By Ameh Gabriel
Tension gripped parts of Rumuosi Town along Airport Road, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, on Tuesday after suspected youths allegedly set bulldozers ablaze during a heated confrontation linked to an ongoing land-grabbing controversy.
Eyewitnesses said the incident, which occurred in the early hours, threw the area into chaos as residents and passersby fled for safety. The heavy machinery, believed to have been mobilized for construction on the disputed land, was targeted and set on fire by the irate youths.
Authorities are yet to issue an official statement on the development, but security operatives have reportedly been deployed to the scene to forestall further breakdown of law and order.
The dispute over land ownership in the area has long been a source of tension, with claims and counterclaims between local communities and private developers. Tuesday’s violent outbreak has once again highlighted the volatile nature of land-related conflicts in Rivers State.
