Edo: Gov Okpebholo offers amnesty to cultists

Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo State has offered a window of amnesty for cult members in the state to renounce their membership, surrender all illegal arms in their possessions and turn a new leave.

This was just as the government sought the support of some communities on the outskirts of Benin City, the state capital, for the government’s plans new city development to hasten the urban development of the state capital’s satellite towns.

Governor Monday Okpebholo made the offers on Thursday while meeting with the leaders of Obagie, Oke-Oroma and Amagba communities over land and insecurity concerns in Benin City.

While reinstating his administration’s resolve to develop the proposed new city around the communities, the governor said a technical committee would soon be announced to handle the restitution of cult members and criminally minded youths in a bid to reduce the menace of violent crime including kidnapping.

A major component of the amnesty programme for such youths, the governor added, would include skills acquisition and empowerment programme so that they could be useful to themselves and the society on the long run.

Okpebholo further assured the visiting community leaders of his support to bring about lasting peace in their communities especially as government embarked on the development of the new city in their domains.

According to him, peace would be restored to all restive communities in the state including Obagie, Oke-Oroma and Amagba in Benin City.

He however assured that the government was ready to listen to the victims of demolition by the immediate past administration.

“Those whose property was affected should see the Committee on Land Resolution with their papers,” Okpebholo advised.

On the development of LOT ‘A’ in the new city plan, the governor said that the government would look around and protect the traditional sites in the process of developing the new town while those in LOT ‘B’ could come forward with their documents to the committee once the process commences.

Governor Okpebholo also added that the government was ready to carry out a regularisation of land property in the affected areas so that property owners could have their lands back in other LOTS.

He, however, called on property owners in the state to register their properties with Edo Geographical Information System.

“Survey your land and register them with Edo GIS so that you can collect your land titles.” The governor counselled.

In their reaction, the community assured the governor of their total support especially in the development of the LOT ‘A’ in the new city and in his drive to improve the security of their communities.

Pa. Michael Omoruyi, Pa Abel Emokpae and Ebo Amagba spoke respectively for Obagie, Oke-Oroma and Amagba communities.

They commended Governor Okpebholo for setting up the committee to engage them saying it was the first time that the state government was interfacing with them since 2017 when their lands were first acquired by government.

Governor Okpebholo, it would be recalled, had a few weeks ago set up the Committee on Land Resolution in the state with Dr Tony Ikpasaja as Chairman and Dr Abdulwasiu Oyakhire as Secretary.

Other members of the committee include the Surveyor General of the state, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Physical Planning, a state counsel from the Ministry of Justice and Dr Felix Iyalomhen from the office of the Speaker of Edo State House of Assembly.

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