Complete East-West Road at all cost, Niger Delta militants tell Buhari

Militants in the Niger Delta have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to do everything feasible to complete the East-West Road, a major highway linking states of South-South region, which former President Goodluck Jonathan, who hails from the area could not finish during this tenure.


Reformed Niger Delta Avengers, RNDA, and a coalition of nine other militant groups in a statement by their leader, self styled “Major General” Johnmark Ezonbi, declaring support for the President Buhari administration, urged him to release the gas flare penalty fund to affected host oil producing communities in the creeks of Niger Delta.

Bemoaning the six years of Jonathan administration, they said: “Most worrisome and painful is the fact that former President Jonathan’s administration goofed on the development of the region as he was unable to complete the road to his Otuoke community while the most corrupt disciples he had in his government were sons and daughters of the Niger Delta such as Diezani, Orubebe and their cohorts in the Pan Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF.”

The militants, who commended President Buhari for his willingness to develop the Niger Delta and fight against corruption, demanded “urgent approval of the pipeline surveillance jobs to the various agitating militant groups in the creeks through the leadership of Host Communities of Nigeria, HOSTCOM.”

They solicited “proper funding of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, and release of 10 licenses for modular refineries and relocation of the headquarters of multinational oil companies to the Niger Delta region.”

According to them: “President Buhari and the office of the Presidential Amnesty Programme should be watchful of some self- acclaimed leaders of the Niger Delta who are jobless fellows parading themselves on the streets of Abuja just to deceive the government in their bid to make a living in Abuja.”

The groups acknowledged that the paramount ruler of Seimbiri kingdom and national leader of the Pan Niger Delta People’s Congress, PNDPC, HRM Charles Ayemi Botu, Ibenanaowei of Ogulagha kingdom, HRM Joseph Timiyan, former Minister of Aviation, Alabo Graham Douglas, Chief Francis Inegbeneki, Hon Jude Tabai, T K Ogoriba  and others fought for the prevailing peace in the region and urged the president to open dialogue with the PNDPC

Their words: “While we wish to work with the new Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Professor Charles Dokubo, he should be mindful of those who misled the immediate past Coordinator, Brigadier General Paul Boroh (retd) and abandoned him at the middle of the river when the tide was against him despite spending millions of naira on them.”