By Emma Unah
The clash, which occurred on farmland, reportedly led to the shooting and killing of two Ochon youths, whose heads were later severed with machetes by their assailants.
A youth in the area, Donald Enang, maintained that peace had been restored two weeks ago after fierce fighting between both communities, which claimed several lives and destroyed houses. He said it was believed that the peace agreement negotiated by community leaders would hold, but hostilities resumed at the weekend with the latest killings.
“Fighting has moved from the towns and along the Ikom–Calabar highway to the farms and forests. A lot of cocoa plantations have been destroyed and plundered, while other crops like rice, cassava, and yams have been set on fire,” Enang stated.
He said the renewed violence has made it unsafe for residents to access their farms and appealed to the authorities to intervene before more damage is done.
“The army is stationed along the highway, but the youths are now committing a lot of destruction in the farms. People are scared to go to their farms because anyone who ventures there is shot dead,” he added.
The Ochon community and their Alesi and Ofutop neighbours have for years been embroiled in recurring inter-communal clashes, which have claimed several lives, including those of unsuspecting travellers along the Ikom–Calabar highway.
The conflict, which escalated last month, prompted peace efforts by community leaders, leading to a temporary truce. However, the fragile peace appears to have collapsed with the latest round of violence.
Useless youths! War within your own state, and against your brothers and sisters? Are they Ok? If they had something meaningful and productive to occupy their time, would they be killing their brethren?
I also wonder what role those community leaders actually play. Is it just about the title, community resources and handouts from the government? I think all the community leaders in the affected areas should be arrested. They owe us some accountability. They would help to identify those evil-minded youths for arrest. This type of distraction in the state must stop.