FROM MATTHIAS OGBAGAH, WARRI
Nine days into the nationwide protest against bad governance, major cities and towns in Delta State including the Otovwodo junction of the East-West road where protesters from other states and council areas converge received a sigh of relief as business and commercial activities resumed fully.
At the Otovwodo-Ughelli junction where major catastrophe and destruction takes place since the regime of President Ibrahim Babangida was relatively calm with the visible presence of riot police drafted to quell any form of protest or riot in the council area.
While speaking to our correspondent in Warri and Ughelli at separate times, one of the conveners of the Endbadgovernance protest who did not want his name in black and white disclosed that most of the youths chicken out as a result of police molestation in some council areas if the state while others were given huge amount of money to stop the protest.
According to him, “It is not yet hurry, we will back to the streets of Delta State with full force until present government both at federal and state harken to our collective voices.
” We are not unaware of some council chairmen in the state who made frantic efforts to thwart the efforts of the protesters by mobilizing thugs to attack the protesters and some shared money to protesters to sell their conscience.
” I want to let Nigerians particularly Delta State Governor and Ughelli North council boss and cohorts that we are coming to continue the protest no matter the number of trucks of Army and Police you prepare to kill us”, he vowed.
While commenting on the national broadcast by President Bola Tinubu, he said, that President Tinubu has not addressed the core areas of needs of Nigerians, he urged him to address the high price of fuel that surged the price of food and commodities in the country.
Earlier, some protesters mainly youths in Ughelli accused the council boss of taking advantage of the hardship on the protesters and asked them to meet him at Ihwrovie primary school and shared money with them to stop the protest.
When contacted, the chief press secretary to the council chairman, Mr. Efe Ekete debunked the allegation described as false and baseless allegation without iota of truth.
