Two individuals had been killed whereas greater than 70 homes had been set on hearth in a conflict between two communities in Kogi State.
The communities concerned within the conflict are Oturpo-Ojile and Ochi-Ibadan below Ankpa Native Authorities Space of the state.
Bother began when some villagers in Ochi-Ibadan allegedly killed a person from Oturpo-Ojile who was coming back from Lagos to his village, Oturpo-Ojile.
Aggrieved by the loss of life of their son, some youths from Oturpo-Ojile went straight to Ochi-Ibadan in a retaliatory assault and reportedly set hearth to over seventy homes.
The member representing Ankpa I Constituency, Akus Lawal, confirmed the incident on the ground of the Kogi State Home of Meeting through the plenary on Thursday.
He stated: “The unhappy incident befell on January 14, 2024. The communal conflict between two communities may be very worrying and shouldn’t be repeated once more.
“We had been knowledgeable that the loss of life of 1 man from Oturpo-Ojile, whereas coming back from a visit, led to a retaliatory assault by his individuals on Ochi-Ibadan village, whom they accused of inflicting the loss of life of their son. Greater than 70 homes and lots of properties in Ochi-Ibadan had been burned to the bottom.
“We should commend the Commissioner of Police who went to this group for on-site evaluation and the Kogi State Authorities led by Alhaji Yahaya Bello for the swift response. We pray that such clashes is not going to happen once more in our nation.”
He, nonetheless, appealed to the Kogi State Emergency Administration Company to instantly present aid supplies to all affected victims of the conflict.
When contacted, state police spokesperson SP William Aya confirmed the incident.
Based on him, 30 homes had been razed to the bottom, whereas a number of properties had been destroyed.
He stated the state Commissioner of Police, Bethrand Onuoha, visited the 2 communities as normalcy has been restored.