Insecurity Rivers police pays special attention to Onne, world’s fastest oil/gas free trade zone
BusinessDay crime watch across the 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers State reveals that the state’s police command seems to secure Onne Industrial community in Eleme Local Government Area more than other crime-infested local council areas in the oil-rich state.
Eleme is community to well over 200 world-class multinational companies and 95 percent of them are located in Onne community where the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA) and oil and gas designated industrial Free Zone is located. Over 170 investors are on ground operating in the Free Zone Community.
A professor of sociology in Port Harcourt, David Okere, in a chat with BDSUNDAY, not only described Rivers State as a cosmopolitan custodian of “black gold” (Crude Oil) but also a free haven for “black devilish” criminals of different brigades. Like the creeks across the Niger-Delta oil-bearing communities, these criminals – armed robbers, kidnappers, cultists and oil rogues among unknown others – are strewn across the state from the urban to the rural enclaves.
Their blood-chilling criminal acts across the state leave a message that, “criminals have taken over socio-economic space and they seem to be winning against all odds”. Confrontations by the police and other security operatives in the state notwithstanding, the trend of insecurity that has subjected the general populace, including the business community, is still far from conclusion that the state police command and other security organs exist at the mercy of criminals. The media scream everyday of armed robbers, cultists and kidnappers and others being gunned down or apprehended by the police.
There exists day-to-day dangerous criminal occurrence like cultism, armed robberies, and kidnappings in some parts of the Eleme communities like Ebubu, Ogale, Agbonchia and Alesa. However, it is noteworthy that Onne community stands out as a safe haven to both strangers and the Oil and Gas Free Zone families and other business operators.
A cross-section of security experts who expressed opinion in response to BDSUNDAY attributed the security or safety in the Onne host community to uncompromising commitment and stand of the community’s monarch, J.D. Osaronu and the Onne Divisional Police Headquarters being manned by an officer, Ali Isa Gumel, as Divisional Police Officer (DPO)
Security observers in the area attested that the DPO and the royal father are known for their proactiveness and rapid response to any insecurity smoke in the air coupled with the community co-operation.
More so, the major Free Zone investors like Intels are said to be a strong balm on any issue that is likely to brew insecurity to the detriment of activities going on in the Free Zone.
The Onne monarch, Osaronu, confirmed this and beat his chest that, “our Onne community remains a safe haven to our Free Zone investors and strangers who are relocating in droves from other unsecured communities to ours.”
Osaronu, a barrister of many years standing, substantiated his claim that early this year, 14 youths of 28 years of age from the community who attempted to form cult group were tracked down and charged to court.
He commended the Onne Police DPO (Ali Isah Gumel) and his team for their diligence and commitment to duty by ensuring that security of the industrial host community was not compromised. He said; “The DPO is working very hard in his co-operation with me and the community to flush out criminals.”
According to him, even cases of political antagonism and kidnapping are at zero level, noting that members of different political parties operate and relate peacefully with one another unlike what happens in other places in Eleme and the state in general.
On issue of youth leadership crises, Osaronu said Onne community maintains rotational leadership of three-year tenure to avoid rancorous tussle, pointing out that his council of chiefs has set up a committee to work out modalities to elect a new youth president to be elected from Agbeta clan out of the four sub-clans with eleven communities of Onne.
The royal father also commended the management of the Onne Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority for its effort in host community socio-economic responsibility to Onne people, attesting that an erstwhile managing director of the Federal Government agency, Victor Alabo, offered a number of job opportunities, scholarships and contracts to his people.
Osaronu also commended Intel’s, a major private Port Terminal developer of the Onne Free Zone for blazing a trail in corporate Socio-Responsibility (CSR), pointing out that it constructed a 10km standard access road for the community, built a standard market and provided a number of skill acquisitions, health service, scholarships and borehole water, among others, for the community.
Ignatius Chukwu & Godwin Egba