It Is Difficult To Believe – Clark Reacts As Akpabio Claimed Killers Of 16 Soldiers In Delta Are Mercenaries
The esteemed leader of the Ijaw Nation, Edwin Clark, has expressed his skepticism regarding the involvement of mercenaries in the recent killing of soldiers in a Delta State community.
Earlier, the President of the Nigerian Senate, Godswill Akpabio, stated that those responsible for the massacre of 16 officers and men of the 181 Amphibious Battalion at Okuama in Ughelli South
Local Government Areas of Delta are not from Niger Delta.
Akpabio disclosed this on Tuesday during a debate on two merged motions by Senators Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, APC, Katsina Central, and Edeh Dafinone, APC, Delta Central.
He said that the youths who killed the Soldiers may be mercenaries, adding that the country is not at war.
“I don’t think they are from the Niger Delta, they may be mercenaries,” Akpabio had said.
Reacting, however, during an interview on Arise Television on Tuesday, Clark emphasized the importance of questioning the leaders of the communities implicated in the incident.
He firmly believed that no one should be exempt from scrutiny.
Describing the incident as both shocking and barbaric, Clark urged for a collaborative effort between the military and the communities to identify and apprehend the perpetrators responsible for
this heinous act.
He said, “Well, that is difficult to believe. I don’t think we should expect this thing. Let’s look at ourselves. As I said, I spoke to the Lt Col on Thursday and he went to the place on Thursday and
died.
“Except they had the information they were going to Okuma. Otherwise, nobody knew they were going there.
“People to come from outside to waylay them, to surround them is a matter they should investigate. We can’t rule anything out but at the same time let us look at ourselves.
“The leaders of the various communities must be brought together, and find out from them, that nobody should be treated as a sacred cow.
“I may say this: I am an Ijaw man, and I will be the last person to allow this type of matter to degenerate into a situation whereby we have intercommunal fracas or fights.”
