Iheanacho Nwosu
26 November 2009
Is the Federal Government handling the post amnesty package for the Niger Delta ex-militant well? Is it fair in the sharing of the N200billion earmarked for the militants in the Niger Delta states?
These and other questions have continued to trail President Umaru Yar'Adua's post amnesty programmes. Penultimate weekend the Imo State Governor, Ikedi Ohakim added his voice to the debate. The event was the inaugural lecture of News Digest held at the Sheraton Hotels Lagos. Titled Niger Delta Amnesty: Quick Fix or Silver Bullet? The governor who was the guest lecture dwelled on the contentious issues.
He started with a lavish praise of the President for choosing to address the festering crisis in the Niger Delta through offering of amnesty to the militants. He recalled that the move was followed with strident criticisms by some people who he said would never see anything good about the country and its leaders. Specifically, he cited cases where some people were using the situation in the region and the option adopted by the President in resolving it to dismissed Nigeria as a failed nation.
He said the events of last few weeks have exposed the folly of the views. The amnesty programme, Ohakim stressed has turned out to be a masterstroke the President used to internally resolved the crisis in the Niger Delta without the involvement of the international community. He contended if not the suave and adroit manner the crisis may have boiled over and may possibly have led to war. Should have happened, he said the masses in the area would have bore the brunt as killings, rape and starvation would have become the order of the day.
He gave a background picture of the crisis in the Niger Delta and why some people stood up against the amnesty prograame. According to him, while some militants and individuals were genuinely fighting to help address the neglect and abject poverty in the region, some others were using that as a means of acquiring wealth and maintaining their political relevance not only in the region but in national politics.
He said " Immediately the President proclaimed the amnesty on Thursday, August 6,2009, it was greeted with cynicism and trenchant criticism. While we may understand those who criticized it out past experience of previous government's half-hearted interventions in the region, we cannot ignore those who criticized clearly out of mischief."
The Governor maintained "We must remember that in any situation ,there are winners and losers. Even as it was, the Niger Delta crisis had many vested interests that profited from the misery of the people. As Machiavelli said "the reformer has enemies in all those who profit by the old order and only lukewarm defenders in all those who would profit by the new order.
"The amnesty has losers in those who made easy money from kidnapping , those who made stupendous wealth from illegal bunkering and oil theft, those who supplied and trafficked in arms in the region, those who funded the armed groups to advance their political fortunes, those who freelanced for militants to advance private goals and other aggrieved Nigerians who hid behind the militants to fight revanchist wars"
He continued "I think the most pathetic critics of the amnesty were those who pursued a pedantic legalistic interpretation of the programme. They said the amnesty is only meant for criminals and, with that misguided statement they almost deceived the militants into rejecting it. Unfortunately, some of those critics are lawyers who ought to know that raising arms and levying war against the country , kidnapping and killing fellow Nigerians, especially those in uniform, are criminal acts, no matter your grievances."
The governor's views which he intermittently lace with jokes received occasional applause and standing ovation. Such reaction from the audience, expectedly, buoyed him to speak further. He enumerated several gains that accrue to both the militants, the entire region and the nations generally from the amnesty.
Hear him "The offer of amnesty is a win-win situation for the Nigerian State and the militants. The attack on the nation's oil installations has abated. Damaged gas pipelines are being repaired and more gas can now be supplied to power stations so that Nigerians can enjoy improved power supply. The expatriate workers can now return to the region to continue construction work which is necessary for infrastructural development of the region.
"Tourists and investors can now return to the region to promote development and create jobs for ex-militants. The President has opened dialogue with the militants to get their input into policies for addressing the problem of the Niger Delta. The militants are going to be rehabilitated and engaged in meaningful employment so that they can be agents of change in the area. Oil production will soon improve, raising hope that , the global economic crisis notwithstanding, the Federal Government can fund development planned for the region. The disarmament, which was a component of the amnesty, will guarantee the safety of communities in the region from inter and intra ethnic clashes of the past".
However, Ohakim did not hesitate in pointing out some aspects of the amnesty his government is not comfortable with. He said the allocation of N6billion of the whooping N200b earmarked by the Federal Government for the ex-militants to Imo militants did not reflect fairness and equity.
His words "Out of a whooping N200billion largesse, only a paltry N6billion was allocated to Imo militants. The issue is just about money. It is about fairness. It is about justice. It is about equity. And these are issues that often aggravate conflicts in our country. I believe that given the way Imo militants conducted themselves, they should have received greater compensation to show that the Federal Government values peace as an option to violence."
Ohakim did not pretend about how the action of the government and past decisions taken by previous administration which tilted against the interest of the state have incensed him and indigenes of the state. He recalled that "When the Federal Government established the coastal states forum as a response to the embarrassing kidnapping of expatriate workers, Imo and Abia states were left out until President Yar'Adua reversed the injustice. During the days of OMPADEC, Imo was left out. When NDDC was being established it took a long debate to include Imo and Abia. And now it took a delegation of the entire Imo leadership to get the Federal Government to look the direction of Imo militants who surrendered like the rest."
Listing steps that must be taken by the Federal Government and other critical stakeholders Ohakim cautioned that deviating from certain line of action will render the amnesty unproductive. He listed eleven problems that must be addressed by the government.
They include tackling the problem of gas flaring, the people of the area getting involved in the design and execution of projects in their communities,companies operating in the area tackling pollution from effluents, revisiting the Land use Act, funding education in the region, ending unemployment in the area, strengthening security in the region and oil companies operating in the region stepping up their social responsibility beyond mere construction of civic centres. He also called for increased funding to the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC) and strengthening of national economy.
The governor said the amnesty is neither a quick fix nor a silver bullet but a process of enthroning a new order in the region. He said "Let me say that the struggle in the Niger Delta is part and parcel of our struggle for democracy. That is why some people see it as essentially struggle for minority rights...
There was a deafening applause from the audience. Often the governor would be happy that the conclusion of the lecture was greeted with such encouraging reaction. He would be particularly elated that those who spoke after him backed most of the views he canvassed. For instance, multi-billionaire industrialist, Molade Okoya Thomas who chaired the occasion said the lecture addressed, in a unique manner, issues of national concern.
Similarly,Dr Timiebi Koripamo-Agari, Prof Jide Osuhuntokun, Danladi Bako and Dr Sam Amadi who had time allotted to them to discussed the lecture, all agreed that the amnesty was a process and not a sliver bullet. They backed the governor's admonition to all the stakeholders in the region to show sincerity in the handling of the post amnesty programmes.
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