P/HARCOURT  – Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has been urged to apply caution in the ongoing war against illegal bunkering and artisanal refinery in the state.

Making the appeal on Tues­day in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, the former Presi­dent of the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) Worldwide, Udengs Eradi­ri, said the use of force to end the menace might end up aggravating the situation.

Eradiri, who is a two-time Commissioner in Bayelsa State, said adopting brute force to stop illegal refineries, alleged to be the cause of soot in the state, could only worsen the situation instead of addressing the problem.

While commending Wike for his bold steps, Eradiri urged him to adopt a strategic broader stakeholders engagement in dealing with the menace to avoid creating another cycle of arm struggle in the region.

He insisted that if the situ­ation were not effectively and cautiously managed, youths, who were already engaged in the illegal business for survival, would be forced to acquire arms and fight back.

Eradiri recalled that the banditry in Zamfara State started when authorities adopted a wrong approach to dislodge hungry youths from gold min­ing sites and has snowballed into a monster making the gov­ernment to now run from pillar to post.

He said the problem later came under control when rea­sons prevailed and authorities decided to set up a committee to harmonies gold mining licenses for the locals.

The NDDC special adviser on youth matters insisted that the same approach adopted by the Federal Government in Zamfara to give the locals an opportunity to benefit from their natural resources should be extended to the people of the region.