By Our Correspondent
Cross River State Government has sounded a thunderous warning to impostors and criminal profiteers attempting to hijack its cocoa estates.
This strong message came as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Prof. Anthony Owan Enoh, addressed a high-powered delegation of cocoa farmers from Etung LGA, led by Hon. Atu Ebuta, Chairman of the Bendeghe Ekiem unit of the Cocoa Association of Nigeria, who came crying out over the reign of terror allegedly unleashed by one Mr. Oscar Ofuka.
Prof. Enoh, unwavering and deliberate, made it crystal clear that the state will no longer sit idly while impostors intimidate and sabotage genuine farmers who were duly allocated land by the government. “Oscar Ofuka is not a government representative, he is not recognized, and he will not be allowed to continue this illegality. We will pursue him within the ambit of the law — to the very end,” the SSG thundered.
Describing Ofuka as a serial impostor with an over-bloated sense of power, the government said his continued interference in state-owned cocoa estates is a criminal act that will attract the full wrath of the law. The case, now sub judice, will not be swept under the rug, the SSG insisted, as government braces up for total asset recovery in line with Governor Bassey Otu’s mandate.
The farmers, already reeling from months of intimidation, found renewed hope when they also tabled their ordeal before Hon. Kingsley Isong, member representing Etung in the State House of Assembly. Visibly livid, Hon. Isong described Ofuka’s actions as a betrayal of trust and a disgrace to Etung. “How does a former government aide turn against the very people he was supposed to serve? The House of Assembly will take this up. This madness must stop,” he vowed.
The Special Adviser to the Governor on Asset Management and Recovery, Barr. Gilbert Agbor, also issued a stern directive to the farmers: remain calm, stay lawful — the government is taking over. “Let no farmer be afraid. We are taking back what belongs to the state. Those who came through the back door will be kicked out the front,” he said.
Meanwhile, the farmers raised concerns that Ofuka may have tried to pre-empt the new administration by manipulating access to the estates in a bid to hoard power and revenue, all under a false guise of court orders.
Calls to Mr. Ofuka for comments were abortive at the time of filing this report.
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