Sad Echoes From Bayelsa

The high level of tension generated by the recurring incidents of militancy-related killings in Bayelsa State should, in every ramification, be a source of serious concern to the authorities and stakeholders of the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.

Most recent of this appalling development was the gruesome murder of ex-militant leader and former House of Assembly aspirant in the just-concluded general elections, Albert Ebi, popularly called Commander Ebi.

According to media reports, the ex-militant leader, a native of Okpoama in Brass Local Government Area of the state, was shot dead in Yenagoa while driving in a white Hilux Jeep with Rivers State registration number. He was accompanied by a police orderly and one of his lieutenants, who was also killed by the assailants.

Sadly, the killing of Ebi in the capital city of Bayelsa, brings to three, the number of ex-militant leaders killed mysteriously in about seven months. Among those ex-militants killed within this period was Mr Olali Abogha, popularly known as Commander Areama in Akassa area of Brass Local Government Area in the state.

Though the motive for these killings  has remained a mystery, speculations are rife that either the killings might have been carried out by  followers of the ex-militant leaders over alleged disagreement on what sources described as illegal deduction on their boys’ allowances, or that the killings were politically motivated.

Whatever the reasons behind these dastardly acts might be, The Tide is worried that the recent killing of Ebi is coming barely a month after a group of former militant leaders under the aegis of “Group of Peacekeeping Ex-Militant Leaders of Bayelsa State” had raised alarm following the manner in which some of them were being cut down.

We regard this ugly trend as a sharp deviation from the original dream and aspirations of the Niger Delta struggle, and the fact that they had risked their lives to attract positive attention to the problems of the region.

The Tide views as unnecessary the growing tension in Bayelsa State, occasioned by the selective murder of ex-militants. The fact that the current President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, comes from Bayelsa State, should be enough reason for that state to pride itself as the centre of peace and political stability in the country.

We believe that the emergence of President Jonathan should douse every tension generated by agitations against marginalisation by the people. Efforts, we advise, should therefore, be geared towards assisting the Federal Government to remedy the issues of under-development through the application of more mature and democratic means.

In this regard, the state government should make extra efforts in support of the Federal Government’s amnesty  programmes so as to trulyassist in reforming, rehabilitating and redirecting the energy of these ex-militants to meaningful ventures that would contribute to the development of Bayelsa State.

The Tide thinks that the task of eliminating the tension now pervading the atmosphere in Bayelsa must be willingly undertaken in the belief that the outcome could save a whole generation of youths who could otherwise be lost in the abyss of gangsterism and hopelessness.

We insist that now is the time for all duty bearers in Bayelsa State, and indeed, the Niger Delta region, to take up the challenge of rescuing a potentially lost generation as represented by the ex-militants. Lest we forget that the failure of governance, security and intelligence and societal docility in the past brought about the nightmare of arms proliferation and struggle in the Niger Delta region.

The Tide therefore finds it expedient to advise that the key  players in the state’s political scene should avoid making deals with repentant militants or any group of youths that could create a state of lawlessness.

It is of utmost urgency to resound the warning that as Bayelsans move towards conducting gubernatorial elections, no form of actions and inactions should be perpetrated to deter the security/intelligence, law and order and defence services from effectively performing their duties.

A situation where late Ebi, an ex-militant, who was declared wanted by the police for escaping arrest was gunned down while in the company of a police orderly now hospitalised for serious injuries sustained from the bullets of the same assailants, is to say the least, an embarrassment to the nation’s security system.

Instead of engaging the Niger Delta youths in meaningless political banditry, the political class in Bayelsa should strive at evolving youths at various levels and stages so that they can mature into the position of succeeding the present generation of leaders.

We equally call on the Inspector General of Police, to institute a high-level investigation to unearth the brains behind the assignment of a police orderly to the same person hitherto declared wanted by the police.

We are concerned that if stringent measures are not taken now to douse the tension in Bayelsa State, the dimension it would assume in the near future could be unimaginable. Now is the time to nip the situation in the bud.