Buhari Moves To End Nigeria Oil Militant Attacks As Clark Leads Niger Delta Stakeholders To Aso Rock

Edwin Clark, elder statesman, led stakeholders from the region to a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari.

President Muhammadu Buhari has met leaders from the Niger Delta in a bid to end militant attacks on oil installations in the region. 

BBC Africa Live report continues:

Reporters gathered that representatives of the militants were among those taking part in the talks in the capital, Abuja.

For a government dependent on oil sales for almost all its revenues the continued attacks in the Niger Delta represent a major crisis. 

The violence has slashed production and helped plunge Nigeria’s economy into recession. 

Militant groups say they’re fighting for a greater share of the resources for local communities but the government accuses them of holding the country to ransom.  

One senior government official disclosed that he did not expect the latest talks to lead to an immediate breakthrough, and he warned that the Nigerian government wasn’t ruling out a military solution to end the attacks.

Leaders from across the Niger Delta turned up for the talks in Abuja BBC

Meanwhile TheCable reports that as part of efforts towards finding lasting solutions to the menace of militancy in the Niger Delta region, Edwin Clark, elder statesman, on Tuesday led stakeholders from the region to a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari.

Clark is one of the leaders chosen by some militant groups to kick start dialogue process with the federal government.

Those at Tuesday’s meeting are: Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, some governors, ministers and other political appointees from the Niger Delta.

Idris Ibrahim, inspector-general of Police, and Lawal Daura, director-general of the Department of State Services (DSS) are among the service chiefs present.

Also attending are former governors, traditional rulers, civil rights activists and community leaders from the region.

Some of them are: Obong Victor Attah,  Timi Aliabe, Diette Spiff, Ledu Mitee, Florence Ita-Giwa, Tony Uranta, Nkoyo Toyo, Ewa Henshaw, Seminatri Bozimo and Roland Owei.

The chairmen, senate and House of Representatives committees on upstream, downstream as well as Niger Delta are also in the meeting, which started around 12:10pm.

The stakeholders are expected to make submissions on issues that border on the economic and human capital development as well as security and restoration of peace in the region.

The meeting with the president is also expected to “focus on socio-economic development of the region as well as building a strong synergy with multinational oil companies operating in the area”.