Govt Reads Riot Act To Community Leaders

 THE Delta State Government says it would not tolerate any act of lawlessness from Community Leaders under any guise as it orders the Chairman of Iwhrekan Community of Ughievwen Clan, Ughelli South Local Government Area, Chavwuko Gbemre to without any further delay, unseal all the community projects executed by NPDC and allow the people to have access to them.

This, the government posited was in the interest of peace and security and for the good and benefit of the people of the area
The state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Peter Mrakpor gave the order through the Director, Department  of People’s Rights, Mr. Omamuzo Erebe, during a mediation meeting between the community executive, led by its chairman, the Community Trust (CT), the Cluster Development Board (CDB) and the management of NPDC, over the petition by the community that it had pulled out from the executed GMoU entered into between her with seven other communities and NPDC in 2011.

Mrakpor ,who condemned the sealing up of the Ewheya Hall and the mini estate housing  projects executed with funds provided by the oil company  under the GMoU arrangements, said government was not in support of the community’s purported pulling out from the GMoU as “the concept of the GMoU was for the mutual benefit of all parties, especially the oil bearing communities”. He stated further that it is not to their benefit to pull out from the GmoU, as what the community was asking for is that funds due to it should be paid directly into the community account is outside the terms of the signed GMOU and amounts to an illegality”

The Attorney-General who frowned at the recurring crisis between the Iwhrekan community leadership and the Community Trust, directed all parties to the dispute to sheath their swords; even as he disclosed that the Ministry of Justice under his watch will fast track the process of reviewing the GMoU for OML 34, which was almost expiring in order to accommodate all shades of opinions. He also counseled the Community Trust to always synergize with the community executive for transparency and accountability.