Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (Rtd), the Sole Administrator of Rivers State, has pledged to tackle the growing menace of land-grabbing, herdsmen attacks, and general insecurity plaguing communities in the state. Speaking through the State Commissioner of Police, CP Olugbenga Adepoju, during a stakeholders’ meeting in Etche Local Government Area, Ibas assured citizens that his administration is committed to restoring peace and safety.
The meeting, held in Okehi, was part of a broader tour across the state’s local government areas aimed at gathering feedback and formulating pragmatic responses to pressing community issues. “We are not just here to listen, we are here to act. Security is a shared responsibility,” Ibas declared.
Etche LGA Administrator, Onyenachi Nwankwor, decried worsening insecurity in the area, citing rampant herder violence and extortion of locals, especially farmers. He warned that lack of jobs, healthcare, and education was pushing many youths into criminal activity and urged the government to offer them alternatives.
Also speaking, Dr. Silas Anyanwu, President-General of Ogbakor Etche Worldwide, highlighted a recent incident where a farmer in Afara was attacked by herders for refusing to pay N6,000 to access his own farmland. “People now sleep with one eye open,” he lamented.
