NIGER DELTA: EX- MILITANTS HAIL FG OVER PROMPT PAYMENTS OF STIPEND

Ex-agitators of the Niger Delta region have hailed the Federal Government for the prompt payment of their monthly stipends.

Gen. Godstime Ogidigba, the Coordinator of phase three of the Ex-Niger Delta Agitators’ Leadership forum, gave the commendation in a statement in Benin on Sunday.

The coordinator said the forum had decided to confer an award of Good Leadership on Prof. Charles Dokubo, the Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Niger Delta and Coordinator, Amnesty Programme.

He said the recognition was informed by the prompt payment of monthly stipends and empowerment of Niger Delta youths among other strides of Dokubo.

You may recall that the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) is a militancy group in the Niger Delta area. The agitation was caused by the federal governments inability to provide a solution to the situation of oil spillage in the region. Feeling neglected, the angry youths of the region decided to form a group to disrupt the nations activities, as the region is known as the source of the country’s wealth.  

Furtherance to this, the poor implementation of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) which was introduced on the 6^th of August 2009 by late former President Umaru Musa Yar’adua, and the proliferation of smalls arm and lights weapon (SALW) in the country, led to the continuity of the agitation.

Coming into power in 2015, President Muhammadu Buhari assured of his total commitment to the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).

To prove President Buhari’s commitment, the administration ushered in the Niger Delta New Vision, which has led to current developments in the region.  

The New vision has seen to the establishment of the Maritime University Okerenkoko, Delta State, the flag off of the Ogoni clean-up, which is been handled by HYPREP under the supervision of the Ministry of Environment, Ogoni health outreach, addition of N35 billion naira for the 2016 budget of the Presidential Amnesty Programme to ensure the rehabilitation and sustainable re-integration of ex-agitators of the Niger-Delta region.

Mean while Ogidigba said the group noted that the sanity now being enjoyed in phase two of the amnesty programme was commendable and urged the coordinator to sustain the stride.

He expressed the commitment to continue to partner and support the positive effort of the amnesty office to bring peace and development to the region.