I wrote a piece with this title in 2009 and published by the Vanguard Newspapers in their November 21, 2009 edition. The Amnesty was embraced by over 30,000 “repentant” militants and since then both Governments and the beneficiaries are beating their chest for a successful innovation in crises management – throwing amnesty at people who did not seek it and paying an unintelligently packaged amount to the louder percentage of agitating youths.
This in itself has become an albatross as more and more youths cry of being hedged out in the scheme of things, while others who have since, come of age also cry for inclusion.
Corruption in the selection of persons to participate has also eaten deep and has made further nonsense of the Programme. Majority of the so called trained ex-militants are today roaming the streets as a result of a failed post amnesty plan.
The federal government of the day did not know when and where to draw the line until the Buhari Government set a terminal alert. Then erupted a new wave of violence and a dive in oil production. Another round of Jamboree is about to take place. Of course, this has become necessary, as it was in 2009, to shore up oil production.
Let me therefore auto-review my 2009 paper to once again draw attention of the Federal Government to some of the not so popular views which are really the roads that will lead to a sustainable solution to the problem of youth restiveness in the Niger-Delta-The Roads Not Taken.
“The challenge is how deep and how soon, the federal government can go to address the nearly 50 years of economic and political neglect of the Niger Delta”
Mere palliatives such as amnesty as it had been done in 2009 can only give temporary peace as the younger ones will take over the militancy from the older ones. What is happening now – the Niger Delta Avengers, Ekpeye Liberation Group, the movement for the emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), the Niger Delta Volunteers, Egbesu Boys, Ultimate Warriors (UWND), Niger Delta patriotic front (NDPF) etc. – are beyond the Tompolos, Ateke Toms, Boy Loafs and the entire old breed. Their demands have also polarized from self-determination, to the release of Kanu and dasuki. While some ask for the continuation of the amnesty programme, others seek for wider political space and implementation of the 2014 National Confab reports. Amnesty, though necessary, should be looked upon as temporary solution, while the attention should now shift to immediate development of the environment for the benefit of both the federal government and the people of the Niger Delta.
“Some of our prominent sons engaged in a game to outwit each other in the delivery of repentant militants to Mr. President. All these happened without consultation with all genuine stakeholders ___ except the hitherto to arm – carrying youths”
The hurry to achieve immediate peace overshadowed everything else.
The immediate interest of some of our sons in politics that foisted themselves on the Yar’adua Government saw only the dropping of arms by repentant youths as tickets for their own political advancement. Pushing for a deeper reflection on the past the issues of the Niger Delta, therefore, took the back seat.
“The resolution of the issues of the Niger Delta as contained in all the past reports- that of General Popoola, General Ogomudia and that of Ledum Mtee’s 49-man Committee was all abandoned for the immediate gain of peace for increased oil production.”
The Niger Delta problems are beyond the surrender of guns by militants. The Niger Delta terrain is still virgin territory. The rampaging militants are only a small fraction of the youth population. Only a genuine broad based stakeholder’s summit can produce lasting solutions to the problems.
Talking of genuine stakeholders one must mention the issue of mistaken identities. A clear difference must be made of the Niger Delta and the political South-South. The bulk of the dramatis personae that midwifed the amnesty Programme were not well grounded with the problems of the Niger Delta, albeit, they may have being people of stature from the South-South. They handed down a half – baked to the amnesty office to execute.
The oil bearing riverine Niger Delta is where the genuine stakeholders live. They live with the problem. That is also where the agitating youths spring from. In the last exercise, most of the persons who were at the center were generally novices of the Niger Delta terrain. They were however from the South-South. It was, therefore, not surprising how it all went. We have wasted over 7 years just going round in circle.
Unlike Boko Haram, these boys have not gone out to kill any human being. They bust pipelines to draw the attention of the Federal Government. Let us give the required attention, and this calls for a “genuine” broad-based stakeholder’s summit.
“It’s about time we as Nigerians stop acting like the proverbial horse that buried only his head in sand and hoping to avoid on coming calamity”
The seeming multiplicity of groups and the attendant “unreasonableness”, according to Prof. Sagay, of their demands only go to show the urgent need for this stakeholders summit. The cacophony of demands are all tied together by one common thread – DISCONTENTMENT.
THE TIME TO ADDRESS THE REAL ISSUES IS NOW
Hon. Peter Y Biakpara
(Wing commander Rtd)
Former vice president, INC
Former SA to the Governor
Niger Delta Affairs
Delta State
June 2016
Warri
