Why soldiers were killed in Okuama – community leader

• Oshare stated that the pressure and tensions were more prevalent in Okuama, which does not have people to speak for them and push their interests.

A community leader in Delta State, Olorogun Sleek Oshare, has revealed why soldiers were killed in the state.

Recall that sixteen military personnel were brutally murdered by suspected militants at Okuama community in Ughelli South Local Government Area of the State last Thursday.

Speaking on the matter, Oshare disclosed that an agelong land dispute that degenerated into a violent conflicts in the community led to the death of the soldiers.

Oshare made the disclosure when he featured on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday.

According to Oshare, the military personnel were in the area as part of efforts to settle a land dispute between Okuama and a neighbouring community.

He explained that the dispute arose between two influential families but the matter escalated due to the perceived military connections of one of the communities involved.

Oshare stated that the pressure and tensions were more prevalent in Okuama, which does not have people to speak for them and push their interests.

He pointed out the absence of mention of the other community, Okoloba, in the narrative, suggesting that fear might have caused them to retreat from the spotlight.

Oshare dismissed the conflict as merely a dispute between individuals and expressed the need for a thorough investigation to uncover the truth behind the incident.

He stated, “The quarrel was just a land dispute between one family and another family and land disputes happen over and over again.

“One community felt that the other had a military connection and they were being pressured unnecessarily. The pressure is more on Okuoma and they don’t have anybody to speak for them.

“In the whole narrative, you don’t hear the name of the other community. Where is Okoloba? In the last two days, Okoloba has disappeared because they are also afraid.

“Sometimes, it is made to look as if it were an ethnic thing. It was just a dispute between individuals and Okoloba, which seems to have more connections.

“The families that were involved in the dispute are highly placed. Until we go into the real investigation, the truth will not come out.

“It is then the nation will come out to sympathize with the children, pregnant women, and old people who could have lost their lives in the random shootings.”