Ex-Agitator Absolves Self From Cultism, Kidnapping

A former Niger Delta agitator, Chief Solomon Ndigbara has absolved himself from the current spate of cultism and kidnappings in Ogoniland.
Chief Ndigbara who said this in an interview with newsmen in his country home, Yeghe, Gokana Local Government Area also said that security agencies should be blamed for failing to stop the restiveness.
The ex-Agitator said that several reports of kidnapping and cultism in Ogoniland had been sent to the security agencies, but little or no efforts were made to bring the perpetrators to book.
He noted that sometime, the identities of the informants were disclosed to the criminals which made them targets of kidnapping and assassinations.
Chief Ndigbara regretted that due to the spate of kidnapping in the area, strangers were fleeing Bori, the traditional headquarters of Ogoni  while several businesses are shut down, thereby causing more hardship in the area.
According to him, “I have made several  efforts both in the past and present  to bring peace to Ogoniland but to no avail as some key stakeholders in the area, such as politicians and traditional rulers are lukewarm towards the activities of the cultists”.
Chief Ndigbara  alleged that most communities in Ogoniland have been razed by the Degbam and Dewell cult groups thereby driving their people to become refugees in their  own land.
He added that this situation underscored the need for politicians and the traditional institutions to review their activities with a view to stopping those taking side in the crisis.
The  ex-agitator also urged Ogoni youths to desist from allowing themselves being used to destroy their communities, adding that “this current predicament should teach  Ogoni youths and indeed youths of other communities in the Niger Delta that anyone using them today to instigate violence will abandon them tomorrow”.
Chief Ndigbara declared his readiness to assist security  agencies to bring a lasting peace to communities in Ogoni land.