Two people have been reportedly killed with three houses burnt following the invasion of Okobe Community, Ahoada West Local Government Area, Rivers State, by a surveillance task force attached to an oil company.
It was gathered that the anti-vandal task force carried out the operation in the community between Friday and Saturday.
A source, who spoke in confidence, said the community was gripped in fear adding that the task force arrested 10 people.
A lawyer and Senior Advocate of nigeria (SAN) from the community, Tuduru Ede, condemned the development and urged the oil company to call its surveillance team to order.
Ede said that the invasion affected economic and social activities in the area, lamenting that many persons had deserted the community.
He condemned the indiscriminate arrest of people known to be from Okobe claiming that people of the area were not engaged in illegal oil bunkering.
Ede urged the surveillance company to move to the pipelines where the oil thieves operated to tackle theft and vacate the community.
He said: “I am calling on the oil company to ensure that its security operatives, its contractors do not go to Okobe to be harassing community indigenes. They should not go there to indiscriminately arrest anybody at all in the name of looking for people indulging in illegal oil bunkering.
“There are no pipelines in Okobe town. There are no fuel dumps there. Okobe indigenes and traders are going about lawful businesses. But this current situation where the contractor goes into that community everyday to arrest people, is becoming too alarming.
‘Instead of policing their pipelines they are coming to Okobe to burn houses, burn properties and cars. The oil company is using the guise of illegal oil bunkering to harass the people. As we speak some persons have deserted the community.
“They have arrested more than 10 persons. They killed two persons yesterday, Saturday. Is it in the community that contractor should come and show any form of force?”
Ede further said the community would take steps against the firm if the proper thing was not done immediately, adding that the people were living in fear over the development.