Breaking news >> Security chiefs debunk reports of 150 deaths in C/River communal clash

Security chiefs debunk reports of 150 deaths in C/River communal clash



The Cross River State Commissioner of Police Monday said reports that 150 persons were killed in the clash between Wanikade and Wanihem communities in Yala local government area recently, were untrue.

Speaking when he received the Minister of Interior, Lt. Gen. Abdulrahman Dambazau (rtd), who was on a fact finding visit following the reports, in the company of all the security commanders in the state, Inuwa said going by details of their findings in the aftermath of the communal clash, the alarming figure of 150 persons reported killed were false as nobody in both communities could give names of those killed nor show graves of those that were claimed to be killed and buried.

“What they told us is that their cultural practice is to bury immediately anybody that is killed at battle fronts but when we insisted to see the graves of some, only one grave was shown to us. And as for the number of houses destroyed, the figure was also false because the totality of the houses in the communities can be sum up to only about five hundred and not all the houses were destroyed, so we wonder where they figure of over 1200 houses being destroyed were gotten,” he said.

The Brigade Commander of the 13th Brigade Army in Calabar, Brigadier-General Ismaila Isa, corroborated the briefing by the Commissioner of Police saying that incidentally he was around the area when the news broke.

State Director of the Department of State Security Services DSS, Mr. Fubara Duke, also speaking along the same lines said, “if the number of death is to be put going by the single grave shown us, then it’s only one. Though houses were destroyed but certainly not the figures given because the total number of houses in the two communities are far less than what is said to have been destroyed.”

The Minister was also briefed by heads of Immigrations, Customs and Civil Defense in the state before he proceeded to pay a courtesy visit on the state governor, Senator Ben Ayade.

At the governor’s office, Lt. Gen. Dambazau told Ayade that the Federal Government heard news of the communal clash and the alarming number of deaths which prompted his coming to the state.

He said that though reports he had gotten showed that the figures were not true, every life was important, hence he will visit the communities himself to see how both short and long term measures would prevent a reoccurrence of such clash.

Cross River State Governor, Senator Ben Ayade thanked the Federal Government for the prompt response.

He said the President, Muhammadu Buhari, and the Acting President, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, have shown love and concern for Cross River Stat

He said the state was grateful and was praying that President Muhammadu Buhari will recover soon.