Warri North crisis: Ijaw youths to hand over arms

If information reaching Vanguard is to be relied upon, the Egbema
Radical Group, ERG, the Ijaw militants, which claimed responsibility
for the killing of no fewer than 12 Itsekiri natives and burning down
of seven villages belonging to Itsekiris in Warri North Local
Government Area of Delta State, will hand-over their arms and
ammunition to the Joint military Task Force, JTF, Operation Pulo
Shield.
The JTF is under the command of Lt Col Frank Etim, the Commanding
Officer of the 3 Battalion of the Army Koko Barracks, Warri North.
It was gathered, yesterday, that the militant had promised to hand
over their arms on July 17, 2013 and that they preferred to do so in
Ogbudugbudu community, an Ijaw suburb in Warri North, but failed to
do so on Wednesday, as they claimed there were no concrete
arrangements that would guarantee their safety during the exercise.
A prominent member of Egbema Gbaramatu Kingdom, Reverend Sam Eke, told
Vanguard on phone that the handover of arms and ammunition was botched
on the part of the Ijaw militants and that a new arrangementwas in
progress as a new date would be communicated to JTF and the council
authority after a council meeting in Abuja of prominent Ijaw and
Itsekiri leaders.
The militants were said to be ready to hand-over their arms on the
condition that their safety would be guaranteed.
When Vanguard visited Koko, the headquarters of the council, senior
military officers and ratings as well as other JTF men were seen
preparedto receive the militants and their arms and ammunition.
They were also joined in the waiting by some prominent Ijaw and
Itsekiri leaders as well as the Chairman of Warri North council, Mr
David Edun and other senior official of the council, all of who waited
in vain as the militants did not turn up for reason which was later
attributed to poor security guarantees.
The council Chairman, Edun told Vanguard, during the waiting period
that no date had been given for the handover and that negotiation was
still in progress with a view to concluding arrangement between
security officials and the militants.