Etesa people in Delta community, Monarch deny sponsoring the shutdown of oil facilities
The traditional ruler of Oleh Kingdom and the land owner’s families of Ukolobi, Okpohro, Enuru in Isoko south Local government Are of Delta state have denied an allegation of sponsoring group of persons to shutdown oil facilities being operated by Heritage Energy Oil Servicing limited and Agip Oil Company at the Oleh/Olomoro flow station in Oleh, Isoko south local government area of Delta state.
In an online publication,The traditional ruler and the Etesa people of Oleh were accused by the president general of Oleh community Development Union, OCDU, Chief Believe Alakri of sponsoring miscreants to shutdown the Oleh/Olomoro flow station.
Denying the allegation in the publication, Chief Obaro Ekokobe, chairman of Community Development Committee, CDC, said, “On the 28 of September, 2020, I received a call from the CDB asking if I was aware of any protest to shutdown facilities in Oleh as a result of the sacking of one of our son, Leonard Ovrawah and I said I was not aware, then I was mandated to ensure that the purported protest did not hold.
According to him, “Few hours later, there was a pronouncement by the president general of the Oleh Community Development Union summoning all the women, youths and men of the community to converged in his compound for a protest the next day been 29th of September, 2020 to shut down the oil facilities in Oleh.
We were told in that protest, that Chief Believe Alakri alleged that, I, Obaro Ekookobe, the Landlords, the Odiologbo and others that had masterminded the protest and some members of the Nine families of Agip believed and went with him..
“We want to state it clearly and correct these allegations and information that have been given wrongly because if not corrected, some unreasonable persons may have presumed that they are correct without fair hearing. We are here to set the records straight that we the ‘Itesa people’ the owners of the facilities where Heritage is operating have no hand or embarked on any protest and were never associated with such protest because we are at peace with oil companies, Heritage, NPDC and Agip operating in our domain.
“It is surprising that touts, disgruntled and illegitimate persons would come up with a publication that some persons are miscreants while we knew very well that they are touts and probably non indigenes of Oleh and they are structured by neighboring communities to cause mayhem.
It is also known that Chief Believe Alakri is not the president general of Oleh Kingdom but the executive president of Oleh Community Development Union, OCDU,.
“As the paramount leader of Oleh kingdom, the supremacy lies with Odiologbo, His Royal Majesty, Ovrawah Omogha I (JP) and every other authority under him. And we are the landlords of the facilities and on no account should any one bridge the existing peace between the ‘Itesa quarter people’ who are the landlords, the nine families, the Odiologbo and the oil company. Ekokobe warned.
Also speaking on behalf of the Odiologbo of Oleh to deny the spokesperson of Oleh kingdom, Chief Benjamin Onojerame said, “When the oil companies came in the early 60s, they never discussed with communities rather with families and that of Oleh was not an exception and it is never true that the traditional ruler organized some persons to go and shutdown the flow station.
“The traditional ruler is a man of peace; Oleh is a land of peace that would not want to experience any crisis because we are yet to recover from the past one few years ago. While I never deny the position of Chief Alakri as the president of Oleh Community Development Union, OCDU, I also want to put the record straight that the publication he made against the monarch and Etesa quarter people are concocted lies from the pit of hell and the general public should disregard it”.
Also speaking, chairman of the landlords Ejeke James, Happy said, it is very disheartening that when when we are yet to recover from the previous crisis in Oleh, Alakri is wanting to institute and instigate one.
“We are at peace with the oil company operating in our land and Chief Obaro Ekokobe who is representing the ‘Itesa people’ and at such any report emanating from Chief Believe Alakri should be disregarded.”
Others who spoke in the same vein include, Chief Jeremiah Ejebe, the secretary of Etesa quarter women, Pa. Onogure, and the youths. According to them, we are the land owners and landlords of oil facilities, the president of Oleh cannot dictate for us on what to do”.
