The President of the Bayelsa State Chapter of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, Mr. Bright Igrubia and six others have been arrested over an alleged fight over a N1.5 million largesse given by Dame Patience Jonathan to youth praise singers last week in Otuoke.
Youths sympathetic to the arrested men claim that the money was handed to the youths during a solidarity visit they paid to Mrs. Jonathan during her private visit to Bayelsa on Tuesday.
Others claim the controversy and the embarrassing clashes among the youths, led by the members of the National Youths Council of Nigeria, the Otuoke Youth Association and others who stage separate solidarity visits to the wife of the President.
Trouble started for the arrested youth leaders when they mobilized youths for the solidarity visit to Mrs. Jonathan.
Sources said Mrs. Jonathan turned down a request to meet with her and to be addressed publicly. Mrs. Jonathan, has refused to meet with the members of the Otuoke Youths Association.
After intense pressure and solidarity songs rendered in front of the country home of the President, Mrs. Jonathan agreed to meet with the members on the condition that they selected 26 of their members for the visit.
“The youths became unruly and could not select 26 representatives,” the source said. “They became angry and became abusive. The wife of the President, however reached out and gave them token of N1.5million. But they fought over the money.”
The State Police Commissioner, Mr. Hillary Okpara, subsequently ordered an investigation into the incident and ordered the arrest of Mr. Igrubia and other executive members.
The spokesman of the Bayelsa State Police Command, Mr. Alex Akhigbe, said he had no details of the development but confirmed that the arrests.
