Unless relevant authorities wade into the looming bloodbath between Itsekiri and Oton-Okpe community youths, there might be another breakdown of law and order in Delta State.
Abigborodo in Itsekiri, Warri north and Oton-Okpe in Sapele local government areas of the state seemed to be headlong with each other.
It was gathered that on the January 16th 2022, a tricycle operator, identified as Mr. Augustine Okotie, who plies Sapele-Abigborodo-Aruohun route, was attacked, beaten while his tricycle was snatched before he was allowed to return to Abigborodo around 11:00pm.
According to Sapele Oghenek, “It was on the 16th day of January, 2022, where he was returning from Aruohun to Sapele with some passengers in his tricycle around 10pm when some Oton-Okpe youths stopped him using road barricades/block and asked where they were coming from?
“They replied and said, Aruohun.
Then the Oton youths said to them that they were very lucky vibrating heavily. There after, they further asked them of their native tribes.
The other passengers being Ijaw boys, replied that they were Ijaws”.
Meanwhile, there was one other Itsekiri youth among them, for fear of being molested, denied his tribe, saying he was of Ijaw origin.
‘But Augustine Okotie refused to deny his tribe, he replied that he is an Itsekiri boy. Upon mentioning that he is an Itsekiri boy, the next thing he receive was blows from different corners and whips with plywoods the Oton- Okpe youths used to barricade/block the road, telling him to return to Abigborodo.
“Being helpless, he entered his tricycle wanting to ride back to Abigborodo as he wasinstructed, but the next thing he could hear again was the hit on the tricycle front glass and tears on the back cover”.
Mr. Okotie, is currently calling for justice and replacement of his tricycle as it is his only source of livelihood.
Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), DSP Edafe Bright said: “I am not aware”.
