Information gathered by Sunday Tribune on Saturday revealed that Dr Donovan, his wife and Alanna Carson, among others, are ready to return to continue their medical outreach under the New Foundations Clinic if the mastermind of the kidnap saga, Karowei Pere Gbakumor and his gang, were brought to book.
This, they said, was necessary to guarantee safety of lives and properties of people of the community as well as themselves.
“Dr Donovan and others are ready to come back, but for the helplessness and insecurity in the community.
“They said they’re coming back because of the suffering of people of the community.
“They even appealed that the N2 million placed on the head of Karowei for his arrest should be removed, if that will make him rescind his threats of attack on the community,” a community leader, who communicated with one of the Britons recently, disclosed to Sunday Tribune.
The source further added that “their (Britons) concern is for the community. They had made friends. They’ll come back. They said once Karowei is arrested and the tension subsides, they’ll come back. Dr Donovan said so.”
Karowei, who’s believed to be hiding in the creeks of Burutu, is said to have also threatened to snuff life out of the man who ususally heads the New Foundations Clinic when the Britons are not on ground.
The offence of the man, whose name could not be ascertained as of press time, was that he led security agents to arrest Willie, one of the arrested boys of Karowei who’s now in the custody of the police.
Sunday Tribune, however, gathered that the clinic was still under lock and key over fear of reprisal attacks by Karowei and his gang, just as youths of the community had remained vigilant to ward off any aggression.
Late Dr Squire and his colleagues had, early October before their kidnap, mobilised and penciled in 100 patients from Enekorogha and neighbouring communities for eye surgeries come February 2018 when they’ll return from holiday.
But a twist of fate led to their midnight kidnap on the eve of the day they were to return to Britain and since then their medical kits and personal belongings were still lying idle in the clinic and their quarters.
Speaking with Sunday Tribune, chairman of the community, Prince Michael Ogobiri, he called on the security agencies, especially the Operation Delta Safe (OPDS) to involve youths of the area to effect the arrest of Karowei if safety must return to the area early enough.
According to him, Karowei is still surviving in the deep creeks because he’s able to access victuals through neighbouring communities such as Otegbene and Okediagbene communities.
“If they (OPDS) really mean business and want to arrest Karowei, they should quiz people fishing at Otegbene and Okediagbene because he’s surely getting food and supplies from some of them.
“Karowei has been living in that creek for long and we allowed it, but today, all of us are living in fear, regretting it.
“The community boys can follow the JTF to smoke him out of his den. I discussed it with the JTF commander when he came here the last time that if they allowed us to follow them into the creeks, something positive will happen.
“We need to arrest Karowei for the persisting fear in the community to subside. We can’t go after him on our own because we may be mistaken for militants by the JTF. We want them to remove Karowei from here,” Ogobiri pleaded.
Attempts made to speak with the OPDS spokesperson, Major Ibrahim Abdulahi, Commissioner of Police, Delta State, Mr Ibrahim Zanna and the Commander, Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Delta, Commodore Ibrahim Dewu, on efforts made so far to arrest Karowei, were not successful.
and then