The Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide disassociates Ijaw people and groups from the incessant attacks and killing of innocent Nigerians in Lagos and Ogun States by criminal elements. The reported attacks and killings are purely criminal and the Ijaw Youth Council in strong terms condemn such criminal conducts irrespective of who is involved.
However, we state clearly that the persons carrying out these criminal attacks are not Ijaw people and it is absolutely wrong for the media to refer to them as Ijaw militants. The sensational headlines and impression been created is that it is Ijaw people or groups that are carrying out organized attacks and killing of people in some Lagos and Ogun communities.
The Ijaw people indigenous to and living in the south western part of Nigeria are peaceful and law abiding people and can never be involved in attacking communities and killing people.
The Ijaw people also have not at any time met and agreed to attack communities and kill people in Lagos and Ogun states.
We call on the media to accurately report events so as to avoid unnecessary inter-ethnic crisis between ethnic groups whose people were killed and the Ijaw people indigenous to and living in the south west.
Any inter-ethnic crisis between the Yoruba and Ijaw ethnic groups is not in the interest of Nigeria and the media must guide against it. We also call on security agencies to bring the perpetrators of the Lagos and Ogun killings to justice to serve as deterrent to orders.
Signed for the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Worldwide:
Eric Omare
Spokesman
