The residents of Amarata community in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State have called on cult related groups to vacate the area immediately or face the wrath of the law.
The people made the call during a massive peace walk to protest the rising cult-related violence and criminality in the community.
The people carried placards with inscriptions such as “Say No to Cultism” and Drugs” “Amarata Must Be Free” “We need Peace in Amarata”
Led by the Paramount Ruler, Chief Sam David, the community declared that it would no longer tolerate the presence of criminal gangs using Amarata area as their hideout and giving the community a bad name.
Chief David said Amarata had reached a breaking point and vowed that traditional authorities, security outfits, and youths would flush out criminal elements who cause tension in the area.
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The youth President of the community, Comrade Izibeya Excel, pledged that residents would no longer live in fear, insisting that offenders would be fished out.
Similarly a member of the community, Comrade Gifted Natus who launched Operation Set Amarata Free, stressed that even indigenes involved in cultism would face sanctions.
Some community stakeholders also appealed to security agencies and civil society organizations to support their campaign for lasting peace in the area.
