Just In: New Niger Delta group emerges, lists FOUR fresh demands from President Buhari

A new Niger Delta group under the aegis of the Niger Delta Peoples Congress (NDPC) has made a fresh set of demands from President Muhammadu Buhari.

This is coming barely weeks after a group of Niger Delta Stakeholders under the umbrella of Pan Niger Delta Forum led by Amayanabo of Twon Brass Bayelsa state, King Alfred Diete Spiff and Edwin Clarke had made 16 solid demands from the Nigerian leader for the sake of peace in their region.

The Nigerian vice president, Professor Yemi Osinbajo was said to have received the letter on behalf of the president at the State House in Abuja on Tuesday, November 15.

The group also led by King Alfred Diete Spiff had the document signed by Congress Secretary, Professor Benjamin Okaba, and stated its desire to renew its earlier submissions and ensure it does everything within its reach to bring peace back to its region.

The document obtained by The Nation, reads: “This is premised on our objective assessment of the anxieties, sentiments and myriads of reactions from the key drivers and players in the crises across and outside the region that immediately trailed the meetings.

“We are very confident that our modest contributions as articulated below would constitute the panacea to the age long crises in the Niger Delta Region.”

Below are the lists presented to the Nigerian president through his vice:

1. The fundamental concern is political reconstruction and fiscal federalism:

We are persuaded to uphold that the nation practices true federalism with legitimate and acceptable division of power among the constituents (the center and regions) and the principle and practice of ownership and management of resources by the constituents. The derivation principal should allow the different unit annex and control its resources and pay appropriate and agreed tax to the centre.

2. Demilitarization and peace/confidence building:

We are persuaded to request the federal government to stop further invasion of the region under any guise; release unconditionally all freedom fighters from detention and deploy political solution to the issues surrounding the leadership of the agitators/freedom fighters; cause multinational co-operations not only to relocate their operational bases to the region but more significantly create a minimum of 6,000 jobs for the teeming population of unemployed and restive youths of the region; cause the resumption of academic activities at the Nigerian Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Delta State and establish similar institutions in other parts of the region.

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3. Funding Interventionist agencies:

Cause the release of over 800 billion Naira outstanding allocations yet to be paid to the NDDC; we request the building of more refineries (modular type), petrochemicals and other petroleum related industries to add value to the crude oil and gas produced from the region.

4. Environmental and Human Right Protection:

To drastically reduce the current state of environmental degradation and threat to life occasioned by the activities of the mult-national cooperation in the region, we recommend that the federal government should: urgently cause the appropriate agencies and co-operations to begin the comprehensive remediation (clean up etc) of the Niger Delta environment affected by oil spill; provide medical facilities and attention to people suffering from ailments associated with oil and gas activities; prompt the legislative process for the review of the nation’s laws on Environmental impact and give stiffer penalties to defaulters; cause the immediate implementation of all laws stopping Gas flaring in the region; cause the establishment of Internally Displaced Persons camps for the re-settlement of displaced persons at Bakassi, Gbaramatu, etc.”

Meanwhile, some militants terrorising the Niger Delta region have surrendered their weapons in Rivers state.

The militants who accepted amnesty gave up their guns to the state government on Tuesday, November 15.

This move is coming on the same day Niger Delta Avengers, another notorious militant group claimed responsibility for the attack on three truck lines operated by Agip, Oando and Shell.

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