After Meeting Osinbajo, Niger Delta Leaders Withdraw Ultimatum To Nigerian Govt

Edwin Clark briefing reporters

A group of leaders and elders from Nigeria’s oil rich Niger Delta region has withdrawn the ultimatum they gave the Nigerian government to accede to their 16-point demand or face withdrawal from ongoing peace efforts.

Pan Niger Delta Front, PANDEF, leaders meeting with Acting President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa Abuja

PREMIUM TIMES report continues:

The withdrawal was announced by an elder statesman, Edwin Clark, shortly after he led the Pan Niger Delta Front, PANDEF, to a meeting with Acting President Yemi Osinbajo at the presidential villa Abuja.

Briefing State House correspondents, Mr. Clark also said they had an excellent meeting with Mr. Osinbajo, adding “the discussion was very honest, truthful and forthright. We are very very satisfied”.

Mr. Clark, who had on Monday given the Federal Government up to November 1, 2017 to meet the 16-point demand made by PANDEF on November 1, 2016, said after the meeting that there is “no more ultimatum. We agreed on many things. They came with their own address, the ministers all spoke, presented their cases and at the end, the Acting President rounded it up.

“We saw his genuineness and forthrightness; he is a gentleman. We are satisfied. We have agreed to work together and the issue of dialogue must take place,” he said.

Mr. Clark said the people of Niger Delta should know that their leaders were able to discuss the regions’ 16-point agenda as well as “government’s 20-point agenda and we are all satisfied. We all agreed that everyone should maintain peace”.

The meeting was well attended with several leaders from the Niger Delta region and Mr. Clark told reporters that even members of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, who were at the forefront of agitations from the region in recent years and who, disassociated themselves from PANDEF in a statement by its spokesperson, Jomo Gbomo were part of the meeting.

“MEND was in the meeting. Jomo Gbomo does not exist as a human being, he uses a ghost Name, a fake name. Other organizations were here. I am the leader of the Niger Delta and every leader you can think of from Cross River to Ondo State were all here today,” Mr. Clark said.

Speaking earlier, the Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, told reporters that the meeting discussed how far the government had gone in implementing the 16-point agenda of PANDEF.

Part of the 16 demands by PANDEF is the establishment of a maritime university, relocation of oil and gas companies to the Niger Delta, as well as allocation of oil blocs to people from area.

Mr. Kachikwu said ” several issues relating to the universities, the development of the region, amnesty programme, NDDC operations in the Niger Delta were discussed. It was very exhaustive, we looked at the 16-point agenda,” he said.

The petroleum minister said the atmosphere in the meeting was calm and friendly.

“They did in fact pledge their loyalty and their willingness to continue to work with us,” he said.

Group photograph of Pan Niger Delta Front, PANDEF, leaders and Actg President Osinbajo

Osinbajo Meets Niger Delta Leaders, Highlights Seven Successes In Oil Region

Media reports that ss the meeting between the Acting President Yemi Osinbajo and leaders from the Niger Delta region under Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, progressed at the presidential villa on Thursday night, the presidency highlighted seven successes of its engagements with the oil rich region. 

Mr. Osinbajo was, as at press time, presiding over the meeting that had in attendance leaders and representatives from the Niger Delta and relevant ministers and heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies, MDAs.

The meeting follows a November 1 ultimatum given by PANDEF to the government to meet its 16-point demand issued in November 2016 or they would withdraw from the peace parley.

The spokesperson to Mr. Osinbajo, Laolu Akande, identified the seven major successes as listed below:

1. The federal government, FG, has started the process of replacing illegal refineries in the region with modular ones, including options on how to involve the communities as shareholders in the proposed modular refineries. Ground-breaking of the first set of such refineries are expected in the fourth quarter of this year. 

In its operations, FG will supply crude to the local refineries at reasonably considered price, as an incentive to stop the current practice whereby illegal refiners vandalize and steal the crude. Each Niger Delta state is expected to host two modular refineries.

2. Similarly, FG has commenced the process for the opening of the Maritime University at Okerenkoko in Gbaramatu Kingdom, Delta state. Already, a five-member inter-agency committee headed by the Minister of Education is in the final stages for the official opening of the university in the 2017/2018 academic session.

3. FG has released additional ₦35 billion to step up the Amnesty Programme in the Delta region, which is a specific and significant raise to the 2016 Budgetary allocation to the office.

This significant increase is already reflected in the 2017 budget with ₦70 billion allocation.

The Amnesty Office has since paid up all ex-militants backlog of their stipends up to April 2017. School fees for ex-militants studying abroad have been paid up to 80 per cent this July and the school fees in Nigeria paid up to 90 per cent this July.

Under the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, the Presidential Amnesty Programme has deployed 1294 beneficiaries in different programmes in different universities across the world. 1230 have graduated; 196 are maritime engineers, 59 pilots, and 120 automobile engineers.

It has established partnership with the PRESCOM (Presidential Committee on Small Arms and Light Weapons), UNDP, EU and UNREC to curb the proliferation of small arms and light weapons in the hands  of unauthorized persons and groups.

4. To enhance a speedy development and restore peace in the Delta region, FG has revamped the Niger Delta Development Commission to drive the creation of development and infrastructure projects in the region.

5. An initial fund of US$1 billion has been set aside for the clean-up and environmental remediation of Ogoniland.

A sum of US$200 million will be disbursed yearly for the first five years and work on the project will be conducted in line with international best practices. Already soil and water tests have been done in preparation for the clean-up and 15 technical assistants hired to be part of the work from Ogoniland.

6. To drive infrastructure, the FG has released funds for the continuation of various sections of the East-West Road. As at March, the overall project completion is substantial ( Section I – 99.98 per cent, Section II – I – 78.33 per cent, Section II -II  – 67.95 per cent, Section III – 99.22 per cent, Section IV  – 97.7 per cent) with Sections I and III completed and due for commissioning. The FG plans to construct health centres in the states and communities of the region. On completion, they will be fully equipped to address some of the health needs of rural dwellers.

This project will place the region as one of the most advanced places in Africa for high speed internet access and reliable communication systems.

7. To further encourage infrastructure development, FG, through the Petroleum Ministry is also exploring with the international oil companies operating in the Niger Delta region on how to relocate their operational headquarters to their states of operations as different from administrative headquarters which often has only about five per cent of the staff.