A group known as the Boki Pragmatic Stakeholders Forum has criticised the recently held Okubuchi Peace Summit, saying the gathering failed to provide clear solutions to the lingering crisis affecting communities around Boje and Isobendeghe in Boki Local Government Area of Cross River State.
In a press review signed by Chief Enu Caesar on behalf of affected natives, the group described the summit as largely ceremonial, arguing that it ended without a clear plan for addressing the causes of the conflict.
According to the group, politicians delivered speeches, traditional rulers offered blessings and a communiqué calling for peace was presented, but there was no detailed assessment of the security situation, funding plan or mechanism for implementing the resolutions.
The stakeholders said the continued crisis in the area shows that peace meetings must go beyond speeches and ceremonies.
They questioned the absence of basic information that could help authorities understand the situation, including the number of youths without farmland, the extent of damage to cocoa farms, the circulation of firearms and the effect of the crisis on local governance.
The group also argued that the economic conditions facing young people must be considered in efforts to resolve the conflict.
It said unemployment, loss of farming opportunities and lack of economic opportunities could contribute to insecurity and called for greater attention to the economic side of the crisis.
The stakeholders further called for proper identification of those affected by the conflict, those accused of sponsoring violence and others who may be benefiting from the situation.
They proposed the creation of a peace and security monitoring system that would track issues such as landlessness, destruction of farms, arms proliferation, unemployment, drug-related crime, the functioning of government institutions and investor confidence in the area.
The group also proposed a five-point roadmap, beginning with the establishment of an Economic Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the underlying issues and submit its findings within 30 days.
It called for immediate measures to restore effective governance and security in affected communities, followed by economic recovery programmes, including the revival of the Boje Mouribond Cocoa Estate and the creation of employment opportunities for youths.
The stakeholders also proposed the development of a wider cocoa agro-industrial framework for Boki, with Isobendeghe positioned as an economic corridor and Boje developed as a viable administrative centre.
On enforcement, the group called for a community policing arrangement involving traditional rulers and other stakeholders, with emphasis on holding those responsible for sponsoring violence accountable.
The forum said every future peace summit should clearly state who will fund proposed programmes, who will implement them and how compliance will be monitored.
“Peace must be planted like cocoa — with data, with economy, with jobs,” the group stated.
The stakeholders ultimately called on the Cross River State Government to constitute an economic judicial commission and panel of inquiry to investigate the issues surrounding the crisis and recommend lasting solutions.
The group said such an investigation would provide a structured way of examining the economic, security and governance challenges behind the conflict rather than relying solely on periodic peace gatherings.
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