Niger Delta Avengers: No peace deal yet

Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt

The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) worldwide has said that while it welcomes the appeal by President Muhammadu Buhari to militants in the Niger Delta region to stop attacks on oil installations it wants the President to spearhead the dialogue process.

According to the group,” IYC welcomes the personal appeal by President Buhari; we state that what is required is not just an appeal but for him to, in person, lead the dialogue with the Niger Delta people towards finding a lasting solution to the recurring militancy in the region.

“President Buhari must come to the negotiation table with stakeholders in the Niger Delta region as was done by his predecessors rather than through his subordinates.”

This is contained in a statement signed by the IYC spokesman,Eric Omare. which also said it is of the view that the perceived multiplicity of militant groups in the region as stated by President Buhari is not an obstacle to engagement with stakeholders.

“The sort of engagement the IYC expects from the federal government is a holistic dialogue with stakeholders in the region with a view to finding a lasting solution to the root causes of militancy and other agitations rather than engagement with a view to give palliatives to present agitators without addressing the issues responsible for the recurring agitations as was done in the past.

The IYC warns that it would only support a dialogue that is geared towards addressing the fundamental issues responsible for militancy in the Niger Delta region.

IYC therefore calls on President Buhari to put his appeal to action by starting the process of genuine and serious engagement with the Niger Delta people with a view to address the Niger Delta agitation for resource control once and for all.