Date: 2013-02-04

The Kwara State Government has vowed to bring all perpetrators of Offa/Erin-Ile communal clash to book. The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Isiaka Gold disclosed this on Friday during on-the-spot assessment to the affected places in the two communities where lives and property worth millions of Naira were destroyed.

 Gold who led some top government officials and security officers to the scenes of the incident also promised that government would do everything within its power to ensure that such incident does not occur in the state again.

"Having gone around, seen the level of destruction of lives and property in these places, one is not happy about it, it is very said. "We still have to continue with the curfew for now and all those people involved in this destruction will not be spared". I want to appeal to the two communities to be calm and that government will not leave this matter to lie low. We will take action to ensure that all the people involved in this criminal act will be punished", the SSG said.

Gold, who was in the company of the Chief of Staff to the Governor, Alhaji Muhammed Toyin Sanusi, Special Adviser on Security to the Governor, Alhaji Yinka Aluko, Senior Special Assistant, Media, Dr Muideen Akorede, Acting Brigadier Commander, 22 Armoured Brigade, Sobi, Col. A.H. Ahmed, State Commissioner of Police, Chinwike Asadu and others to the place also visited Olofa of Offa farm and Oyeleke Memorial College that were also burnt during the clash.

At Olofa farm, the Human Resources Manager, Mr Mansur Giwa said the perpetrators invaded farm last Wednesday and burnt offices, including all their vital documents and N77.4million sales they made that day, while at Oyeleke Memorial College, boys and girls hostels and offices were also burnt last Thursday.

In an interview with the State Commissioner of Police, Chinwike Asadu said three people have been reported dead in the crisis and not 10 as some media reported, adding that nine people have been arrested by the police saying that investigation was still continuing and the culprits would be charged to court.

Asadu explained further that curfew was relaxed on Friday from hours of 12noon to 6pm to allow Muslim observe Juma’at prayer while it would also be relaxed on Sunday from hours of 7am to 2pm to allow Christians to go to church for worship, adding that the curfew continues after that till peace is restored back to the two communities.

In his comment during the inspection exercise, the Chairman of Oyun Local Government, Alhaji Ibrahim Omoniyi described the situation as very unfortunate. "The situation is very unfortunate, the two communities are brothers and sisters and more so there are a lot of inter marriages between them. This is an issue that ought to be resolved amicably between themselves", the chairman said.

In this reaction, Chairman of Offa, Saheed Popoola said that the extent of damage was enormous saying that he could not measure the extent yet. According to Popoola, the two local governments were doing everything humanly possible to restore peace to the two communities. Houses, vehicles and motorcycles were burnt beyond recognition while three lives were lost according to the police.