No fewer than seven staff of Dangote Cement, Obajana in Kogi state were shot and several others injured as over 500 armed members of the state’s security outfit, the Vigilantes, stormed the cement factory in the early hours of Wednesday at the instance of the state governor, Yahaya Bello.
Meanwhile, members of the mining and host communities have condemned the Kogi State Government for what they described as extra-judicial and unlawful deployment of the Vigilantes to cause chaos in the Obajana community.
The vigilante’s group were led by the state Director-General of Lands; Commissioner for Solid Minerals, Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Security, Commodore Jerry Omodara(rtd), Chairman of Kabba/Bunnu LGA, Chairman of Ijumu LGA and the State ALGON Chairman, Alh. Taofeek; Senior Special Assistant on Job Creation, Mr Dele Iselewa and Chairman of Lokoja LGA, Alh. Mohammed Dansabe.
The vigilante group members were wielding arms of different kinds including local and assorted rifles as residents and passersby scamper for safety.
As at the time of this report some seven staff of the cement company were being attended to at the hospitals over the gunshot wounds inflicted on them.
A source who identified some of the vigilante men as thugs said most of them were drawn from state vigilante and hunters who have been working for the state government.
Mr. David Oloruntoba, spokesman for the Oyo Mining host community described the act as primitive and disgraceful, saying the youths of the community can never be used, and will not take part in such ‘evil practices’.
