Ogbakiri Community Project

Ogbakiri Community Project

Ogbakiri in Rivers State is located in Nigeria - roughly 299 mi (or 482 km) south of Abuja, the Nigerian capital.

Rumukoroshe, Umuahia, Port Harcourt, Owerri, Okinbiribalo, Ikot-Ekpene, Eremogbogoro, Ekowe, Chokoche and Aba are locations relatively near and could be worth to discover when around.

According to our records, there are 2 airports in the area. The closest airport is Port Harcourt Airport with a distance of 12.8 mi (or 20.7 km) north-west of the Centre of Ogbakiri.

Peace returns to Ogbakiri after years of communal clashes By JIMITOTA ONOYUME. Nov 19, 2011. “The first time I saw this type of carnage was during the Nigerian civil war “, Mama Ihuoma Okoro said as she told the story of how her Ogbakiri community in Emohua Local Government Area of Rivers state was razed down completely over Chieftaincy crisis. According to her, the problem which started in 1999 lasted for about two years and within this period, no structure was left standing. “ People died during the Ogbakiri crisis. The whole houses in the area were burnt down.”  At one of the communities visited, a youth leader who spoke to Saturday Vanguard under condition of anonymity said it was so bad that after burning down houses in the area and the warring youths could not find anything of value to destroy again, they had to start pulling down PHCN cables and now there are no light in the communities.

Just when many thought that peace had returned to the area after the state government, Ikwerre council of chiefs and other stakeholders had brokered peace in the area, another crisis broke out and this time, it was mainly driven by youths who became members of various cult groups. The battle for who controls which area in the six communities led to several losses of lives. Ogbakirki became a no-go area for even indigenes of the land. “Terror was the order of the day”. For about five years, cultists literarily called the shots in the area. They raped, maimed and killed at will.

There was a particular incident where some cultists of the same fraternal group saw a pregnant lady and an argument ensued among them over the sex of the baby in her womb, whether it would be a boy or a girl. Finally they concluded that to resolve the issue, the pregnant woman should be killed on the spot to determine the sex of the pregnancy. They did it. This was how bad it was in our community”. People had to flee for their lives. “It was really bad. Sometimes, they would kill and dump the corpse in a well where everybody drank water from.” The various cult groups had camps in the communities where they kept their hostages. It was a reign of terror in the area as the cultists caused many to relocate to other parts of the state. The intervention of the Joint Task Force under Brigadier General Sarkin Yarkin Bello saved the situation. And the federal government’s amnesty programme has also been a stabilising factor in the area. The JTF smoked out the cultists and rendered them powerless.

The JTF was effectively funded by Governor Chibuike Amaechi to help achieve peace in the state. It dislodged cultists who masqueraded as militants in all parts of the state causing problems all over. The Amnesty programme has helped to consolidate the peace in Ogbakiri. It made a lot of boys to come out to submit their arms. Now there is peace, Peace has finally returned to Ogbakiri. The rich ones are rebuilding their burnt houses while some have completed and moved in. The people now want development. They appealed to both the Rivers state and federal government to come their aid. They want the entire Ogbakiri to be connected to the national grid; they also want link roads and other comfort of the contemporary age like good schools, link roads in the various communities.

Schools in Ogbakiri communities also suffer set back such that students do not find it interesting attending classes. They come to classes when they choose to; the environment is not in its best shape for proper learning. Teachers do not have good staffrooms to settle after classes and to relate with students after class. The students prefer to attend burial ceremonies during school days than attend classes.  In most cases students resume school two to three weeks after resumption. Malpractice has been their escape route into institution of higher learning which in turn pollutes the system and makes the learning environment very unfriendly.

Having heard this serious and very painful experiences in the communities in ogbakiri, we from Saving Hand Development Initiative as God will help us would love to offer our contribution as we work together with the people (both old and young) in the communities to create a better and safe environment for the up-coming generations. We are very positive that God will perfect His mighty works in the Life of every person’s in Ogbakiri and Nigeria at large, friends and visitors of our great nation and at its end help to find a lasting peace to the human society. We are confident in what God Almighty will do both in their schools and in the communities at large. We hope to introduce well driven motivational programmes to bring about a mindset change among students and members of the community at large.

Ogbakiri communities Development Plan

• Through Shared vision: We hope to assist the community see a better future and have hope, that it can be achieved.
• Through Leadership: Through members of our Team, NCCF, Churches and other mission houses around, Godly Christian leaders are positioned and equipped to lead the community toward the accomplishment of its vision.
• Through Ownership: We will encourage the People toward taking responsibility for their own health and well-being.
• Through Cooperation: We will try to ensure People are united and are working together for the common good.
• Through Volunteers: People will be encouraged to take initiative and act sacrificially to meet the legitimate needs of others.
• Through Dignity: People will recover their identity as made in the image of God and their vocation as stewards of creation. Instead of being controlled or victimized by their environment, they will be stewards of it.
• Through Learning, Skill, and Resources: The People will be equipped to identify needs and resources, put together a plan, and mobilize volunteers to accomplish their vision. People will continually reflect on what is happening in order to learn how to be more effective.
• Through Christian Community and Witness: Encourage Believers meeting together for fellowship, prayer, Bible study and worship, and sharing Christ with neighbors in word and deed.