BEVERLY HILLS, May 22, (THEWILL) – Over the last few months, tension has again heightened in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, following the resurgence of militancy. The region, which had experienced a semblance of peace when the late President Umar Yar’Adua adopted the amnesty carrot to make the militants lay down arms, is fast becoming the hotbed of hostilities.
Different reasons have been advanced for the resurgence of violence. While some attribute it to dissatisfaction arising from the region’s continued neglect, others say government’s reneging attitude to the amnesty programme is partially responsible.
But by far the greatest reason seems to be President Muhammadu Buhari’s threat to deal with oil vandals in the region the way he was dealing with Boko Haram. Demonstrating this resolve, the military had raided Gbaramatu kingdom, homestead of ex-militants kingpin, Government Ekpemupolo, Alias Tompolo, in search of resurgent militants.
It appears Buhari’s pronouncement has spontaneously ignited the ex-militants to take up arms again. The situation took a political dimension, following insinuations that certain native elements were merely reacting to the outcome of 2015 presidential election in which a son of the soil, former President Goodluck Jonathan was roundly defeated.
The new militant groups, the latest being the Red Egbesu Water Lions, have threatened to shut down oil explorations in the region at the expiration of the ultimatum it handed the government. This has further heightened fears that oil installations and workers are under serious threat.
There have been the recent blowing up of Chevron and Shells’ gas pipelines, among others, for which the Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, claimed responsibility. The avengers further warned owners and operators of oil concessions to vacate the region or face a “bloody attack”.
Curiously, Egbesu Lions’ acclaimed affinity to the Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB, which gave government two weeks to release incarcerated Biafra agitator, Nnamdi Kanu and embattled former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki (rtd) may have added a new dimension to the struggle.
These threats have led to the loss of several hundreds of thousands of crude supply to the Kaduna and Warri refineries, the immediate implication of which was a nationwide drop in power distribution. If the threats to bomb more installations are anything to go by, the nation’s economy would further nose-dive leaving the people to bear the brunt.
The way forward therefore is dialogue. Unfortunately, some interest groups are towing the military line of the president, which in our conviction will inflame the hostilities. Emboldened by such supports, government has proposed setting up a regional security alliance against the militants, just as it resolved to set up special court to try suspected oil thieves, at the end of its recent National Executive Council, NEC, meeting.
THEWILL condemns the war drums by those who care less about the environmental degradation and pollution that decades of oil explorations have subjected the region to. We believe that the Federal Government needs to find a more lasting solution to the militants’ agitation, especially against the backdrop of its acclaimed economic restructuring, which has already been greatly hampered by the fall in global price of crude oil.
It is also regrettable that oil companies in the region have not demonstrated enough corporate social responsibilities to their host communities. The operators’ culture of impunity, by their failure to clean up the degraded region, in line with several resolutions of international arbitration organs, have further aggravated the situation.
We find it ironic that the president, who at the palace of the Emir of Kastina, Abdulmumini Kabir Usman, recently charged traditional rulers across the country to campaign for the peaceful and harmonious co-existence among the diverse ethnic groups in the country, is the one whose utterance appears to be igniting war in the Niger Delta.
THEWILL urges Buhari to revisit the amnesty programme and sanitize it for optimum performance. This is more appropriate in the face of its past success in restoring peace to the region. In addition, he should take further steps by addressing the real issues that are germane to the struggle. Nowhere in the world has government won a guerilla warfare, which militancy is akin to.
It is instructive that Nigeria takes to the advice of the British Foreign Minister, Philip Hammond, who along with concerned watchers, including this news website in a previous editorial, have cautioned against the use of military to crush the militants.
However, we urge the militants to sheathe their sword and explore civilized ways of securing the attention of government. Though it is painful that years of oil exploration have brought untold hardship to the region, destroying what has taken the nation many decades and trillions of naira to build is not the best course to take.
THEWILL makes bold to say that if these installations are destroyed, the region would be plunged into greater economic challenges, which may prove more detrimental than the current difficulties faced by Niger Delta denizens.
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