The Police in Bayelsa has taken 12 women from the Agobiri village in the state’s Southern Ijaw Local Government Area to court for “unlawful assembly and use of juju” in an attempt to stop the state government-sponsored Yenagoa-Oporoma Road from being built.

Madam Nerisa John (age 43), Christiana Famous (age 36), Dolphina Ochai (age 34), Flora Clinton (age 55), Ayibanua Lucky (age 33), Motoko Oyibadoemi (age 54), Amilo Brandy (age 30), Tuebi Romeo (age 25), Ayibaegben Godbless (age 40), Becky Williams (age 37), Ayababy Kwoli (age 50), and Falaba David (age 30) are the women arrested by the Police.

The police accused the protesting women of allegedly on November 24 and 30 at Agobiri community in Oporoma magistrate district in a two-count charge before the Magistrate Court, Oporoma Division.

The Police started, “You did conspire among yourselves to commit a felony with unlawful assembly and thereby committed an offense punishable under section 444(d) of the criminal code law, Cap C 14 laws of Bayelsa State, 2006.

“That you (all the accused) and others at large on the same date and place in the aforesaid Magisterial district with intent to carry out a common purpose, did assemble in such a manner by blocking the ongoing Oporoma-Yenagoa Road construction with sticks, plantain, juju, palm fronds, causing persons in the neighborhood to fear;

“And tumultuously disturb the peace of the people using access road without reasonable occasion and thereby committed an offense contrary to section 54 and punishable under section 55 of the criminal code law, Cap C14 Laws of Bayelsa State.”

They, on the other hand, pled not guilty and were given N50,000 bail each, with one surety who owns a landed property.

The case was adjourned to December 6 by the presiding Magistrate, A. N. Asuku.

The women were apprehended during their protest against their community allegedly being separated from the Oporoma-Yenagoa Road construction project. They are from the Agobiri community in the Southern Ijaw Local Government council.

They had purportedly threatened to halt the road works unless Governor Douye Diri’s administration included their community as a beneficiary.