allAfrica.com: Nigeria: IYLF Dumps FG Peace C'ttee (Page 1 of 2)

THE Ijaw Youth Leadership Forum (IYLF), weekend, pulled out for the second time in five months, from the Federal Government packaged peace process in the Niger-Delta.

The first time was in December 14, 2007, when it withdrew, citing the arrest of Henry Okah of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger-Delta (MEND), military invasion of Gbaraun community in Bayelsa State, attack on Rivers warlord, Ateke Tom by the Joint Task Force (JTF), on the Niger-Delta and the N444.6 budgetary provision by President Umaru Yar'Adua for security in the Niger-Delta.

It took the intervention of Ijaw nationalist leader, Chief Edwin Clark and other notable Ijaw elders, who were contacted by the Federal Government before the youths agreed to come back to the negotiating table.

The IYLF is a very powerful group in the scheme of things in the Niger-Delta. All the past presidents of the Ijaw Youth Council are members; recognized leaders of the various Ijaw militant groups and Ijaw youth leaders, within and outside government are members. In fact, the IYLF is like the clearing house of all Ijaw youth activities in the region. And so, when it sneezes, a lot of people listen.

Though, a lot of things had happened since it returned to the negotiating table with the government, ranging from the battering of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) president, Dr. Chris Ekiyor by soldiers on his way to conduct and IYC election in Bayelsa State to the secret trial of Henry Okah, the immediate cause of anger is the attack on some Ijaw communities between June 3 and 8 by the JTF tance.

While the JTF said it attacked militant camps and recovered assorted arms, which is, indeed, true, spokesman of the Ijaw communities in Edo state, Mr. Robinson Esite told newsmen in Benin City that no fewer than five Ijaw fishing communities in Ovia South-West Local Government Area were razed by soldiers who were said to be in search of militants.

Commander of the Niger-Delta Freedom Fighters (NDFF), aka Egbema One who spoke to Vanguard on phone named the communities destroyed in Edo state as Gboleikekuro, Safarogbo, Simughan, Adaugbene and Ojudou.He said the attack by the JTF on the communities was provocative, adding, "We will not accept the task force coming to burn our communities saying that they are looking for arms.

As we have said, we will not accept what the Federal Government, led by President Umaru Yar"Adua has done to the Ijaw communities, we will fight back if the Presidency fail to do anything about the killing and displacing of our people from their communities in Egbema kingdom in Edo and Delta states".

Egbema One said the only way out for the government was to rebuild the Ijaw communities that the task force destroyed early enough for the people to begin to live the normal life once again.

The leader of the Underdogs, the militant group, whose action on the JTF allegedly necessitated the raid by the task force was aghast that Brigadier-General Rimtip ordered his men to launch attack on militants on the grounds of missing arms when the group, not only returned the weapons that it took from soldiers during the unfortunate incident, but, also tendered an apology to the task force through the Delta Waterways and Security Committee (DWSC), months back.

He said that the group, which voluntarily handed over the confiscated General Purpose Machine Guns and AK 47 rifles told the DWSC officials that came to collect the arms when they asked for the armory that it fell into the water and the soldiers who had encounter with the Underdogs would attest that they were saying the truth.

At the time the DWSC handed over the recovered weapons to the JTF, there was tension in the creek, as the JTF siege on the waterways over the missing arms was on.

The committee explained to the Commander what the militants said about the missing armory, conveyed their apology to him over the incident and urged him relax his nerves on the matter while assuring him of the readiness of the DWSC to liaise with it to ensure security on the waterways. I

t was clear that the DWSC, which recovered the weapons from the militants was effectively in-charge of the situation but Brigadier-General Rimtip insisted that the armory should be produced. He said he would only give sometime for it to be surrendered or the military would employ its own tactics to get back its armory. This was about three or so months ago.

With the months passed by, it was thought that the JTF had accepted the explanation that the armory, indeed, fell into the water and could not be located, but, the latest onslaught by the task force showed that it did not accept the story.

In fact, Brigadier-General Rimtip told Vanguard when contacted some hours after the JTF raid on June 8 that it was funny for anybody to tell him that "our armory fell into the river".

A senior army officer told Vanguard, "It is a serious thing when a single bullet is found missing, let alone an armory.

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