Press Release
September 2nd, 2019.
COF FOUNDATION STAGES PEACE WALK IN OKPOMA, RECEIVES ROYAL BLESSING
The Charles Offoboche Foundation (COF) in partnership with PROJECT 1000 (a solution driven Citizenship forum) held its long anticipated peace walk in Yala Local Government of Cross River State.
The peace walk which was initiated by COF was to foster peace and unity between two former warring communities - Itega Okpame and Oba - in Yala.
The two communities
Covered during the peace walk were Itega -Okpame and Oba kick started at itega Okpame and traversed through Oba community, had in attendance members of both communities and peace loving sons and daughters from other parts of Yala.
Speaking at the event, Mr John Ebriku Friday, the spokesman of the foundation, reechoed the need for peace and harmony in yala, urging both communities to sheath their swords and give peace a reign.
In his words, "There's no community that attracts development with unrest and war, we all are from Okpame and Oba as we share one ancestry"
The president of the foundation, Mr Charles Offoboche, while commending the people for coming out emass, emphasized the need for peace between the two sister communities.
Mr Charles said "I thank you all for coming out for this epoch making event, it is sad enough that our communities are highly underdeveloped and we can't afford to add destruction of lives to the list of it's worries"
The peace walk delegation also visited the palace of the Paramount ruler of yala, HRH Onah Ipuole, the monarch thanked the organizers for finding it necessary to hold such event at this critical point when the people needed to hear the peace message.
HRH Onah Ipuole lamented that the incident that happened was unfortunate and regretful.
The event terminated at the International peace house, okpoma, and heralded with the distribution of empowerment materials to young entrepreneurs from both communities who had been trained by the COF foundation.
Speaking at the event also was Dr Raphael Ogar of the Peace Foundation International, he lamented that development has been hampered because of the incessant crisis in the area.
He said"no organization will want to invest its money in a warring community, very soon we will have a community radio and we do not want fighting to chase away our investors, so we are begging you all to give peace a chance so that we can have more development"
In a similar vein, both communities when given the opportunity to speak about the walk 'speaking through their representatives, the both communities commended the organizers for the initiative. They said the walk will bring to maturation the peace already germinating.
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