Spokesperson of Kula Community in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State, Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, has called for the arrest and prosecution of Chief Cletus Ibeto, chief executive of Ibeto Group, over the deaths of 10 community members in a boat mishap at Robertkiri waterways.
Sara-Igbe accused Ibeto of being responsible for the tragedy, which occurred on Tuesday when community youths attempted to prevent the removal of an oil vessel allegedly linked to the businessman from the waterways.
Max Shipping Limited, a company that claimed ownership of the vessel, has however said it had nothing to do with the conflict between the community and the oil operations that led to the tragedy.
He made the call on Thursday evening when indigenes of Kula took the bodies of five recovered victims to Government House, Port Harcourt, in protest over the incident.
“We want Ibeto to be apprehended and prosecuted for murder. We also want Ibeto to be prosecuted for polluting our environment,” Sara-Igbe said.
He traced the crisis to a lingering dispute between Kula Community and a company allegedly associated with Ibeto, which he said owned a vessel used for storing crude oil in Kula waters.
According to him, the vessel developed a leak that polluted the community’s waterways, while the company allegedly failed to employ indigenes and settle payments for services rendered by local contractors.
Sara-Igbe said the community’s grievances remained unresolved when the vessel was due to leave the waterways, prompting residents to resist its removal and demand that the company address their complaints.
He said the confrontation culminated in the capsizing of a boat carrying several community members, resulting in the drowning of 10 people.
The community spokesperson, however, absolved the military personnel deployed to the area of responsibility for the deaths, insisting that they did not assault or intimidate residents.
“When they discovered that there was conflict between the community and Ibeto, they quietly left. They never molested anybody. They did not intimidate anybody,” he said.
Sara-Igbe also accused Ibeto of failing to contact the community following the tragedy.
“We only heard from the radio that he is not the contractor, that we should look for the contractor, who brought this vessel,” he said.
The protest at Government House came amid growing anger in Kula over the loss of lives, with five bodies recovered and five other victims still missing as of Thursday evening.
Receiving the protesters, the Chief of Staff, Government House, Mr Sunny Ewule, sympathised with the community and the bereaved families.
Ewule promised that the state government would investigate the incident and ensure that anyone found culpable was brought to justice.
The circumstances surrounding the boat mishap and the allegations against Ibeto and the company linked to the vessel are expected to form part of the investigation.
