CHAIRMAN of Emohua Local Government (LG) in Rivers state, Dr Chidi Lloyd, on Monday shamed the Nigerian Army over Saturday’s drama in the Rundele community where vigilantes molested and dispossessed two soldiers of two rifles and their uniforms.
Normalcy is returning to the Rivers community following Monday’s recovery of the guns and uniforms snatched from the soldiers on oil assets protection duty in the area, a development which forced many residents to flee Rundele for fear of reprisals from the Nigerian Army.
Confirming recovery of the seized rifles, Emohua LG boss, Lloyd opined that the incident justified his observation that soldiers guarding oil assets in the area aid and abet the oil theft they are deployed to fight in the area, alleging that the intimidated soldiers were disarmed over disagreement on sharing of gratifications from oil thieves with the disbanded vigilantes group in the area.
“I’m ashamed that a civilian could disarm two Nigerian soldiers, collect their rifles, remove their uniforms and these are people trained to protect the territorial integrity of this country”, Lloyd said Monday in a media update on the saga.
Gift Ajuru, a Commander of OSPAC, a disbanded vigilante gang in the area, led the manhandling of the two soldiers who had their guns seized and their uniforms removed fateful Saturday in the community.
Again, Major Iweha Ikedichi, Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 6 Division Nigerian Army, Bori Camp, Port Harcourt, was yet to respond to the recovery of the rifles and uniforms at the time of filing this report.
