The bodies of the two remaining victims of the Rivers boat mishap have been recovered.
The incident occurred last Tuesday in the Robert Kiri area along the Kula waterways in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area.
The two bodies reportedly recovered on Saturday have been identified as Davies Opiri and David Sukubo. They were the Secretary of the Kula Community Development Committee (CDC) and the younger brother of the President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo respectively.
The already decomposing bodies were recovered by the search and rescue team comprising community leaders divers local vigilantes and fishermen.
Recall that five of the seven victims were recovered on Thursday and deposited in the morgue after being taken to the State Police Headquarters in Port Harcourt; the latest two were taken to the Divisional Police Station in Abonnema before being taken to the mortuary.
Meanwhile the Nation learnt that the community (Kula) has seized the crude oil vessel ANAMBRA BASIN FSO and the two tugboats (Delta Runner and Laura-V) involved in the incident while investigations continue.
Police have reportedly arrested the two tugboat captains for questioning.
Speaking shortly after the recovery of the last two bodies the President of the Nigerian Youth Council (Sukubo) who led the search and rescue team expressed regret over the deaths of the victims and wondered what would become of the families they left behind.
He said ‘This is havoc committed in Kula Kingdom by Ibeto. He has turned women into widows and children into orphans. He has made families lose their breadwinners husbands fathers brothers uncles cousins nephews and loved ones.’
He threatened to take the recovered bodies to the business premises of the Ibeto Group and all its subsidiaries to demand immediate government action against the owner of the company over the deaths of the victims.
‘I have declared a 21-day protest starting next week with 51000 youths and caskets bearing the remains of the victims.’
‘We shall protest at the residence of Chief Cletus Ibeto in Port Harcourt and shut down all his companies in Rivers State until he is arrested by security agencies and prosecuted for murder.’
‘We demand justice for the families of the victims and the affected communities.’
‘Ibeto is the murderer. He killed our people. He is the mastermind and prime suspect’ he alleged.
The Ibeto Group had earlier denied direct involvement in the issues that led to the incident on the Robertkiri axis of the Kula waterways.
In a statement the company said its subsidiary Max Shipping Services Limited which operates the crude oil vessel was engaged by a hirer Menal Technical Services Limited under a contract to evacuate crude oil from the area.