A
detachment of soldiers has taken over the Rivers House of Assembly following
the fracas that erupted there on Tuesday and continued today. The
soldiers took over when two opposing youth groups numbering over 2,000, some
pro-Governor Chibuike Amaechi, some against, attempted to storm
the Assembly this morning.
They
had disparate missions: to either prevent the five renegade lawmakers from
sitting or to aid them. There
was a clash between the youths and one was reportedly shot. No one knows who
actually fired the shot.
The
pro-Amaechi group, which is under the auspices of Ikwerre Youth Movement, IYM,
was this morning led by Tony Okocha, the Chief of Staff, while the other group
of youths under the aegis of Grassroots Democratic Initiative, GDI, is loyal to
Nyesom Wike, the Minister of State for Education.