A hitherto peaceful 46th birthday celebration organised in absentia for former militant warlord, Chief Government Ekpemupolo also known as Tompolo, on Wednesday, at Okuemi Hotel in Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State, turned awry as some miscreants invaded the venue making participants to scamper for safety.
More images:
“At the peak of the event, there was commotion as some aggrieved youths rushed into the event hall and destroying things.
There was smashing of bottles here and there as people were seen flying over the fence to escape, and some high dignitaries were escorted to safety.
But the situation was later brought to normalcy by security offices who shot into the air to disperse the hoodlums,” the witness informed Tribune Online .
Meanwhile, Niger Delta Security Watch Organization and the Ijaw People Development Initiative (IPDI) on Wednesday called on the Federal Government to withdraw all graft charges against former militant, Chief Government Ekpemupolo also known as Tompolo in the interest of peace and justice.
President of the groups, Mr Dickson Bekederemo and Comrade Austin Ozobo made the call during the 46th birthday ceremony of Tompolo.
Bekederemo argued that Tompolo was innocent of all the charges leveled against him by the Federal Government, adding that the Federal Government needed Tompolo more than he needed the government.
He accused perceived enemies of the Niger Delta as enemies behind the travails of the former warlord.
Tompolo, he stated further, fought for the interest of the impoverished and marginalized Niger Delta people and worked for the security and unity of Nigeria since he embraced Amnesty.
“He ensured that pipelines were protected and assured Hausa people that nobody would be attack them should Jonathan lose the presidential election and it was so.
“I want to appeal, whatever charges the Federal Government has filed against Tompolo in the interest of justice should be withdrawn,” Bekederemo stated.
Comrade Ozobo on the other hand, stated that the birthday celebration was necessary because Tompolo has attracted development to the Niger Delta region.
“Tompolo is worth celebrating because he is a worthy leader. I am happy he is being celebrated.
We must not wait for the people outside to come and celebrate him for us. He has brought development to the whole of the Niger Delta,” he boasted.
Meanwhile, former Chairman of the Editorial Board of the Guardian Newspaper, Prof Gordini Darah, has called on the various ethnic groups in the Niger Delta to shun their differences and unite so that the blessings of the land, which have eluded them, would be restored.
He made the call at the 46th year birthday/inaugural lecture held in honour of Tompolo, who was, however, absent at the programme.
Darah noted that ethnic divisions were the creations of the colonial masters, stating that all Niger Delta ethnic groups evolved from one ancestral lineage with no initial language barrier.
He described Tompolo as the “new face of Niger Delta struggle”, adding that Nigeria is dire need of 150,000 marine engineers to man its waterways as against the present 1,000 the country boasts of.
Another guest speaker, Prof Temi Harriman, who spoke extensively on the “Niger Delta Question” stressed the need for co-existence between the Ijaw nation and its neighbours as the only way to attain the Eldorado.
Comments