Undaunted by the spate of renewed violent attacks on oil installations by the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA),the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and governors from the South-South region met on Tuesday and agreed that the military vacate the communities but will remain in the waterways while engagement is ongoing.
The actions of the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) in recent times especially the bombing of oil and gas installations in the region has led to reduction in oil production from 2.2 million to 900,000 per day, even as the Joint Niger Delta Liberation Force (JNDLF) threatened to bomb key infrastructure across the country including Aso Rock, Defence Headquarters and the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
Those in the meeting were Governors Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), Udom Emmanuel (Akwa Ibom), Seriake Dickson (Bayelsa), Ifeanyi Okowa (Delta), Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Nyesom Wike (Rivers), Segun Mimiko (Ondo) and Cross Rivers was represented by the deputy.
Also in attendance were service chiefs, ministers of defence, Mansur Dan Ali, Niger Delta, Usoro Uguru, and Minister of State Petroleum, Ibe Kachukwu.
Briefing newsmen after the meeting which lasted over four hours, governor Okowa said it was very fruitful.
According to him, the meeting harped on the importance of the federal and state governments synergy, noting that it will help to tackle the current issues bedeviling the Niger Delta, especially Bayelsa and Delta states.
“One thing we identified which, is the synergy between the Federal Government and the states is very important, and this meeting has raised a lot of issues and we believe that the collaboration will help us tackle the issues in the Niger Delta.
“Of course, we were briefed by the service chiefs and the governors also have their own perspectives along with the minister of state petroleum. We have taken a lot of decisions which will help us mitigate what is going on currently in the states, particularly Bayelsa and Delta. We believe we are going to find solution to it.
“One of such is that there is a need for us to share intelligence, which is very important, and for us to be proactive, working together with the various stakeholders in the states to achieve a better result going forward.
“We have also agreed that there is a need to distill military operations directly in communities, but the military need to actually remain on our waterways to ensure that we adequately man the waterways itself while we engage the communities and that engagement process is starting any moment from now,” he said.
Inquest on how the outcome of the meeting will be implemented, Okowa replied, “Right from today, there is a meeting right after this and we are going to be collaborating even as we return to our various states.”
Asked if the Federal Government was going to revisit amnesty issue, the Delta governor said: “I don’t think the amnesty has been put to a stop. I think the process is still ongoing, we have a Special Adviser in charge of amnesty and he is doing very well. I am aware that he did come in to talk with some of the communities along with the advocacy team that was put up in Delta State. “He did brief us today and I believe it is going to be maintained”.
-Emmanuel Ikechukwu
