Officials inspecting illegally logged woods
By Akpan David, Calabar
Deadly communal skirmish has broken out between Biajua community in Boki LGA and Abia comnunity in Etung LGA of Cross River State.
A number of youths are said to have been killed in the eruption which started yesterday morning.
Sophisticated arms are reportedly being used by the two communities.
The skirmish which had brewed over time is over alleged illegal wood logging by the Abia community of Etung LGA
Dr Alfred Mboto, permanent secretary in the state security unit of Governor Ben Ayade’s office confirmed the deadly clash and said they have deployed policemen and other security personnel to take over the area.
The fight is said to be continuing as at time of filing this report even though the police have reportedly arrested six persons in connection with the clash
Sources said four persons are believed to have been killed from the communal fight yesterday.
The source said: “The clash is alleged to be the resistance of Biajua community against sustained wood logging in Biajua by timber dealers from Abia community.”
He said that some of the loggers were allegedly arrested and handed to the police at Bateriko police station.
Armed youths from Abia community in Etung LGA believed to have invaded the Biajua forests are said to have been engaged in sporadic shooting in the area to scare the Biajua youths to enable them evacuate their harvests of wood.
Community leader in nearby Danare community in Boki LGA and former Vice chairman of APC for Cross River central, Chief Cletus Obun said, “We request for urgent intervention to avoid more casualties.
“The two communities are very close to Cameroon where civil war is still raging. It is very important that state or federal government should immediately avert the forest war so that the Ambazonian Boys fighting in Cameroon or gun runners do not hijack it as occupy the communities. We should know that nobody wins forest war.”
In a petition to chairman of Boki LGA and signed by clan head of Bashua, HRH Otu Michael Owen Bedebe and community chairman, Mr David Ochang Bedding, they accused the Abia community of Etung LGA of engaging Inn illegal exploitation of their forests resources.
They claimed that the Abia people came in two trucks armed with dangerous weapons and attacked them.
Chief K.T. Kekung Asu & Co, legal advisers to Bashua community appealed to Abia royal father to call his subjects to order to avert further bloodletting.
The village head of Abia denied that they were the aggressors. He also claimed that the wood loggers are not from his community.
