The National Coalition of Niger Delta Ex-Agitators (NCNDE-A) in conjunction with the Niger Delta Youth Council (NDYC) have rejected the constitution of an interim management committee for the Presidential Amnesty Programme.
The groups, while stating their rejection of the committee, said the interim management team for the amnesty was “an attempt by a few who have subverted the aim of the scheme for their private benefit to continue to profit from the programme at the expense of those it was established for.”
At a joint press conference on Tuesday in Abuja addressed by the National Coordinator, Niger Delta Youth Council, Engr. Jator Abido, andNational President, National Coalition of Niger Delta Ex-Agitators, Eshanekpe Israel, a.k.a Akpodoro, urged President Muhammadu Buhari to disband the interim committee set up by the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, and constitute a new committee to include leaders, ex-militants and human development experts from the region.
President Buhari had recently approved the suspension of the coordinator of the presidential amnesty programme, Charles Dokubo and ordered constitution of an interim management team.
However, the groups believed the suspension initiated by the NSA was not in the interest of the programme as they alleged that certain persons were using the programme as conduit pipe to siphon monies meant for training, rehabilitation and reintegration of ex-agitators to the society.
“We are privy to how monies meant to achieve the lofty goals of the Programme end in private pockets in an agency directly under the purview of the NSA.
“We, the prominent ex-militant leaders from across the broad spectrum of the mangrove Niger Delta region on behalf of ourselves and our large followers across the 9 states of our region, have gathered here in this press conference to express our reservations over the unabated insults on our collective sensibility in the mismanagement of the Presidential Amnesty Programme established in 2009 by the late President Umar Yar’Adua, by the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno.”
“Following last weekend suspension of the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme and Special Adviser on the Amnesty Programme, Professor Charles Dokubo, we are inundated with the news of the establishment of a probe committee by the office of the NSA to the president and the subsequent selection of members from within that office to constitute the committee by the Monguno-led office.”
The coalition while throwing its weight behind the probe, and the total overhaul of the administrative architecture of the agency which it alleged has been rendered crawling since creation without meaningful achievements, insisted that neutral persons should form the panel, not people who have been part of the problem.
It further urged President Buhari to act fast to avert the impending crises the actions of the NSA were capable of causing.
