On July 1, 2023, a militia armed with firearms and knives from the Bokala-Wamba group carried out an attack on PHC employees at the Lokutu site. In addition to disrupting the company's operations, the attack also seriously injured one of the PHC employees, who was taken to hospital for immediate medical treatment.
On hearing this alarming news, the company's industrial guards quickly contacted the police for help. However, once there, the police were also attacked by the assailants. During this second attack, a policeman was injured and his firearm forcibly seized; the assailants also assaulted and took hostage one of the company's industrial guards.
In response to this incident, the relevant authorities quickly launched an investigation which led to the arrest of those responsible for orchestrating the attack; among those arrested was Mr. Alphonse BOSUKI MBANGA, Chef de Groupement de Bokala-Wamba. Thanks to the intervention of the relevant authorities, the industrial guard taken hostage was also successfully freed on July 3, 2023.
According to available information, this attack was carried out in retaliation for the arrest of thieves from the Bokala-Wamba groupement who were caught in the act of felling palm trees belonging to the company. It should be noted that PHC's community engagement teams had been engaged in dialogue with the residents of the said groupement for several months in order to put an end to the felling of the company's palm trees. Prior to the present events, the Yahuma Territory Administrator and the Bolinga Chef de secteur also visited the Bokala-Wamba groupement to sensitize the population and urge the Chef de groupement to put an end to these illegal activities. Despite these efforts, the felling of palm trees continued. As a result, the local authorities intervened and made the necessary arrests.
PHC strongly condemns the actions of the assailants, who not only led to significant losses for the company, but also inflicted physical injuries on members of the local community employed by PHC as well as the police. The company wishes to reiterate its commitment to fostering good neighborly relations with local communities, and remains committed to working towards shared prosperity through agribusiness for all its stakeholders, in line with the vision set out by PHC's new leadership.