The proposed multi-billion-naira Bayelsa State shipyard project to be sited at Akabelei in Brass Local Government Area may run into a hitch, if government does not take  urgent step to douse tension between Opoama and Odioma communities over the ownership of the site.

Though the project a source of controversy between the presidency and the state government is yet to take off,  the clearing of the site has brought an acrimony between the two communities, as youths from Okpoama community are alleging short changed over labour jobs already started.

Okpoama youth president, Mr Nadu Okenema in a statement accused his Odioma counterpart and their chiefs of carrying out actions that may be detrimental to the actualisation of the project.

He said, severally his members were chased away from the project site by armed Odioma youths, saying that act of provocation may not augur well, if the state government did not act quickly to check the scenario.

The youth leader said, though the ownership of the site had been in contention between the two communities, the state governor Chief Timipre Silva, who happened to come from the area used his wisdom to convene a meeting of the two communities where it was agreed that they would work together to ensure smooth take-off of the project.

He alleged that the people of Odioma were acting contrary to the agreement declaring that “we have been calm because of our desire to see that the project take off as planned. Just as we know that the project will employ a lot of youths in the state’’

The youths leader is also not happy with the security agents at the site and the governor’s representative for Brass Local Governent Area, Mr Biriyai Okolo for supporting the actions of their opponents at the site.

Efforts to get the president of Odioma youths to comment on the issue was not successful as he was not available on phone but a member of the community who chose to anonymity said the land was not in dispute until the idea of siting the project came up saying that “those Okpoama people want to use the name of the government who is their son to grab our land”.

It could be recalled that the project which is supposed to be a joint venture between the state government and the South Korean Industrial giant, Hundai Heavy Industries (HHI) is now causing some controvery as the South Korean Embassy in Nigeria denied knowledge of the project soon after the governor took some people he described as the officials of the company to the Presidency.