Tension heightens in Niger Delta over moves to appoint non-Ijaw as PAP coordinator

By Stephen Asaba-ase, Warri

The Ijaw Youths Council, IYC has threatened fresh hostilities in Niger Delta following a perceived move to appoint an Urhobo retired military general as Presidential Advisers and coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.

This was disclosed in a press briefing by the spokesman of the council, Comrade Princewill Binebai at the early hours of today 20th  January 2024.

The council faulted the alleged move to remove the current presidential Amnesty coordinator Mr Ndiomu from office to replace him with non-Ijaw, precisely from Urhobo ethnic nationality.

The 9th leadership of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) global said, they would persistently uphold and sustain the Ijaw struggle for self-determination and resource control.

According to the spokesperson of the IYC, they learned from a reliable source that some close associates to His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, President Federal Republic of Nigeria as been planning  to appoint a rtd Urhobo Military  General as the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) to succeed the current coordinator Mr Ndiomu.

Speaking at the briefing, IYC spokesman said, they have the conviction that the Ijaw Youth Council, which is a representative of all the Ijaw Youths in Diaspora would use all the arsenals in their disposition to repel bias appointment of the Aso rock cabal. They unanimously warned those who were under the carpet masquerading for this animalistic and inimical plan to urgently retrieve their steps.

IYC also noted that, it was the late President Umaru Musa Yar’adua administration that gave birth to the establishment of the Niger Delta Presidential Amnesty Programme in 2009 as a programme to pacify the worsening armed agitation in the Niger Delta region. “While needless to go into details on how Ijaws were kill like chickens and communities, Kingdoms were also levelled to the ground which is a case of genocide and merciless massacred of a peace loving people. While we do not want to remind ourselves of these painful memories, it is our advice that the Federal Government of Nigeria should allow sleeping dogs to lie”.

However, the IYC spokesperson stated, “while the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide is the largest youth movement in the Niger Delta and Africa, the body will continue to push for a united  Nigeria and a peaceful co-existence in the Niger Delta region for harmonious relationship with our neighbouring tribes in the region.

He maintained said the Ijaws are the ones that single handedly spearhead the Niger Delta struggle which gave birth to the Niger Delta Presidential Amnesty Programme that people are talking about today. “It is still very fresh in their memory that at the heat of the agitation, sisters tribes were skeptical to associate with the Ijaws for the fear of being labelled as infidels”, he added.

The Ijaw youth council reiterated that they were reliably informed of some forces around President Bola Amed Tinubu in Aso Rock, advising Mr president to intentionally withheld funds allocated to the Amnesty Programme and making the Coordinator incapacitated to actualise the objectives of the programme.

Meantime, IYC said, with the trend of unfolding events the Ijaws are beginning to doubt the “Renewed Hope” mantra of Mr President, as the hand writing on the wall is suspicious.