- Nigeria’s population now 182 million —NPC
Ten children were yesterday feared drowned and many others injured during an ethnic clash in Ajah.
Several make shift houses and properties were also destroyed.
Rapid Response Squad (RRS) operatives’ timely intervention prevented higher casualty figures, sources said. They rescued many including babies trapped inside burning shanties.
The fracas broke out on Monday following the alleged invasion of some fishermen by some youths.
The youths were said to have asked the fishermen to leave their land for them to make money. Land is a hot cake in Ajah and environ
The Nation learnt that the fishermen, had invited their kinsmen from outside the country to assist them in the dispute.
It was gathered that a monarch sent some youths to the area last weekend to chase the fishermen and reclaim the land. The fishermen resisted them.
According to a resident, Jonathan Zosu, the children were running away when they drowned inside the lagoon at Otodogbame.
He said their bodies were yet be found.
Zosu said: “This problem started since last weekend but things really got bad on Sunday when the police came here and arrested our monarch, Baale Dansu Hunkpe. How can anyone claim we are not Nigerians? Where are we from then?
“Our ancestors migrated to this community from Badagry and we have lived here for centuries. Over 90 percent of the people here are Nigerians. The other 10 percent are other nationals who are residents.
“It is all about land tussle. The boys were sent here to chase us out of our homes so that their senders can inherit our properties. So many people were arrested that Sunday but yet, we resisted their attempt to chase us out.
“But early morning on Wednesday, they came again. The youths, mostly cultists, came with cutlasses and other weapons. They were cutting people on sight.
“So many people were injured in that process. As they macheted people, they scattered our homes and set them ablaze. It was in the chaos that the 10 children drowned inside the lagoon.
“We have not seen their bodies yet. As I am talking with you, I am still inside the water. So many people have been rendered homeless. We called the police but instead of assisting us, the police joined the hoodlums in burning our homes.”
But the police said they were no casualties, adding that 16 people were arrested on Wednesday.
According to the police, all the leaders in the community have been arrested and charged to court.
In the meantime, the Director-General of National Population Commission, NPC, Ghaji Bello, has said Nigeria’s population was currently 182 million, with more than half its people under 30 years of age.
According to him, this puts a severe strain on a nation, with its slowing economy and declining revenue to provide enough schools and health facilities.
Bello, who disclosed this in Abuja, said the latest estimate was based on the population of 140 million recorded in the last census a decade ago, using an annual growth rate of 3.5 percent weighed against other variables such as rising life expectancy and a declining infant mortality rate
He said Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, was witnessing a growing youth bulge, with those under 14 years accounting for more than 40 percent of its citizens.
According to him, this is happening at a time the International Monetary Fund, IMF, has predicted that the nation’s gross domestic product will shrink 1.7 percent this year, the first full-year contraction in more than two decades.
“The implication is that they are assets, they are the future of our country, but they are also liabilities. We need to know how to plan for their transition from youths to the next category. ‘’It has implications for education, health and security, particularly in our environment where you have a lot of unemployment,’’ Bello said.
He said plans to hold a census this year were delayed by 2015 elections and a plunge in revenue due to low prices for crude, the country’s main export, and slashed output caused by militant attacks in the Niger Delta. “We’re hopeful the government will soon make a statement for the next exercise,” he said.
Nation with additional report from Vanguard
