As part of efforts to resolve the alleged brewing crisis in Oshiegbe community, the Honouble Commissioner for Border Peace and Conflict Resolution, Prof. Paul Awo-Nwobasi, intervened in the matter and hold a peace meeting with stakeholders of Okpomoro community.
Addressing the stakeholders, Prof. Awo-Nwobasi advocated for unity between the Ezza-speaking people and the Kori-speaking people of oshiegbe community. He called on the leadership of Oshiegbe community to avoid any form of marginalization against t Okpomoro people. He further charged the people of Okpomoro to always report matters relating to the Kori-speaking group to the Traditional Ruler, Ward Councillor, and the Town Union President of Oshiegbe community.
The Commissioner also directed that all pending cases relating to the crisis, currently pending in various institutions, should be withdrawn within one month to pave way for final resolution. He stressed that his Ministry would soon pay a follow-up visit to the community with a view to engaging elders and leaders in order to find a sustainable means of fully integrating the Okpomoro people into the main affairs of the community.
Prof. Awo-Nwobasi thanked the Traditional Ruler of Oshiegbe for his peace efforts and urged all sides to rally round the palace in reconciling all pending issues between the Okpomoro and Nkomoro groups in the community.
Speaking at the meeting, Bernard and Ezekiel Nwako noted that Okpomoro people of Kori extraction and the Umezekoa of Ezza extraction had coexisted peacefully for years. However, they alleged that Oshiegbe leadership had denied the Okpomoro people of participation in the drafting of the community constitution, restricted their right to own shops in the market, treated them as inferior to their Ezza counterparts, and refused to recognize Okpomoro as an independent unit despite cultural and ancestral differences. They therefore appealed to the State Government to urgently address the marginalization of the Okpomoro people by the Ezzas of Oshiegbe community
Responding, the Traditional Ruler of Oshiegbe community, HRH Eze Vincent Nweke, explained that the non-recognition of Okpomoro people had been a subject of litigation. He noted that interference in the community’s affairs stemmed from non-accountability and alleged mismanagement of the commonwealth of Okpomoro by some individuals. He however maintained that the Okpomoro people had already been given representation both in the Town Union Executive and in the Eze’s Cabinet.
In a vote of thanks, Mr. John Onwe of Okpomoro community emphasized the need for peaceful coexistence between the Okporo and Umezekoa groups. He appreciated the State Government for intervening in the dispute and commended the Traditional Ruler for the fatherly role he has continued to play in handling issues affecting the community.
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