The 500 or so armed individuals, most of whom were vigilantes, were reportedly well equipped with various rifles, machetes, and other lethal weapons, according to reliable information obtained by INFOGONG.
Residents and bystanders fled the cement factory for safety as a result of the development.
The vigilante group's members were purportedly led by some government representatives.
A source claimed that some of the guys were thugs and that the majority of the men were selected from the Kogi State Government's vigilante and hunters units.
The Oyo Mining host community's spokesman, Mr. David Oluruntoba, called the conduct primitive and repulsive and said that the young in the area are not to be utilized and will not engage in such "evil acts."
They invited us to join them, he said. However, I assured them that the business had not offended us. The corporation has been assisting us and giving us work, and we recently signed a Community Development Agreement (CDA). The government has done nothing for us. The government is not supported by anything.
The Olu of Akpata, Fredrick Balogun, also spoke, claiming that because he had never been contacted, he was unable to defend the unjustified invasion.
We will keep looking for a way of amicable resolution and reconciliation because we are royal fathers. We don't have any problems with the business," he said.
The Kogi State Government has been criticized for what they have called the extrajudicial and illegal deployment of the vigilante to wreak havoc in the Obajana community by members of the mining and host communities.
Recall that the purchase of Obajana Cement and the State's equity stake in Dangote Cement Limited has been the subject of an ongoing dispute between the State administration and the Dangote Cement Company.
As of the time this article was filed, attempts to speak with Kogi State Police Public Relations Officer William Ovye Aya were unsuccessful.
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