Lagos — A new dimension has been added to the political firmament in Nigeria with the bomb blasts which on Monday sent guests packing at the post-amnesty dialogue organized in Warri by The Vanguard newspaper to chart a new course for the Niger Delta.

Hitherto, the Nigerian political establishment had been lulled into a false sense of security that this sort of 'direct action' could not take place here. The conventional wisdom is that this sort of thing is associated with militant nationalist groups abroad such as the Basque Nationalists Movement in Spain or the Irish Republican Army (IRA) in Northern Ireland. Now we know better.

Once again, the latest incident exposes the dismal state of intelligence gathering in the country in spite of the usual, sometimes childlike braggadocio to the contrary. After the gory events in Plateau State, a hard, holistic look must now be taken on the state of the nation's intelligence gathering mechanism. It is frankly a contradiction in terms for a modern state to have an inadequate intelligence gathering apparatus. The sheer ineptitude alarmingly demonstrated in Plateau State and now in Warri reinforces the very poor image of the country. For a political establishment with an advanced case of the debilitation called a delusion of grandeur, this should be cause for concern. For one, the perception of the country as weak and unstable has implications for, to give an example, our national aspirations to get a permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council.

The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has accepted responsibility for the bomb blasts. MEND is quite unapologetic about being fed up with a host of continuous talk shop circuses which is not accompanied with concrete action. In other words, it has been all motion and no movement. Now that the situation has taken an unexpected dimension, we must answer the question, 'what is to be done?' For a start, the present situation calls for circumspection on the part of government spokespersons. MEND, whose latest action is utterly reprehensible and condemnable, pleads in mitigation that it was provoked by the utterances of government officials.

Insensitive as the utterances of some government big wigs have been, they do not justify the extreme action taken. However, circumspection and discretion are now required. The position taken by Bayelsa Governor, Timipre Sylva, alluding to the proposition that MEND was just a paper tiger residing in cyberspace was utterly provocative and indelicate. Was it meant to provoke a reaction? Whatever the position, it was an injudicious use of language, given the stockpile of devastatingly effective lethal weapons at the disposal of MEND. Now that they have proved that they are not paper tigers, the entire polity should get serious and back on track.

The post-amnesty issues must now be placed on the front burner and addressed. The government has both a moral as well as a strategic imperative to speed up on the development plan already earmarked. It is important for the government to realize that the stake holders in the Niger Delta believe that there is a lack of commitment to addressing the post-amnesty issues. This is unfortunate, for commonsense alone dictates that if these issues are not addressed the militants will go back to the trenches. It is incontrovertible that MEND has the strategic impulse because it enjoys the sympathy of the people in the Niger Delta.

Consequently, it is only when the post-amnesty issues are tackled with seriousness and dispatch that MEND's support base can be eroded. Where on earth, for example, is the master plan put together by the Technical Committee led by Ledum Mitee? When and how is the master plan going to be implemented? These are issues that need to be addressed. A string of continuous talk shops based on platitudes is not going to work.

In addition, there is need for openness and greater transparency in driving the process. The profound sense of disillusionment with the process is because there is a perception that the perennial bug-bear of corruption has hijacked the process. What was designed to ameliorate a terrible condition has been turned into a vista for the usual crowd of freeloaders and political jobbers? The political establishment should be in no doubt that the sense of disillusionment, of disconnect is real.

Monday's events, sordid and unacceptable and condemnable as they are, have brought foreclosure on the age of innocence. The Acting President must now take the proverbial bull by the horns. He must rekindle and drive the process, hands-on himself. Admirably, he has already ordered the hastening of the post-amnesty scheme. The Acting President is an honourable man who will undoubtedly bring greater transparency and urgency to the process.

Finally, as we have seen in peace processes in other countries, where attempts have been made to redress age old grievances such as in Spain's Basque country and Northern Ireland, we are in this for the long haul. We are in a marathon and not a sprint. What is required in such a situation is transparency, tenacity of courage and most important of all sincerity of purpose. The people of the Niger Delta who have sustained the federation for decades deserve no less.