing that, we have charged them to discus with all their people.
“They have assured us they would do that and we want to call on our people that at least, let us continue with our brotherliness and maintain the good relationship we have had with them in the past.
“We believe that it is not those who are residing here that came to perpetrate this crime. That is what they have said and we should give them another chance. Let us live together in peace.
“I hope and pray that the Ebira people who are here in Ondo State will work with the government and security agencies to make sure that criminals are flushed out within our midst and they have our cooperation in whatever way they wish,” he noted.
