The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide has hinted of a plot by disgruntled politicians to visit Bayelsa State with violence ahead of the Supreme Court review of the judgement that upturned the Governorship victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa.
The IYC said desperate politicians were bent in causing chaos including a coordinated attack of oil installations in the state against the overall interest of the Ijaw nation.
The IYC, in a statement by its Secretary-General, Alfred Kemepado, warned against the plot and urged persons involved in it to sheathe their swords and give peace a chance.
Kemepado, while congratulating Senators Douye Diri and Lawrence Ewhrudjakpor on their inaugurations as the Governor and Deputy Governor of Bayelsa, asked persons angry at the twist in the state to explore legal or political means to address their grievances.
He said instead of planning violence, aggrieved persons should follow democratic procedures to ensure peace and stability in the interest of the Ijaw nation.
Kemepado also called on security agencies to be at alert to nip any signs of violence in the bud before they loom large to avoid loss of lives and properties.
He appealed to the incumbent governor to accommodate all Ijaw people in and outside Bayelsa state irrespective of their political persuasions.
Kemepado further called on all Ijaw people especially in Bayelsa to join the new government in the task of building the state, which is the only homogeneous ijaw state in the country.
He condemned in strong terms the persons, who turned a peaceful protest in Yenagoa to a violent rampage that led to the destruction and looting of properties in the capital city.
He insisted that nobody,s ambition was worth the blood of any ijaw person.
He said: “If any person or party feels aggrieved by the Supreme court judgments that consequentially made Sen. Douye Diri Governor, such persons should approach the courts for redress or seek political solutions rather than indulge in any unlawful activity that could endanger life and property in any part of Ijaw land.
“All Ijaws are equal and have right to aspire to become anything in Ijaw land. The IYC warns against incitement of the state and the region to violence because of politics, stressing that politicians are less than one percent of the population of ijaws who go about their lawful businesses daily.
“We also warn some persons to desist from activities that could put the state and the region in a bad light. Any person or group of persons, who make themselves available for paid violence in the Niger Delta is totally on the wrong side of history.
“We want to also caution the political class and paymasters of instability to desist forthwith as their selfish plots and activities are known to all.
“We stress that instead of plotting instability for the state because of self serving political ambitions, everybody should come together to build a more peaceful and prosperous Bayelsa State”.
