Residents of Borno and Yobe states believe they owe the Buhari administration a lot of gratitude for the peace they currently enjoy after the horror years of unmitigated attacks by Boko Haram terrorists, reports JOEL DUKU.
MODU BALA, a resident of Buni Yadi community, Borno State, had a hectic time responding to questions as he fought back tears repeatedly. He, however, pulled himself together to rain curses on Boko Haram insurgents for the heinous crime they committed against Nigeria and the Northeast in particular. His joy, however, lies in the way the Buhari government has chased the insurgents out of town. Modu, whose father was slaughtered by the insurgents like a ram, later lost his mother who could not recover from the shock of her husband’s death.
What would you say about the current security situation in Yobe State?
Honestly, there is significant improvement and kudos to the Federal Government as well as the army and other security agencies. They have done well and we are enjoying relative peace now. Although when such incidents happen, there will still be trauma, and that is what we are still facing now.
For example, I have not made use of my generator since the last major attack on December 1, 2014 in Damaturu. I feel like the noise of the generator will make me unaware if anything is happening in the tow. It’s just the trauma that is creating fear. And anytime I travel out of Yobe State and see other people move freely without fear, it always seems strange to me because in Yobe, it is not so, but seriously our situation has improved, as we can now travel within the state and beyond.
Did you incur any personal loss during Boko Haram attacks?
Of course, you see, Boko Haram slaughtered my father and the trauma resulted in the death of my mother. If you live in Borno, Yobe or Adamawa state, you must experience at least one episode; you must have been affected directly or indirectly. So as far as Boko Haram is concerned, a lot has happened. But we hope for the best.
Did you have to relocate either within or outside the state?
Of course, you know my home town, Buni Yadi, was the epicenter and operational base of the insurgents. There was a time it was attacked and we had to relocate our families. About that time, I had more than 40 people in my house, and because it could not take us, we had to relocate some of our relatives to Potiskum and other places. Those were the issues we faced at that time. I relocated my wife and children to a place outside the state and I was operating a mobile house, carrying my clothes and shoes in my car where ever I went.
How did you feel re-uniting with your family and what made it possible?
Now, everybody is enjoying reuniting with their families after all the problems. My people have now moved back to Buni Yadi without any fear, though most of us have lost a lot of relatives. We became reunited because of the peace that has come now, and it is our fervent hope that it will be sustained.
What is your greatest fear at the moment about Boko Haram?
My greatest fear is suicide bombing. At least you can run when you hear the sound of a gun, but suicide bombing is very dangerous. I however pray that it does not befall us.
Mohammed Fanami from Adam Kolo area of Maiduguri said he was in school in Yola throughout the period of the high wave of attacks in Maiduguri, but his greatest fear came each time he returned home on holiday.
He said: “As a student, whenever I was at home for holidays in Maiduguri, I always felt that they could come and attack us at home. Even around the school at Yola, they made attempts but nobody was harmed. All the residents around the school moved to town out of fear.”
He is optimistic that the remnants of Boko Haram insurgents will soon be routed out from Borno communities for his people to move freely in any part of the state.
“Borno will soon regain its true status of home of peace. The pockets of Boko Haram insurgents who don’t want to embrace peace will be cleared by the military in no time. I have complete confidence in our security forces,” Mohammed boosted.
Abdullahi Sule, a civil servant in Borno State, who lives near Giwa Barracks in Maiduguri, said his fears then were worse than his feelings. Living with his family in such an area was a nightmare for him. But the 45-year-old Borno indigene feels safer now more than ever.
“As you can see, Maiduguri is now safer than Lagos and Abuja. We are enjoying peace here. I say we are safer here because we have a better understanding of security here more than those areas through our experiences with Boko Haram. We are more security-conscious than those people,” he boasted.
Recalling the horrific days of Boko Haram attacks, Sule said: “Whenever there was an attack and we heard the sound of bombs and guns, our families were always scared. Sometimes we would lie flat on the ground in our houses for fear of stray bullets. But now we are going about our daily activities without fear. It is a thing of the past and we pray it will never happen again.
“Now our major fear is the suicide bombers, because those ones do not care. They are out to kill. We can avoid such by alerting the security on a suspect in our midst. There was a time I left my area with my wife and children for five days to another part of the town. Although there were many of us accommodated in a big house, my wife and I carried just a pair of clothes. It was not easy. We came back when everything had settled. We thank God for President Buhari.”
Modu Aji, a Red Cross volunteer from Customs area in Maiduguri, says he has forgotten about Boko Haram except for memories of horrific sights of dead bodies that littered the streets.
He said: “I always recall those times we saw dead bodies on the streets. Bad sights of shredded bodies cut into pieces. I even relocated my family to a village in Yobe State because at that time, we felt the villages were safe. But presently, we feel safe even though we sometimes remember those episodes. Everything is calm now.
“I have never seen such in my life. It has cost the state backwardness in development and achievements. But I believe that this will never happen again because the Federal Government and even the states are taking things seriously in order to curtail insurgency. We hope that with God and the security agencies, Boko Haram is now a thing of the past.”
A drama occurred in the cinema while a man was watching ‘Raw’ one of the movies selected at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival.
“We can confirm two patrons did feel unwell during the screening of Raw… one of which required the assistance of the emergency services,” added Jennifer Bell, Vice-President of Communications for the festival. “Incidents like this sometimes happen at TIFF screenings. The safety and security of all our patrons and guests is a priority for TIFF and any situation where an audience member is feeling unwell is handled with care and due professionalism by our venue teams.”
The incident occurred during the midnight screening of the film on Tuesday. Spokesperson for the film, Ryan Werner, told ‘The Hollywood Reporter’ it was obvious the “film became too much” for the audience, saying he added he had only seen this type of physical reaction to a movie once before (in response to Lars von Trier’s Antichrist).
The cannibal film, created by writer-director Julia Docournau, had premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May where it bagged the FIPRESCI Critics’ Prize, but did not get the kind of reaction recorded at TIFF. Some wonder if it was not some kind of publicity stunt for the movie.
Recall that the media was awash with news of a yet-to-be-released movie in Nigeria in which an agonizing fire incident was later discovered to be a publicity stunt.
The French-language film is about a shy, vegetarian college student at a veterinary college who develops an insatiable lust for flesh as the result of a gruesome hazing ritual.
We will try him even in death and dismiss him for his action. We want to use this medium to sympathise with the bereaved families. We apologise for the irrational action of the policeman who also took his own life.” That was the Commissioner of Police in Lagos State, Fatai Owoseni.
The police boss was reacting to the Boxing Day tragic killing of three men by Sergeant Stephen James at Paulson Hotel in Ketu area of the state. The Police Public Relations Officer, Joe Offor, said: “The policeman was on duty at that hotel. He was attached to MOPOL 2, Ikeja. He was drunk while on duty and he acted under the influence of alcohol.” Twin brothers, Taiwo and Kehinde Oyesunle, and their friend known as Jeje, were the unfortunate victims of the policeman’s irrationality.
It was a clear and condemnable abuse of might. It is ironic that trigger-happy law enforcers continue to pose a threat to the society they are armed to protect. Such dangerous official protectors constitute an unwanted threat to any civilised community. The rampant culture of reckless shooting by law enforcement agents suggests that something is seriously wrong with their recruitment and training.
It is always too little, too late, when the police force offers an apology on behalf of its men who did not appreciate the limits of official might and went beyond the boundaries. Trying the killer cop and dismissing him for his wrongful action, even though he is dead, doesn’t amount to much.
It is inexcusable that the police authorities have reportedly not visited the families of the men who were killed. Police boss Owoseni should know that speaking to the public through the media cannot be a substitute for condolence visits to the affected families. An in-law of the killed twins, Segun Sodunke, was quoted as saying: “The Lagos Commissioner of Police was at Ketu Police Station on Sunday where he addressed the families. He advised them to bury the bodies instead of punishing them more by keeping them in the mortuary. But he did not visit the mother of the twins or any member of the family to commiserate with them.” Is this how to project a people-friendly image? Then, there is the important matter of compensation. Although no amount of money can bring the dead back to life, the police force should be made to pay for the crime of its man. It is a positive development that the Twins Action Aid International (TAA), a non-governmental organisation, said in a statement: “Failure to compensate the families of the victims would make TAA International to sue the police.” Those whose responsibilities make them qualified to carry guns should handle the weapons responsibly.
Very few Nigerians are actually surprised at the horrendous revelations from the Rivers State Election Petitions Tribunal sitting in Abuja. Those who followed the mass media from the build-up to the elections proper and the so-called announcement of results which followed after would actually not be shocked at the awful disclosures from witnesses at the tribunal.
Apart from the endless complaints by members of other political parties aside the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP before the election and after, the over 80 election observers as a matter of fact, sounded the alarm bells with their reports, especially with regard to widespread violence, killings, intimidation, harassment, ballot-snatching and stuffing, subversion of the will of Rivers people and other forms of impunity.
What may have come as a surprise to many Nigerians are the revelations by officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, army officers, the police, agents of the Department of State Security, DSS members of the All Progressives Congress, APC and those of other political parties.
To those who perpetrated these horrifying violence and crisis that
marred the governorship election in Rivers State, a day of reckoning was definitely not in their calculations. Like before, they had unleashed terror on people with the hope that the familiar path of impunity and lawlessness that had become common place feature in our state, particularly during the last administration would go on unchecked.
For me, the revelations at Rivers State Election Petitions Tribunal are not only absurd but also unprecedented. This is the first time in Nigeria’s history that we are witnessing this level of violence, bloodbath and subversion in one single election in one state. Nothing would have been more telling than the disclosures of serving security operatives on election duty in the state. They captured in very graphic details, the violence, the intimidation, deaths and ballot-snatching and stuffing that characterised the exercise in almost all parts of the state.
I was particularly jolted by the testimonies of two soldiers, Captain Ahmed Al-Makura and Captain Jeremiah Salisu who were posted to Ikwerre and Gokana Local Government Areas respectively. The soldiers were emphatic with their submissions which they hinged on the fact that an election could not have taken place in a state of war.
Indeed, what happened in Rivers State during the elections, especially on April 11 is only comparable to war. The tragic part however is that many innocent sons and daughters of Rivers State suffered great harm, for aligning ‘wrongly’, politically. That is apart from those who lost their lives.
There is also the heartbreaking account by Godwin Mba, an officer of the Department of State Security Service, DSS who revealed how cult groups and thugs worked for the PDP in Andoni Local Government Area.
Benson Chukwuma, a representative of the Director-General, also in a similar account in Ogo Bolo, also told the tribunal about the anticipated violence which was all too evident because of the tension and security reports. Mr. Tafa Michael, a Superintendent of Police who was posted to Tai Local Government Area said he actually caught agents of PDP thumb-printing at a house opposite the PDP secretariat at Tai.
He said he arrested over 70 people on that day alone which included PDP members, INEC Staff, youth corpers and others.
Another oddity in the horrifying revelations came from Mr. Yusuf Buba of Police Mobile Squadron, Ogoni who revealed how an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Kenneth Akabue supervised the rigging of the April 11 election in Khana Local Government Area. These are in addition to other accounts of compromise and complicity by the electoral umpire, a position that Charles Okoye, who heads INEC’s Department of Elections and Party Monitoring, a body established by the electoral body to monitor elections emphasised in his presentation. In fact, Okoye described the April 11 election as a mockery of democracy. What a verdict!
At some point during cross examination, Mr. Ebikoru Tebekaemi, INEC’s Electoral Office for Obio/Akpor told the tribunal that he was not aware if card readers were used in the April 11 election. This left many wondering how an electoral officer would be so ignorant of INEC’s policy on card readers which was a well known decision even among politically naive voters.
When asked to comment on the damning report of Elections Operations Support Centre, another body INEC established to monitor elections, Tebekaemi said after prolonged hesitation that the body only worked partially.
These are indeed terrible times, a reminder that our march to nationhood is still a long journey ahead. For all these to have happened, not in the North-East where there is insurgency shows that there is serious work for this present administration.
But when justice eventually comes to candidates who took part in that sham of an election, what happens to the wounded and the dead? I must state here, and unequivocally too, that those who visited violence and mayhem on people and homes for their political beliefs must as a matter of fairness, be brought to book. That, for me, is the only the way the souls of those who were killed can rest.
Daminabo, an economist and public affairs analyst, lives in Abuja.
EVENTS in the last 10 years are nothing but horrendous for nationals of Togo currently seeking asylum in Nigeria. It is the period scores of their kinsmen were gruesomely murdered, maimed or displaced in the wake of a political crisis that erupted after the country’s presidential election.
Since 2005 when the development reared its ugly head, the beleaguered asylum seekers have moved from one distressing experience to another as they flee their troubled country in search of protection from those that were bent on annihilating them.
Everywhere they went, especially in Benin Republic where they were confident of getting protection, they continued to record horrendous murder of their relations, with many of them who managed to survive the attacks inflicted with various degrees of injuries.
One of them told our correspondent: “The blood and cries of our people who were brutally murdered back home and Benin Republic are reverberating in our hearts. It is a life time agony and trauma that can never be wiped away from our memories. Each time we remember it, it reopens the sore in our hearts.
“What people watch in films and weep was what we experienced firsthand. We are the direct victims of the horror you watch in movies. Our fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters and children were callously murdered in cold blood before our very eyes. The agony has been lingering and would linger in our memories forever.”
Recalling the genesis of their woes, the leader of the asylum seekers, Sogbo Maunou, said: “Our problem began when we called for a change in the governance of the country after it had been held for 38 years by the late Gnasingbe Eyadema.
“Under his administration, the country witnessed untold hardship as the unemployment rate became very alarming. This was particularly worse for people outside the northern part of the country where the late president hailed from. Throughout his reign, there was nothing like freedom of speech. He made sure that everybody who was opposed to his administration was severely dealt with.
“After his demise on February 5, 2005, his son came on board but we strongly opposed him because we believed and still believe that the country is not a traditional stool that could be inherited or rotated among members of the same family. Consequently, six independent political parties in the country teamed up to form a coalition in the build up to the 2005 presidential elections. The coalition actually won the election but the tyrannical family of Eyedema and their loyalists chose to swing the result in their favour.
“The son, in his desperate bid to rule the country, became worse than his father, using armed security personnel whose salaries were being paid with tax payers’ money to kill and maim innocent citizens, especially those of us in the opposition. The armed security officers were going from one house of known political opponents of the government to the other to murder them.”
Reliving the ordeal of his family, he said: “They killed two of my brothers the way one would kill a rat by smashing its head. My father, a traditional ruler in my village, narrowly escaped death after he was harassed and tortured by soldiers working for the callous government. It was a dark period in the history of our country as corpses of murdered political opponents of the government littered the ground almost every day.
“It was so horrific that when you see somebody today, seeing him the next day might be in the pool of his own blood. And you know how traumatising it is to constantly see your beloved ones dastardly murdered on a daily basis.
“The land was filled with human blood in a manner that rain water flows on the ground. Children were crying, women were crying, men were crying and living in palpable fear because nobody knew who would be the next victim. The person that consoles you today you would also console tomorrow. It was so bad that if there was a knock on your door, especially at night, you would start saying your last prayers in the fear that they had come for you.”
Gbomagni Komi recalled how his brother was murdered in his stead when the blood thirsty soldiers who invaded his house could not find him.
He said: “After the elections, the soldiers working for the RPT came looking for me because I caught them when they were engaging in election malpractices and reported them to the appropriate authorities. When they got to my house, they met my wife and my brother. They placed a gun on my wife’s head, threatening to kill her if she refused to tell them my whereabouts.
“They later left her after she profusely begged and told them in all sincerity that she didn’t know where I was. Thereafter, they descended on my brother, beat him mercilessly and later shot him dead. They did this before my wife and this caused her untold psychological trauma.
“She later called to inform me about the development, warning that I should watch my movement to avoid falling into their trap. It really took her a whole lot of time to recover from the shock.
“I was lifeless when the news of my beloved brother came to me because he did nothing to deserve being killed. I also did not deserve all the threats to my life for just exposing an electoral fraud.”
For Guidiglo Agbeko, losing his father on Election Day was least expected as the deceased had promised to spend the rest of the day with the family after casting his vote. Unfortunately for the family, the breadwinner never returned alive as he was gruesomely killed on his way back to the house.
Agbeko said: “We were expecting him back in the house in line with his promise to spend the rest of the day with us. Suddenly, some people rushed to inform us that our father needed urgent attention. We thought he was having health challenges and rushed to check what was happening. When we got to where they said he was, it was his dead body that we found in his car with blood dripping from different parts of his body where bullets fired at him had made huge holes.
“It was a distressing period for my family because we never imagined losing him so early, not to talk of the inhuman manner he was killed. The image of how he lay in the pool of his blood has kept flashing back in my memory, and each time it does, I feel pained and disconcerted.”
Speaking about his narrow escape from the bullets of the assailants, Allim Teko told of how his brother was shot dead by two soldiers who were armed to the teeth.
“I was in the house with my brother when those soldiers walked in,” he said. “They pointed their guns and asked us to raise our hands. After raising our hands, they used the butt of their guns to hit us repeatedly. In the process, one of them shot my brother. When the other soldier wanted to shoot me, his partner’s gun hit his, deflecting the bullet that would have hit me in the ribs.
“Immediately the bullet missed me, they left. I tried to lift my brother and take him to where he could get medical help, but he died before I could even leave the house because he had lost too much blood.
“Blood was gushing out of his side when I lifted him. I cried and called his name several times but he couldn’t answer. I shook him repeatedly to remind him of the important discussions we were having but the endless blood that was gushing out of his body was the only response that came from him. He had been murdered by the enemies of the masses and our beloved country; people who were opposed to the truth and thrived on falsehood.
“Tears have continued to flow from my eyes each time I remember how they sacrificed my brother to entrench falsehood in our land.”
Kokutse Koffi also spoke about how he escaped after burying his boss who was dastardly murdered.
His words: “My boss was with us in the workshop all day before going home at the close of work. He had gone to sleep when some armed agents of the state stormed his house and unleashed terror on his household. They broke his head with their guns but he died before he could get to the hospital. Thereafter, we went and buried him.
“After his burial, the same people that killed my boss started trailing me. They raided my house several times but, unfortunately for them, they didn’t meet me at home. I would have been a dead man by now if they had caught me.
“We actually did nothing wrong apart from protesting against the electoral fraud and injustices being meted out to our people. This was the simple reason the government chose to slaughter our people like fowls.
“The number of people killed are too numerous to count. Apart from going to people’s homes to shoot and kill them, they also killed a whole lot of people by setting fire to their houses. They raped our women, both old and young, causing lifetime sorrow for many of them.”
Hounkpe Komi also recalled how the young man who facilitated his escape when the murderers were on his trail was shot dead.
He said: “I was on the list of the people the state had penciled down to kill. After a long time of running away from their reach, they caught up with me at a point, but a friend helped me to escape. Unfortunately, they went after the guy and killed him. His remains were later found on the roadside where ants and maggots had been feasting.
“My heart bleeds till date because my friend lost his precious life because of me. He merely helped me but was not allowed to get appreciated for his love by the wicked people that turned our fatherland to a nation where there was no regard for human lives and where shedding of blood was like toying with water from public tap.”
The story of Amoni Afounton was one that moved from a joyful testimony to shedding of tears. The brother, he said, was shot by soldiers but he luckily escaped and ran to Ghana. “After his escape, we were very happy that he survived the attack and strongly believed that he would get treated in Ghana, but he later died of complications resulting from the injuries he suffered from the gunshot. Our joy turned into sorrow when the news of his death came to us.
“Our ordeal is not something that one should be recalling because it is the sorrow that comes with paralysis. Unfortunately, there is no way that the image and the thoughts would not flash through one’s mind. I can tell you that we all have various degrees of shock in our bodies because of our experiences.”
The exodus to Benin Republic
As a result of the reckless killing of their kinsmen and the uncertainty that surrounded their lives, the deputy leader of the group, Agbokou Koman, said, they had to flee their country in droves and wandered day and night until they arrived at their destination.
“Some of our people left for Ghana and some of for Benin Republic to save our lives from the government and its messengers of death,” he said.
Unfortunately for them, their hope of getting respite was dashed shortly after they arrived in Benin Republic where they were visited with worse horror than they had experienced in their country. Their stay in Benin Republic, in the words of some of them who spoke with The Nation, was the beginning of another round of horrific experience.
Some of them relived the story of how the nationals of the country connived with the government of their country to attack and kill them at will.
Koman said: “When we arrived in Benin Republic, we were filled with joy, believing that we had bid farewell to the horrors that visited us on a daily basis back at home. There in Benin, we were kept in a camp in a remote part of the country.
The Benin Republic camp of the refugees after the fire was put out
“We were enjoying relative peace until the villagers, conniving with the government of our country, became thorns in our flesh. On several occasions, they attacked our camp, setting it on fire. A number of our people were killed in the process.”
One of the refugees narrated how his son was killed in one of such attacks, saying: “We were resting outside the tents when they struck. My six-year-old son was sleeping inside a tent before the assailants came and set the tents ablaze. When we saw the fire blazing from different parts of the camp, every one of us scampered into safety. Nobody remembered anybody because the attack was too sudden. After the fire had died down, I went back and found my son dead. The fire did not get to him but the fume he inhaled suffocated him. I wept bitterly but that would not bring him back to life.
“It is regrettable that my son died where we thought our lives were safe and not in our country where human lives were wasted with impunity.”
Another inmate who gave his name as Afanche Kodjo recalled how security men in Benin Republic beat him into coma when they identified him as one of the refugees from Togo.
He said: “I had boarded a bus to buy something in the market when the soldiers stopped the vehicle and took me aside after indentifying me as one of the refugees from Togo. They spoke in French, saying that they would beat me to death. I thought they were joking until they started beating me with anything they could lay their hands on.
“They inflicted various degrees of injuries on my head and other parts of my body with machete. The picture of how my head and other injured parts were wrapped in bandage is in the office of the Human Rights Commission in Benin Republic. I never knew I could survive the attack from the people we had run to for protection because we considered them as brothers.”
Aside from those that were killed by the hostile hosts, some of the inmates recounted that a number of their relations died of various ailments because they did not have access to medical care.
Nssesah Nehlenon told The Nation how the absence of medical help in the camp claimed the lives of his wife and seven-year-old child, saying: “There was no hospital in the camp. The only way to get medical assistance was to go to hospitals in the city. None of us had the wherewithal to do so because we had been out of employment for a very long time. Consequently, I helplessly watched my beloved wife and my son die.
“It was also the same story for many of my colleagues. We were watching our children, men and women dying in their numbers because we had no means of paying their bills in the city. It was highly regrettable.”
In an emotion laden voice, Nsssesah’s kinsman, Sodji Ahlonko, said he lost two of his children to common illness in the camp. “This is not something I like to talk about, because it draws tears from my eyes,” he said. “You can imagine losing two children to common illnesses just because some callous human beings have deprived you of your means of livelihood and taken away your intrinsic worth as a human being and a breadwinner. My children wouldn’t have died if we had been allowed to live a normal life in our country.”
A widow, who gave her name as Houedakor Julienne, tearfully spoke of how her husband died in the camp.
She said: “When we were in Togo, some soldiers attacked my husband and inflicted various degrees of injuries on him. Luckily, he got to Benin Republic with us in the hope that he would get medical help. Unfortunately, there was no medical assistance for our sick people. My husband eventually died when he didn’t get the necessary treatment.”
In the face of the hostility of their hosts, the embattled refugees continued to endure knowing full well that going back home was not an option. But much as they were willing to accept every challenge hauled at them by their condition, it got to a point that their hosts were no longer prepared to accommodate them.
“They sent soldiers to the camp and bulldozed our tents on October 10, 2013. They sent us away and caused serious pandemonium as everybody started running to avoid being killed in the process,” Koman said.
Their ejection from the camp was not without consequences as some of them had their children missing in the process.
Sogbo told our correspondent that 705 people out of the 738 that left the camp were left after they were frenetically chased away.
A sober looking 60-year-old man, Gadessou Sowo, said: “I lost my 23-year-old daughter in the course of running away from the camp. I have not seen her since that very day.
“When the soldiers stormed the camp wielding guns of different sizes and shapes, we all ran in different directions because they were ready to wipe us out. We started running as far as our legs could take us. Unfortunately, some women among us had just put to bed while several others were carrying pregnancies that were close to delivery dates. Some of the nursing mothers were carrying day-old babies and so on. They clutched their babies on their chests and ran with the rest of us. It was a race of life and death because it determined if one would be alive or die.
“As we were running, many people were falling and collapsing. We trekked about 70 kilometers from night till the following day before we were certain of having gone out of danger. It was at this point that the human rights body in the country came to our rescue. They provided us with vehicles that conveyed us to a place called People Centre.”
League for the Defence of Human Rights raises the alarm
Following the inhuman treatment meted out to the wandering Togolese by the Benin Republic government, the League for the Defence of the Human Rights in the country condemned the actions of the government and raised the alarm, calling for urgent actions to save the lives of their ill-fated guests.
A statement issued by the body on August 6, 2014 and signed by the president, Julian Togbadja, reads in part: “The refugees’ sites have been demolished and their luggage scattered. They were walking, men women and children for over 60 to 70 kilometers. They are 705 people consisting 333 children, 222 women including pregnant ones, and 170 men.
“As a first step, they have found refuge in the home of the people of Cotonou 5. On Monday October 14, 2013, the municipal police locked them in a hall, fired tear gas at them, and hit them with hairs and sticks before ejecting them. Three women, including the old ones among them, suffered fractures while some of the babies of about three months old had blood coming out from their ears.
“Today, these people have spent 300 days in the rain, sun and dew because they have been left to rot on the street. Meanwhile the Beninoise authorities make false reports.
“Benin, which fought for democratic freedom cannot become a land of hostility by supporting Togo’s crime against our brothers and sisters. This is why the League for the Defence of the Human Rights of man in Benin calls on you men of freedom to stop murderers. Stop the hand of the Beninese authorities.
“We want among other things, an end to the acts of violence and assault perpetrated against the Togolese refugees by the Beninose police and a good measure of humanitarian gesture given to them.”
With the intervention of the human rights group, the harassed sojourners heaved sighs of relief, hoping that their predicament would soon be addressed. But this was never to be as they were driven away from the roadsides where they had been thoroughly dealt with by the rain and the sun. In the course of cruelly driving them away from the roadside, many of them further sustained severe injuries that aggravated their health conditions.
The escape to Nigeria
Convinced that the protection they had gone to seek in Benin Republic had been taken over by unrestrained violence that was consuming them, the battered refugees thought of seeking help elsewhere, and the next place that struck their minds was Nigeria.
Coming to Nigeria was not however easy, as they did not have the wherewithal to transport themselves to the country.
Speaking on how they succeeded in coming into the country, Sogbo, the leader of the group said: “We found our ways to Seme border where we took to different menial jobs to survive. Some of us sold pure water and carried loads for people to survive. Some Nigerians who saw our conditions had pity on us and dashed us money to take care of our basic needs.
“It was in this process that we met some people who directed us to the United Nations High Commission’s office which handles the cases of refugees. It was from there that the Lagos State governor, Mr Akinwumi Ambode, picked interest in our case and gave us shelter.
The movement into Nigeria was however different for Gadessou who said that he literally went through the eyes of the needle to arrive in Nigeria.
“When the situation became too unbearable in Benin, I passed through Porto Novo and journeyed through a bush path to arrive in Nigeria. The journey was energy sapping and risky because the terrain was strange.
“To make matters worse, I had only garri and sugar in my bag. This was what I lived on all through the journey. I had no water at all. I always begged people for water in each village I arrived.
“I never thought I could survive the tortuous journey considering my age and ugly experiences in Togo and Benin Republic.”
Lagos State government intervenes
Contrary to the inhuman treatment meted out to them in their fatherland and neighbouring Benin Republic for a decade, the refugees got warm and friendly reception in Nigeria, from the Lagos State Government in particular.
Male and female inmates at the igando relief centre
In place of the tent camps they were housed in remote corners of Benin Republic, they were accommodated in neat tiled houses at Igbogbo, Agbowa and Igando areas of the state.
Thanking the state government for the kindness shown to them, Sogbo said: “We are really amazed at the treatment given to us by the state government and the management and officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency. They have shown us the kind of love we never experienced in the last 10 years.
“We are particularly grateful to the governor, Mr. Akinwumi Ambode; the General Manager of LASEMA, Mr Michael Akindele and the camp commandants, especially Mr Olatunbosun Fakolade, for making us feel like human beings again.
“We had been stripped of our values as human beings and treated like animals for over a decade, but Nigeria, through the Lagos State Government has restored our dignity.”
Comparing life in Benin Republic and Nigeria, Sogbo said: “There is no basis for comparison. There in Benin, we had no access to medical help, but adequate medical attention has been given to us since we arrived. We have doctors who check us and give us medications to take care of our health challenges.
“Aside from health matters, the endless threat to our lives is no more there since we came here. Even though there is no security threat, the government still deems it necessary to provide security for us.
“We sincerely appreciate the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for their efforts. We also have good accommodation that is not comparable with what we had back at home.
“To crown it all, they give us food and power supply. Even when there is power outage, they would switch on the generator to make power available. We are very grateful.”
Asked if they would be willing to go back to their country, Sogbo replied: “We would be willing to go back when those who have held our country captive leave and when our security and that of the entire country is guaranteed. If we go back right away, they would wipe us out.”
Indications emerged yesterday that troops have recovered ‘sensitive’ video clips from the camps of fleeing Boko Haram members.
It was learnt that the video materials were being analysed by military experts.
According to PRNigeria, a covert information network of the nation’s military, the sensitive ICT materials were abandoned by terrorists fleeing from Sambisa Forest.
The source said: “As terrorists continue to scamper following relentless pursuit by Nigerian troops, they have often left sensitive materials including arms, ammunition, ICT gadgets and video recordings behind.
“Many of the video materials captured by the troops are currently being analysed by military experts.
“Some of the videos included recording of scenes of trials, beheadings, executions, stoning, floggings and those taken during preparations for suicide attacks.
“A military source said capturing such recordings was another major feat in the battle against insurgency as it was a tool used to really terrify mostly civilian population and cow them into submission.
“Some of the videos were meant for release through their normal channels to the public before they were dislodged from their camps. They also show the barbaric life in their so-called caliphate.
“The media and the public are advised to be careful in handling or sharing sensitive and offensive videos depicting atrocities that some viewers may find disturbing,” he concluded.
When contacted, the Director of Defence Information, Major-General Chris Olukolade, confirmed the retrieval of sensitive videos.
He said: “A number of vital materials, apart from arms and ammunition, have been recovered which are being subjected to intelligent analyses. We don’t want to say much about that now.”
January 13, 2015 was a sad day for the people of Ikare-Akoko in Akoko North East Area of Ondo State as dare-devil robbers unleashed terror on the community during a bank robbery. DAMISI OJO reports that it was a tale of horror, sorrow, tears and blood.
For the people of Ikare-Akoko in Akoko North East Local government Area of Ondo State, Tuesday, January 13, 2015 was a day they will never forget in a hurry.
The day opened like every normal day and it progressed well until about 4 pm when dare-devil armed who had arrived the town unnoticed hours before descended on the community killing no fewer than 20 residents including four policemen during a bank robbery operation.
The community which is the commercial nerve centre of Akoko land in Ondo State had since the unfortunate incident, been thrown into serious mourning, grief and sorrow as almost every family in the town was affected by the unfortunate incident. Those who did not have their relatives killed in the robbery attack had many of them injured; a development which made the town to wear a mournful look.
The robbers, it was learnt, took the people of the town by surprise having arrived unnoticed hours ahead of the commencement of their operation which reportedly started at 4,00pm and lasted for close to three hours.
During the robbery operation, an undisclosed huge sum of money was carted away by the robbers who stormed a branch of a new generation bank in the town and later moved to the Police station located along Owo Road, where they attacked the Police and in the process killed four officers and left three others severely injured.
At the end of the operation, it was gathered that 15 people including four policemen were killed by the daredevil robbers who disappeared into thin air afterwards, as efforts to apprehend them by both the Police and the community’s vigilante group proved abortive.
Sources in the town informed that the armed robbers in a well planned operation had divided themselves into two groups with one group blocking the police station along Owo road and the other group attacking their targets along Jubilee road in the town.
While the policemen were killed in their station while trying to mobilize to confront the policemen, other victims of the attack including a former chairman of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), Mr Kenny Gold were killed at the scene of the operation.
Most of the victims, the sources said were killed while trying to withdraw money from the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) placed at the entrance of the bank. Two undergraduates of Ibrahim Babangida University,Lapai, Niger State were felled by the robbers’ bullet while attempting to withdraw money from the machine. One of them was named as Bode Bello.
Another set of victims, it was learnt were killed within the bank premises while transacting normal banking business.
The robbery incident was said to be the second within a year in the affected new generation bank. The first time the robbers came they struck at night at the bank’s former branch and blew the place into pieces with dynamite. The banks in the town also closed down for days, as a result, in order to guarantee their safety.
A resident of the town Mr Wale Gidado said the armed robbers had stationed some of their groups with a military vehicle in front of the police station while another group was ready for action at the bank area along Jubilee Road in the town.
As one group was attacking the bank with dynamite and grenades in order to get access, Gidado stated that the other group was engaging the policemen who were on duty to prevent them from mobilizing their men to the scene of crime. The operations, he said went on simultaneously in the town as gunshots were reverberating within the ever busy Jubilee road, where the bank was located.
Since the incident Ikare-Akoko has been enveloped with grief and mourning as the people of the town continue to mourn the brutal killing of their people who died in the unfortunate incident, vowing that they would revenge the untimely death of their loved ones.
As a result of the incident all business and commercial activities have since been halted in the town in honour of those who lost their lives in the unfortunate incident.
The people of the town who lamented the invasion of the community by armed bandits numbering about 10 also called on the Inspector General of Police, Mr Suleiman Abba to improve security in and around Ikare-Akoko. They also planned to employ the services of men of the local vigilante group to forestall such occurrence in the future.
The traditional ruler of the town, Oba Akadiri Momoh who condemned the incident urged the Police to investigate the robbery incident which led to the killing of his subjects, just as he urged the law enforcement agents to ensure that the perpetrators of the dastardly act were brought to book.
The monarch who said he had met with other traditional chiefs of the town on the ways to ensure that peace reigns in the ancient town, confirmed that the death toll had risen to over 20 as according to him many of the victims of the robbery attack died after the armed robbers had left the town.
He hinted that since the incident prominent personalities including Senator Bode Olajumoke had visited the town.
Also primary and secondary schools in the town were closed down for two days, while all the markets in the town were also vacated for two days as a mark of honour to those who lost their lives in the robbery incident.
The community, it was gathered has concluded arrangements to use traditional means to seek revenge from the armed robbers who perpetrated the dastardly act. A resident of the town who preferred anonymity said traditionalists have been meeting on measures to take against the robbers.
Meanwhile, the state Police command has expressed its readiness to ensure that the dare devil armed robbers who operated in the community are arrested and brought to justice, stressing that the town would not be left in the hands of robbers.
The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) for the state Police command, Mr Wole Ogodo said the Police are still on the trail of the armed robbers and would not hesitate at ensuring that justice was done.
He said peace has finally returned to the ancient town and Police officers will continue to mount surveillance in the area to forestall breakdown of law and order.
He urged the people of the state and the town in particular to remain calm as the Police are on top of the matter and would ensure that justice was done.
Following the attack, it was gathered that customers of the affected bank in Ikare-Akoko now travel to either Owo, Omuo or Oka-Akoko to transact banking business pending the time bank management would be sure of adequate security.
The January 13 incident according to the locals who spoke with’ The Nation was the fifth time such would happen in the community where banks were devastated. And it was the most bloody
as people were being killed like fowls along the route to Iboropa and Akunu by the robbers who shot sporadically as they made good their escape with their huge loots.
An Ikare-Akoko Community leader and business man, Oseni Foyeolona described the situation as a very serious economic set back now that the nation economy is fragile. He symphatised with those who lost their loved ones in the robbery incident.
Another Muslim leader and vice chairman, Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs in Ondo State,Alhaji Ibrahim Kilani called for fervent prayers to forestall future occurrence, calling for an Army Barracks to the sited in the town by military authorities. Also, chairman, Akoko North East Local Government Area, Hon Lekan Bada called for more security in Akokoland.
An indigene of the area and secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State, Rotimi Rahman who came to Ikare shortly after the robbery incident described the situation as a commotion.
According to him, dead bodies littered the community, stressing that he was bereaved because the two undergraduates killed at ATM point were his brothers.
He urged the state government to provide adequate security in Ikare-Akoko to tackle such development in the future.
Governor Olusegun Mimiko while paying condolence visit to Ikare-Akoko said his administration would work with security agencies to apprehend the robbers.
He described the incident as unfortunate, saying all necessary measures were being put in place to forestall future recurrence.
Mimiko was also at Oke-igbede police station which was vandalised by the bandits.
The Commissioner of Police, Isaac Eke promised that the robbers would be apprehended, while the Olukare of Ikare,Oba Akadiri Momoh thanked the governor for his response to the incident.
A report released at the weekend in New York, United States by Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict (“Watchlist”), which strives to end violations against children in armed conflicts and to guarantee their rights, bears horrific tales from Boko Haram victims, writes Asst. Editor Olukorede Yishau
Boko Haram and the Civilian JTF are opposite sides of the war in the Northeast. But, both of them, said the Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict in a report released in New York, United States at the weekend, use children inappropriately to feather their nest.
“Children as young as 13 are being recruited by both sides of the conflict and have nowhere to turn,” said the report.
The report, “Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict”, said the sect has subjected boys and girls to forced recruitment, detention, attacks at school, abductions, rape, and other forms of sexual violence.
The gravity and scale of these violations warrant urgent action from the Federal Government, the United Nations, and other child protection actors, the 64-page report said.
The report titled “Who Will Care for Us?” details grave violations by some parties to the conflict since December 2012 and provides recommendations on how to better protect children. “While the abduction of over 200 girls in Chibok, Borno State, has shed some light on how children are affected by the conflict in the northeast, most abuses are still poorly documented, understood, and addressed by key actors,” said Janine Morna, Researcher at Watchlist on Children and Armed Conflict.
It added that security forces who encounter child soldiers in Boko Haram’s ranks often detain these children in unofficial military detention facilities known for the mistreatment of detainees, instead of protecting and rehabilitating them, in accordance with international standards.
“The government of Nigeria should denounce the recruitment of children by all armed groups, take immediate steps to release child soldiers in their custody, and develop procedures to transfer child soldiers to civilian actors,” said Morna.
Watchlist also researched attacks on schools in the region which, according to their media survey, has resulted in the death, injury, or abduction of at least 414 students, teachers, or other civilians on school premises between January 2012 and July 2014. “Continuous attacks on schools have devastated education in the region, creating a climate of fear for students and teachers, and leading to school closures from as early as April 2013. Relevant actors must bolster school security through programmes like the Safe Schools Initiative,” said Morna.
Watchlist documented abductions of boys and girls by Boko Haram, including Christian girls who were forced to convert to Islam and coerced into marrying members of the group, along with other female abductees. Boko Haram abducted these girls and young women from schools and markets, and during raids on villages in areas across Borno State since at least December 2012. Some members of the group raped girls and young women in the camps. None of the girls and women who escaped, and were interviewed by Watchlist, had access to counseling and other health services.
“The humanitarian response to violations against children has been slow, fragmented, and unable to meet the fast-growing needs of those affected by the conflict,” said Morna. Few international actors currently engage in the northeast, leaving the government and local groups, with limited capacity, to support survivors. “The Nigerian Government, United Nations, and non-governmental agencies must take urgent steps to recruit experts with experience operating in a conflict situation and scale up programming to support some of Nigeria’s most vulnerable and marginalized children,” said Morna.
The executive summary of the report reads: “Conflict between the armed group Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (JAS), commonly known as Boko Haram, Nigerian security forces, and civilian self-defense militias, is ravaging Nigeria’s fragile northeast. Despite President Goodluck Jonathan’s declaration of a state of emergency in Borno, Yobe, and Adamawa states, the level of violence and the scale of grave violations against children have worsened. The conflict in the north-east, along with inter-communal violence, has displaced an estimated 650,000 people, primarily women and children, and affected millions of others. The parties to the conflict have subjected boys and girls to forced recruitment, attacks on their schools, killing and maiming, abductions, rape and sexual violence, and arbitrary detention. In April 2014, the seriousness of these abuses came to the forefront when JAS abducted over 200 girls from Chibok in Borno State, sparking national and international outcry.
“The humanitarian response has been slow, fragmented, and unable to meet the fast-growing needs of those affected by the conflict. Few international actors engage in the northeast, leaving the government and local groups, with limited capacity, to address violations and support survivors. The overall lack of expertise on child protection in conflict-related emergencies has left critical gaps in the response including, inadequate protection-related data, a lack of standard operating procedures to manage children encountered in conflict, and limited emergency preparedness planning to address the continuous attacks on schools.”
The report also bears horrific tales from child-victims of both Boko Haram and the Civilian JTF. One Friday in late December 2012 in Gwoza, Borno State, a 16-year-old girl was late for school. Soon after she arrived and greeted her friends, suspected members of JAS attacked the school and abducted her and five other girls before detonating a bomb on or near the campus.
She said: “I found myself in an Imam’s house. I don’t really remember how I got there … The men said [to us], ‘You are the real strong Christians. We want you to become Muslims. We will give you men to marry and if you refuse, we will kill you.’ The five other girls accepted. I said, ‘rather kill me.’”
Boko Haram decided to prepare her and the other girls for marriage. Over a roughly one-month period, she cooked meals for the members and rehearsed prayers and verses with the girls. Just before her marriage, she seized an opportunity to escape when a core group of suspected members of Boko Haram left the compound for an attack. The other girls have not been seen by the community since their abduction.
A young woman who was 21 at the time of her abduction told Watchlist that she was abducted while riding public transport from her polytechnic in Maiduguri to her home in Gwoza on March 15, last year.
Her bus was traveling in convoy with several other buses. The driver and passengers received information that JAS was coming and decided to take an alternate route to Gwoza. Unfortunately the drivers had been misled. The young woman explained: “When we were going we saw people in military uniform. They stopped us. But the insurgents were dressed like the military… They held many buses. They checked if you were Christian, in which case they would kill you. If you were Muslim you were allowed to pass. They identified… (Christians/Muslims) by their mode of dress. After searching and killing, and because it was getting dark, they assembled us to go to a camp. Many people were taken captive.
The young woman reported seeing many abducted girls at the Boko Haram camp. She escaped 19 days later.
Another 19-year-old young woman told Watchlist that she was abducted while travelling to her home in Gwoza from Konduga Local Government College.
She was 18 years old at the time and had just completed her final exams. On May 10, last year, she travelled home with six female classmates below the ages of 18. En route, four men holding guns stopped them. The men asked if there were Christians in the car. One of the Muslim girls provided a hijab for each of the other girls in the car who then pretended to be Muslim. The girls were held captive for three days before JAS commanders arrived and released them. Women and girls have also been abducted during and after attacks on villages.
A young woman who was 19 at the time of her abduction explained to Watchlist: “I ran to the hills. I was short of food so I went to get corn… When people came, they came in a number and I ran and hid. When they started beating my grandmother, I surfaced from the hiding and I was caught. They started beating her and said we should go. I was the only person taken. I was caught with a gun.”
In June 2014, reports emerged of JAS invading and abducting scores of women and girls in villages in Borno State.
Sixty-three women and girls from one of these attacks successfully escaped in July 2014.
Soon after Christian women and girls arrived in the camps, they were forced to convert and were told they would be married to members of the group.
A young woman who was 19 at the time of her abduction in Gwoza explained how she was forcibly converted: “They were pulling the noose around my neck and dragging around and said I should come back to Islam.”
She eventually relented to save her life and the group set her dowry between N10,000 and N15,000 (approximately USD $60 to $90). The reports of forced conversion and marriage received by Watchlist are consistent with other reports appearing in the media.
Four of the former abductees interviewed by Watchlist said they were raped during their abduction. The rape appears at times targeted and at other times opportunistic. A former abductee speaking to a local news organisation explained that JAS leaders raped young virgins, while other members of the group took turns raping married and elderly women.
In two cases cited by Watchlist, members of Boko Haram took advantage of an opportunity to rape the abductees when either the commanding officer was away or when the woman or girl was alone and vulnerable.
A young woman who was 18 years old at the time of the abduction said: “They gave us an axe to dig a hole to ease ourselves. In the night I wanted to ease myself. I was trying to ease myself and as I was in the process [he approached] and I started screaming. He abused me.”
He slipped away. He tried to penetrate, but when people came, he didn’t enter.
According to the report, women and girls sometimes escape from Boko Haram camps but often lack sufficient support, counseling, and health services when they return home. Reports indicate that these women and girls are rescued from the camps by the military and Civilian JTF, or through family members who pay ransom and negotiate their release.
All of the women and girls interviewed by Watchlist returned to their families, but often had to leave home for fear of their safety. In one case, the parents had to leave because they were targeted by Boko Haram following their daughter‘s escape.
Other reports suggest that families sometimes send their children to other cities to avoid the stigma of rape and pregnancy outside of marriage.
Few of the women and girls interviewed by Watchlist officially reported the abduction because of either mistrust of the authorities, fear of retaliation by Boko Haram, or a feeling that reporting was futile because authorities have limited capacity for individual assistance.
A mother of one of the abductees said: “The issue of reporting is a waste of time… The cases are so rampant.”
In addition, none of the women and girls received support or counseling. Civilians, particularly in remote areas, have limited access to health and other services.
Many of the interviewees were traumatized by their experiences. One woman told Watchlist:”Immediately I left this place (the camp), it made me insane,” while another said, “When I remember, I normally cry.”
While the government and other partners are providing some support to the families of the abducted Chibok girls, as well as the girls who escaped, it is unclear to what extent other survivors of abduction and sexual violence can access such services.”
WURAOLA Akinjolie was to become a bride today but her dream of savouring wedding bliss had been aborted. She died in a bizarre manner penultimate Friday just two weeks away from her wedding.
As the story goes, the 21-year-old deceased had barely finished washing some of her clothes when she slipped into a soak away pit covered with decrepit slabs at her residence at No 2, Believer Street, Oluwo-Opeilu, Ogun State.
When our correspondent visited her residence a few days ago, some residents made an encore of the tragedy blaming her death on some supernatural forces.
A source, who spoke in confidence, recalled the tragic incident. She said:” Sister Wuraola woke up early and washed some of her clothes because she thought she might not have the time to do it and other chores before her wedding day. She was about hanging the clothes on the rope when she slipped into the soak away pit. I believe that her death was more than meet the eyes because of the circumstances surrounding it; it came just a few days to her wedding. She must have been killed through supernatural forces by evil people.”
It was gathered that the deceased was rescued shortly after the incident but she gave up just when medical attention came her way.
“Although, she had fallen into the pit before neighbours were alerted, but it took a few hours for a search party to discover that she was trapped in the soak away. She was rescued from the pit and taken to about three hospitals but she died while being treated in a certain hospital,” the source said.
An eyewitness, who gave her name simply as Adebola, described the incident as sad. She explained that the deceased was carrying a four- month pregnancy at the time of the incident.
“Sister Wuraola’s death is sad. She was four months pregnant and was looking forward to her wedding in two weeks time (today) when her tragic death occurred. She was quite a pleasant and easy-going person and everyone in the neighbourhood will definitely miss her because of her warm disposition toward everyone around. It would have been wonderful to witness her wedding, particularly that she was already making frenetic preparations for the ceremony before her tragic demise but God knows better.
“Her fiancée is called Femi John, and hails from Kogi State but I cannot say exactly where he is now. We learned that he is yet to get out of the shock of Wuraola’s death and currently out of town.”
Another resident, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, described the deceased as easy-going and warm.
“Wuraola hails from Ile-Oluji in Ondo State and she would often crack jokes with us in her native dialect. She was unassuming. I cannot recall when she ever fought with anyone in this environment. It is sad that she died just when she was about consummating her marriage. We were all looking forward to the day, not knowing that evil was lurking around her. I don’t believe in fatalism, hence, I also share in the belief that she may have been killed by evil people so as to prevent her wedding from holding but everything is open before God”.
Findings revealed that the incident pitched occupants of the building against the landlord and that efforts are being made to resolve the matter.
“The incident drew a hole in the relationship between occupants of the building and the landlord but it is now being resolved by the landlords association in the area. The occupants were annoyed that the decrepit mud slab on the soak-away pit had been left unfixed for a long period leading to the death of Wuraola”, said a resident who craved anonymity.
However, a community leader in the area who asked not to be named explained that there was no such controversy over the death of Wuraola.
He said: “No one was fighting the owner of the building over the unfortunate incident because that was not the first time the late woman would be standing at the same spot to hang her clothes. It was just unfortunate she slipped to death, even though sWuraolaWuraolahe got immediate attention from bystanders. Her death is tragic and unfortunate and we pray that such will not reoccur because it spells a bad omen if it does.
“The truth is that some people had lodged complaints over the state of the soak-away pit and the community leaders had immediately stepped into the matter. There is no quarrel between occupants and the landlord at all”.
