4.

4 Joint Task Force (JTF) and MOPOL

The security forces have a place in conflict management in the communities

researched. For example, during their conflict, MOPOL 56 29 was deployed to KDere
and B-Dere communities, where they remain stationed along the major road that
The group was made up of Ogoni elites and was formed to promote the development of Ogoni
land.
It is now defunct.
29 Mobile Police Squad based in Saakpenwa in Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State.
28

45
separates the two communities and continue to patrol to ensure stability. The
presence of MOPOL 56 is considered to have brought relative calm to the
communities. Another example of police intervention referred to by respondents
was
the conflict between the okada riders of B-Dere and Kiara:
Our okada boy from B-Dere was attacked by the Kiara bike boys. He was
beaten and he sustained injury because he was stabbed in three places
(stomach, chest and waist). This action led to the carefulness of our
people and our youths regrouped for revenge, while some boys went to
Kiara to find out why their boy was attacked. This movement led to riots in
Kiara. On the process of the riot police intervened through the patrol
team. So after the police intervention the case was settled. (A1.19)
The JTF has also been deployed in other parts of Rivers State, where their
presence
has contributed to securing peace. The JTF was similarly deployed in the violence
between Imiringi and Emeyal. The JTF was also commended by the people of
BDere
for reducing oil bunkering. According to a key informant:
...oil bunkering has reduced, due to the interventions of JTF, who is
guarding the pipeline where crude oil is drilled illegally. Without the
presence of JTF, oil bunkering would have continued because of the
connivance of the police. (KIIs Dere 1)

4.5 Government

Government intervention was cited as significant in calming violent conflict in the

region, most notably by respondents in K-Dere/B-Dere and Diobu. The Rivers
State
Government and the Gokana Local Government played a part in the
management
of the K-Dere and B-Dere conflict. For example the vice-chairman of the joint
peace
committee commented that government said the conflict must stop and
everyone
gathered for prayer. The committee I am in was formed and till date no conflict.
Another respondent commented, in relation to the cultism crisis:
Governor A came to power at the height of this conflict. He made it as a
policy to get rid of all forms of cultism from Rivers State. The community
at the time also formed a vigilante group to counter the cult group. The
rest is history today. The splinter group came up, giving room to all sorts
of groups, but today, the government of Rivers State under Governor A
has quelled all these groups. (A2.1)
A womens leader from Diobu declared that the cult group issue was managed
well
by Rivers State Government in sending police and army to handle the conflict
and
work alongside the council of chiefs, elders and youths.

The court system is mainly used when the people are not satisfied with the
judgment
they receive from community fora. Most often, the court they resort to is the
customary court, i.e. that which is governed by the customary law of the area.
Customary courts settle cases according to customary law, adjudicating in cases
concerning land, matrimony, guardianship and custody of children, and
inheritance.
The difference between the customary court and the traditional conflict
management
mechanisms is that the former is recognised by the constitution of the nation and
it is
part of the formal judicial system, though it is the lowest level. 30
The court system in Nigeria is as follows (from the lowest to the highest): customary court
magistrates court high court court of appeal supreme court.
30

46
In all but one of communities researched, it was said that if a person seeks
redress in
court after the council has ruled on a case, the council sends delegates to the
court
to inform them of its resolution.
Anybody that loses a case or feels that he didnt get a fair hearing from
the council can seek redress in the law court. Where that is done, the
council normally sends a delegate to the court to intimate them that the
case has been settled in the community by the council and give the court
the councils written ruling. (A4.7)
If the case concerns a conflict in the community, the aggrieved cannot bypass
the
traditional method. Most times, the court is the last resort. In Omuokiri, if an
someone
attempts to shortcut this procedure, they will be liable to a fine.

5. RECOMMENDATIONS TO NSRP

The main recommendation arising from the research is that NSRP should support
and encourage the positive initiatives already being undertaken in the
communities.
In K-Dere and B-Dere, the joint peace committee and the joint surveillance group,
have done much to ensure that the conflict between the two communities does
not
arise again. This committee should be encouraged by organising training
workshops
for them. It was also noticed in this community that there are a lot of youths
milling
around and they claim it is as a result of unemployment. This makes them ready
tools for any mischief-maker. Therefore, it will be important to organise a skills
acquisition or empowerment programme for the youths in the community, and
arrange for start-up loans for them so the issue of capital does not arise after
learning the skills.
For Diobu, the main issue of contention is land, and the way in which rich people
and
the government bully them out of their rightful property. Cases generally end in
litigation but unfortunately, most community members cannot afford a good
lawyer
and so lose the case and their land. Legal aid mechanisms could provide them
ways
of asserting their rights more effectively. Also, in this community, youth

unemployment is rampant. It will be important to also organise skills acquisition

training for the youths of this community.
Womens groups are active and organized in all the communities visited (in BDere,
Ogboloma and Imiringi they are called women's houses). It is important to
recognise
the role of women which women play in conflict management. In order to
promote
their inclusion in the processes in their community, measures such as sponsoring
trainings to develop womens conflict management skills should be supported.
For those communities where oil companies are present, NSRP should work with
the companies to assist them in understanding and implementing their corporate
social responsibility to the people. There should also be local peace conferences
in
all the communities to create a synergy between all the stakeholders identified in
the respective communities.

References

47
Abegunde A. A. (2009) The role of community based organizations in economic
development in Nigeria: the case of Oshogbo, Osun State in International NGO
Journal No. 5, pp 236-252. http://www.academicjournals.org/ INGOJ accessed on
27.11
Ejibunu, H.T. (2007) Nigerias Niger Delta crisis: root causes of peacelessness
EPU Research Papers, Issue 07/07, Stadtschlaining, Austria, European University
Center for Peace Studies (EPU),
El-Jack, A. (2003) Gender and armed conflict overview report Brighton, Institute
of
Development Studies http://www.bridge.ids.ac.uk/reports/CEP-Conflict-Report.pdf
Fisher, S. (2000) Working with conflict: skills and strategies for action London,
Zed
Books
Nweke, K. (2012) The role of traditional institutions of governance in managing
social conflicts in Nigerias oil-rich Niger Delta communities: imperatives of
peacebuilding
process in the post-Amnesty era Available at
http://www.bjournal.co.uk/paper/BJASS_5_2/BJASS_05_02_06.pdf. accesed on
9.5.12
Ojo, O. (1996) Socio-economic and socio-cultural impact of climate and sea-level
rise in west and central Africa in Robert W. Steel (ed.) Global Change and the
Commonwealth Hong Kong, Chinese University Hong Kong.
Okoh, R. (2005) Conflict management in the Niger Delta region of
Nigeria: a
participatory approach in African Journal of Conflict Resolution vol. 5, no. 1,
pp
91-114
Orji, K. E. & Olali, S. T. (2010) Traditional institutions and their dwindling roles in
contemporary Nigeria: the Rivers State example. In T. Babawale, A. Aloa and B.
Adesoji (eds.) Chieftaincy institution in Nigeria Lagos, Concept Publication Ltd
Oruwari, Y. (2006) Post-conflict peace building and democracy in an oil region:
the
role of womens groups in the Niger Delta, Nigeria in Niger Delta Economies of
Violence Working Paper 13 Berkeley, Institute of International Studies, University
of
California

Platform (2011) Counting the cost: corporations and human rights abuses in the
Niger Delta Available at http://platformlondon.org/2011/10/03/counting-thecostcorporationsand-human-rights-abuses-in-the-niger-delta/ accesed 9.5.12
48

B: MIDDLE BELT REPORT