N35bn Amnesty Fund Excites Ex-IYC Leader

A former President of the Ijaw Youth Council  (IYC), Udengs Eradiri, has commended the Federal Government for approving an additional N35 billion for the Niger Delta amnesty programme.
Making the commendation while speaking to newsmen in Port Harcourt, recently, Eradiri said the recent approval of  N35 billion has added to the additional N20 billion initially approved for the programme in the 2016 budget.
The former IYC president said the funds would enable the Niger Delta amnesty programme to fulfill its mandate.
He dispelled speculations that such funds would only cater for monthly stipend to the former agitators.
According to him, such funds would also finance integration activities, training costs and empowerment schemes, amongst others.
“The money is not being released to militants; it is the entire package for the amnesty programme for the year 2016.
“This includes stipends of N65,000 paid to ex-agitators, school fees, training obligations and re-integration and empowerment”, he said.
He explained that if such funds are given a breakdown, it will show that a lot of activities lined up are being taken care of.
“It is not about N35 billion being shared to people, but the money is actually geared toward carrying out activities for the entire 2016”, he said.