By Ovie Okpare
The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has warned that a second wave of militancy in the oil-rich Niger Delta is gradually building up owing to the manner the Nigerian government of President Muhammadu Buhari is handling issues pertaining to the region.
IYC stressed that issues relating to the region must be seriously taken and fully implement to avoid the looming calamity, warning that the country would survive renewed hostilities.
President of IYC, Timothy Peter Igbifa, reeled out the alert in a statement in Port Harcourt.
Igbifa said one of such issues that is causing the imminent militancy is the failure by the President Buhari-led federal government to completely implement the full package of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).
He stressed that playing politics with the amnesty programme which has restored total peace to the region is like giving approval for crisis in the region.
The IYC President reiterated that the amnesty project was initiated to take youths out of the creeks and integrate them into the society through a well-organised programme of empowerment and development of the region.
Igbifa noted that despite the good intension which encompasses integration, empowerment and regional development of the region, the Nigerian governemnt had reneged on its execution and successful completion for the people of the area.
Igbifa said, “A second wave of militancy is looming in the region and it will be very difficult for the country to survive it. The only thing left for the government to do is ensure all promises contained in the amnesty programme are fulfilled without further.
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“With the appointment of the current interim administrator, an opportunity has been opened to redeem the situation. Any attempt to maintain the business-as-usual approach to the management of PAP will lead to fresh militancy in the region.
“Our interest is in the infrastructural development of the Niger Delta which is the responsibility of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the Ministry of the Niger Delta Affairs and the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP). This developmental plan must be activated immediately.
“We need environmental remediation of the Niger Delta region to be coordinated by these interventionist agencies and programmes. They should also include the taking care of people from impacted and affected communities.
“We need the quick passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law to promote equity and entrench peace in the Niger Delta. The bill is supposed to help host communities within the region take advantage of the oil economy in the region.
“The amnesty scheme has not lived up to its purpose. The Federal Government has failed woefully to take the programme beyond the disarmament and demobilisation stage because they feel they have successfully brought the youths out of the creeks and nothing is disturbing oil production. So, the government is currently playing politics with the scheme.”
But the IYC boss said the appointment of Col. Miland Dixon Dikio (retd) as the interim administrator of PAP had provided the government another opportunity to reposition the programme.
He asked the government to give maximum support to Dikio warning that if the federal government failed to act fast in implementing the complete PAP framework, militancy would resurface in the region.
“We understand that many of the ex-agitators have been trained. But how many of the trained persons have been given job placements to earn a living?
“Under my watch as the President of IYC we will do everything possible to ensure full implementation of the amnesty package. We cannot accept this half measure. The federal government has the last chance with Miland Dixon Dikio to reposition the programme and realise its objectives”, the IYC President stated.
