Abuloma Killings: IYC Scribe Rejects Suspension

The Secretary-General of the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) Worldwide, Nangi Obu, has rejected his suspension by the some members of the Jonathan Lokpobiri-led executive committee of the council.

Some members of the executive committee of the organisation had announced the suspension of Obu after blaming him for the bloodshed that marred the IYC Eastern zonal election at Abuloma, Port Harcourt.

No fewer than 12 persons were allegedly killed and many others injured and maimed as two rival groups clashed during the zonal poll.

However, the Rivers State Police Command, which in a statement confirmed the shooting at the IYC election, did not disclose if there was any casualty or not.

Speaking with journalists in Port Harcourt on Thursday, Obu described his suspension as dead on arrival, explaining that the IYC President and others had no constitutional rights to remove him from office.

He said: “They have no right to sit and suspend me because I am not an employee of Jonathan. Our constitution does not give them such latitude.”

The embattled IYC secretary described the brutal killings of innocent Ijaw youths during the election as unfortunate, terrible and avoidable and blamed the bloodbath on what he referred to as Jonathan’s meddlesomeness and attempts to impose candidates during the IYC election.

Obu said as a President of council, Jonathan could only partake in electoral processes in other zones as an observer and was forbidden to make himself the generalisimo to dictate and micromanage the outcome of such elections.

He recalled that similar elections held at Jonathan’s central zone in Bayelsa State and the Western Zone in Delta State, the IYC President only went there as an observer.