Ayetoro is one of the historical settlements along the coastal stretch of Ilaje local government area of Ondo State, Southwest Nigeria. The ancient town otherwise called the Holy Apostles Community is now on the verge of extinction if nothing serious is done to save the community.
At the moment, the utopian Christian community where communism fully held sway may soon be an illusion of history following the incessant sea incursion ravaging the community.
LEADERSHIP Weekend gathered that the ocean surge has been the albatross of the Ayetoro community for over 20 years. Following this ugly development, the community has lost over 10 kilometers of the community to sea surge.
Sadly, many residents and indigent people of the community have become homeless after the recent ocean incursion that occurred early in the morning when most of the residents of the community were still fast asleep.
Ayetoro is otherwise known as a ‘Happy City’ because of the unique and communal lifestyle of its inhabitants. They have, however, lost their happiness, and the city is almost becoming a ghost of itself due to the sea incursion that has become a constant occurrence with the latest incident destroying buildings and property worth millions of Naira.
The fate of the community comprising no fewer than 400 villages and towns making up the Ilaje local government area, was in a big mess, according to a source, because of natural and human activities, worsened by the abandonment of a multi-billion naira shore protection project, which was first awarded in 2004 and awarded again in 2009 by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
LEADERSHIP Weekend reports that the Ayetoro community on Monday witnessed another sea incursion that destroyed several houses, schools, churches, markets, and businesses, while many residents have fled the area.
Reacting to the sad occurrence, the secretary of the Ayetoro Youths Congress, Mr. Emmanuel Aralu, while speaking with LEADERSHIP Weekend on the recent sea incursion, noted that not less than 200 homes were affected again on Sunday, displacing thousands of residents.
According to him, this surge has become an annual occurrence to which successive governments have failed to find a lasting solution. He further stated that hundreds of homes and properties including schools, hospitals, and business centres were destroyed with several people displaced by the ocean surge.
While disclosing that the recent surge had rendered many landlords homeless, Arelu said that many of the residents of the community had relocated to other neighboring communities.
He maintained that efforts to draw the attention of the state and federal government to address the yearly surge had failed, adding that the “government has abandoned the community to be at the mercy of ecological disasters.”
According to him, “This time around no fewer than 500 to 700 buildings were destroyed or washed off with properties worth millions of naira washed away. We have cried to the state and Federal government but all efforts to get government attention have proof abortive.”
While the residents are dying on yearly basis, Aralu stated that contractors were mobilised to the site twice for the dredging of the ocean but nothing was done on the site.
He said the government never bothered to query or probe those behind the contract.
He blamed the state government and the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for the natural disaster due to what he described as their failure to complete the N6.5 billion shoreline protection contract awarded to a company, Atlantic Dredgers Limited (DAL) in 2006.
“We are calling on the government at all levels to please come to our aid. We want to appeal to all relevant agencies and authorities concerned to help save the Aiyetoro community from going into extinction,” he said.
Corroborating Aralu, a resident of the community, Edward Ikuesan, said the community might be wiped out in the next few months if the government and relevant agencies fail to attend to the plight of the community.
Ikuesan said, “As we speak, the ocean surge has wiped out more than half of the Ayetoro community. Asides from homes and properties that had been lost to the ocean incursion, the people of the community now live in fear of getting wiped out by the sea in the next few days.
“In 2006, the community had 30,000 residents but now, the population has been depleted to 5,000 due to incessant sea incursions into the community which had forced many residents to relocate to other areas.
“I appealed to the government and intervention agencies to come to our rescue so that the sea would not wipe away the entire community,” he said.
Also, the traditional ruler of the town, Oba Micah Olaseni Ajijo, the Ogeleoyinbo of Aiyetoro, confirmed the incident. Oba Ajijo said the ocean surge has destroyed everything on its path.
Attributing the frequent surge to the emissions from the activities of oil companies in the coastal community of Ayetoro and other adjoining communities, the monarch said, “That is the reality of rising temperatures and sea levels due to carbon emissions.
“The International agreement on carbon cap is not implemented and oil companies off the coast of Aiyetoro still flare their gas, not minding the environmental challenges on coastal communities.
“As there is no social justice, there is also no environmental justice in the policies of the political class. We only cry to God as the sea eats our land and coastal towns in Nigeria, may our God and creator give us peace and command the raging waves to be still.”
In a viral video, a resident of the community called on the federal, and state government, the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC), and the Ondo State Oil-Producing Areas Development Commission (OSOPADEC) to come to the rescue of the community in order not to go into extinction.
The resident said, “Please save our souls, this is the Ayetoro Community. This afternoon, April 17, it was submerged by the sea. Many houses have been destroyed. More than half of the community has been encroached on by the ravaging sea surge.
“This is excruciating, this is sardonic. We are calling on the relevant agencies to please rescue this community. Ayetoro must not go into extinction, many people are relocating, and houses are being destroyed this afternoon, don’t what to do again.
“We are appealing to the federal government, we are appealing to the state government, we are appealing to the Niger Delta Development Commission and we are appealing to the Ondo State Oil-Producing Areas Development Commission to please come to our rescue, this is serious, it is destroying houses like tornadoes.
“You can see the iconic worship center, the church of the community submerged by the sea. For the past year, we have relocated the worship center to another place, these are ancient houses built by our forefathers. We don’t know where we are going and we don’t know where to go.
“We are calling on President Muhammadu Buhari, we are calling on the governor of Ondo State, Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu, we are calling on the international community. The Ayetoro community is a glorious community that must not go into extinction This is serious as many have been displaced. Please help us.”
Following the ravaging sea incursion in Ayetoro Community, the Chairman Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State, Mr. Goke Ojatuwase, has appealed for urgent resettlement of residents.
Ojatuwase made a passionate appeal for the resettlement of the inhabitants amid the recurring incidents of ocean incursion.
According to him, “The local government is not folding its arms against the sea incursion ravaging the community as the state government has been partnering with the Federal Government on the impending danger in the area,” he said.
The council chairman said that the multi-million Naira project design embarked on by the federal government to tame the ocean incursion has been completed, but what remained was a movement of equipment to the high sea.
“The government has not been folding its hands over the sea incursion in Ayetoro because the area mapping and project design embarked on by the Federal Government have been completed.
“But the inability to access roads and the sea to bring the heavy equipment to begin the project have been the problem.
“Ilaje has no motorable roads and the sea needs dredging to bring in the heavy equipment to the high sea because the sea was dredged last in 1975 or 1976 I think.
“I am appealing to the Federal Government and other stakeholders as a matter of urgency to do the needful for the sea surge not to wipe out the entire Ayetoro community.
“As much as I sympathized with the residents of Ayetoro community over the loss of properties and businesses, I appeal to them to accept resettlement from the area, pending when the governments will do the needful,” Ojatuwase said.
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