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Avengers Not Afraid Of Military -As Threat To Resume Attacks Worries Editors -Clark Warns
Former Information Minister, Chief Edwin Clark, has told the Federal Government that members of the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) are not afraid of the military personnel deployed in the oil-rich region.
He called on President Muhammadu Buhari to count the cost of the frequent deployment of military personnel to resolve issues in the region, adding that the use of force had never achieved the desired peace in the region.
Clark, who spoke against the backdrop of massive military activities in the Niger Delta region, however, warned government officials and security forces to desist from “overzealous acts” that could create unnecessary anxiety and tension in the region.
He said the relative peace in the region was engendered by the concerted efforts of members of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) and not necessarily the deployment of troops.
“One would have expected the Federal Government and the military to know that the NDA has never shown any sign of retreat or fear when, between February 2016 and August 2016, the area was over-militarised by the Operation Crocodile Smile.
“These are people who are ready to sacrifice their lives for what they believe in, which is remediation of the neglect of the region.
“It is the ordinary people, including women and children, that are the victims of this show of power by the military. For instance, school children will be too scared to go to school. The fishermen and the petty traders will either hide in their rooms or run away from their homes for safety.
“We are quite hopeful that the ceasefire will not be broken. Therefore, the actions by the military at the Bennett Island in Warri, Delta State, as reported in a newspaper last Thursday, is uncalled for.
“When the NDA gave its notice of withdrawing its ceasefire and resuming hostilities for obvious reasons, the leadership of PANDEF quickly intervened, appealing to them to maintain the status quo and went further to send emissaries of youths and former militants to the creeks to deliberate with the NDA.
“It will be very difficult, if not impossible, to use the military force to cow the people to submission. The wise thing for the Federal Government to do will be to sit down and dialogue with the people.
“What the Federal Government is doing right now is misapplication of resources. Can the Federal Government sit down and calculate how much it has cost it to deploy military to the Niger Delta area from 2002 to date?
“Can the Federal Government tell Nigerians what these figures are? And has military action brought peace?
“But for the intervention of well-meaning elders, let the Federal Government tell the Nigerian public what meaningful progress its actions have brought outside pain and humiliation,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has expressed worry over the threat by the Niger Delta Avengers to resume attacks on oil facilities in the oil-rich Niger Delta region, and called on the militant group to drop the threat, and embrace dialogue in resolving their grievances.
The NGE said this in a communiqué issued at the end of the Standing Committee Meeting of the Nigerian Guild of Editors held in Katsina, Katsina State, last Thursday, and signed by its President, Funke Egbemode, and General Secretary, Victoria Ibanga.
The Guild urged the Federal Government not to resort to the use of force in resolving the matter, stressing that the use of force has never solved any problem.
“As stakeholders in the task of nation-building, the Guild is worried by the recent show of military force in the quest to neutralise the threat of the militants. This move has done little to calm the tension; instead, it has aggravated it. We urge caution and restraint,” the communiqué stated.
The Guild also urged the government to dialogue with all stakeholders, including the aggrieved militants to resolve the problems in the region, insisting that the only path to peace was dialogue.
“The Guild notes that renewed hostilities in the Niger Delta will reduce Nigeria’s daily oil output, which will in turn deny the country the benefits of the current marginal increase in the price of crude. Anything that is capable of returning Nigeria to economic recession should be avoided,” the communiqué advised.
“We seize this opportunity to appeal to traditional rulers in the region to use their offices and goodwill to call the Avengers and any other militant group in the region to order. As royal fathers and leaders of thought, we urge them to play a leading role in the resolution of any breakdown in communication between the Federal Government, oil majors and the militants. We cannot afford another bout of force majeure by oil majors on account of insecurity in the region.
“The Guild also notes the increasing crime rate in the country, especially kidnappings and communal clashes and calls on security agencies to rise to the occasion. The Guild urges the Federal Government to deploy the relevant security agencies to check the pervasiveness of these crimes,” the Nigerian Editors said.
According to the communiqué, “The widening spread and growing frequency of kidnappings and allied criminal acts do not only threaten the nation’s socio-political stability, they also rob Nigeria of income as potential investors are scared of coming into the country while in some instances, existing investors are being forced to leave the country. Either way, the nation loses.
“On the 2018 budget proposal currently before the National Assembly, the Guild is concerned about the size of the recurrent as against the capital expenditures. This trend, which is inimical to any country’s development, has continued for so long. We urge prudence and innovative budgeting in order to achieve a reversal in the nearest future.
“On the state of the media, the Guild is worried that in spite of the country exiting economic recession, the media industry is mired in distress. We recommend that stakeholders should come together to seek the way forward,” the NGE added.
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I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo
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RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
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Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman

The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.
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