Kogi/Anambra Oil Crisis: Red Cross Urges FG to Deploy Combat Troops to Communities

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The Anambra State branch of the Nigerian Red Cross Society, has called on the Federal Government to check the escalating oil well war between Anambra State communities of Enugu Otu, Aguleri and its Kogi State counterpart of Ibaje, by deploying full combat troops to the communities.

Speaking to journalists yesterday on the occasion of the 2013 World Red Cross Day in Awka, state Chairman of the society, Hon. Justice P.A.C Obidigwe, also a retired chief judge of state, said the deployment of troops to the contentious border areas would help to bring the on-going war of attrition there to a stop.

Justice Obidigwe, who said his organisation has since waded into the crisis by reaching out to their counterparts in Kogi State with both relief materials and proposals on how to prevent the crisis from escalating in to a full scale war.

He said hundreds of the victims of the crisis are now being camped in Otuocha and Ayamelum, where they are staying. The theme of this year’s celebration was; “150 Years of Humanitarian Actions.”

Justice Obidigwe said the Red Cross has kept the ‘unflagging’ flag of humanity flying since the creation of Anambra State in 1991.

According to him, the society has “25 sub-titled activities covering all humanitarian activities and has built a vibrant capacity that rapidly responds to emergencies at all times.”

Obidigwe, who said that the society have already issued the 2013 flood disaster alert to the riverine communities and other flood prone areas in the state, further disclosed that it was Red Cross with the assistance of International Federation of Red Cross under the programme of Alternative to Violence that successfully resolved the Umueri, Umuoba-Anam and Aguleri communal conflicts in 1999 and provided relief materials and organised the unification festival for the warring communities in December, 2004.

On the whole, he said they have also made quick response to 1, 050 major fire disaster incidents in the state from 1999 to 2013 that was apart from the continuous Red Cross activities in 25 different sub-titled projects.

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