The Anambra Government has inaugurated a 10-man panel of inquiry to look into the recent Omor and Umunbo communal crisis in Ayamelum Local Government of the state.

The inauguration took place at the Office of the Deputy Governor at Government House, Awka on Tuesday.

Gov. Willie Obiano represented by his Deputy, Dr. Nkem Okeke charged the panel to identify the immediate and remote causes of the problems and find ways of ending the conflict to prevent further crisis.

The panel has Prof. Solomon Ekwenze as its Chairman and Dr. Emma Ude Akpeh as Secretary.

Prof. Ekwenze is from the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu University, Igbariam, while Dr. Ude Akpe is a Permanent Secretary in the office of the Secretary to State Government.

Other members are Speaker Anambra House of Assembly, Mr. Uche Okafor, Chairman Ayamelum Traditional Rulers, and Igwe Benjamin Okeji (Igwe Omasi).

The panel also has  Mr. Vincent Ofumelu, Chief Paul Odenigbo, Rev. Fr. John Manafa, Chief Boni Emengini, Chief Tony Iwoba, and Mr. Chinedu Anigbaoso, serving as the Chief Security Officer of the committee.

The committee is also to ascertain the involvement of the major actors in the dispute.

The panel would further ascertain the roles played by the traditional rulers and stakeholders of both communities in the crisis.

The committee would also note the roles played by security agencies during and after the crisis, as well as note all damages incurred by both communities.

It would, then, advise the State Government on ways to ensure that communities in Ayamelum learn from the recent crisis as well as advise the government about finding common factors suitable in such a crisis.

The panel would be required to submit its report within a month, subject to 10 sittings from the date of inauguration.

In his response, Chairman of the committee, Prof. Ekwenze, re-assured the government of positive reports that would obviously put a stop to the ongoing crisis in the two communities.

According to him, the randomly selected members of the committee are people from affected areas and experienced in matters of conflict resolution.

Addressing newsmen, the Speaker, Mr. Okafor described the situation as unfortunate because the State Government had made efforts to ensure that Anambra remained the safest in the country.

“The people of Ayamelum are predominantly farmers and issues of this kind usually come up during the farming season.’’

He called on indigenes of these communities to sheath their swords, urging them to be their brother’s keepers for the greater good of Ayamelum LGA.

The speaker thanked the Government’s timely response to the crisis and promised that the committee would swing into action in providing lasting solutions to the crises, as well as in other communities in Ayamelum and environs.

Reports have it that there was a communal clash between the two communities on May 5 overland disputes that led to the loss of lives and property.