Amnesty: Still more trouble brewing?

Also, for Tompolo, Ateke, Boyloaf and other leaders to continue urging their boys to be patient, I believe should give the federal government an indication that it is not yet uhuru.  In Akwa Ibom, for instance, the ex-militant leader Nico Martins Sintei who surrendered arms along with his boys is accusing governor Akpabio and his […]

Also, for Tompolo, Ateke, Boyloaf and other leaders to continue urging their boys to be patient, I believe should give the federal government an indication that it is not yet uhuru.

 In Akwa Ibom, for instance, the ex-militant leader Nico Martins Sintei who surrendered arms along with his boys is accusing governor Akpabio and his government of certain things: In the case of Governor Akpabio, it is that he made a careless statement in the media to the effect that those militants that surrendered in the state did so because they saw Akwa Ibom as a safer place to participate in the amnesty deal and no militant exist in Akwa Ibom. This is not the kind of statement that is expected from a state governor in a programme that Mr. President holds at a high esteem. Again, the Akwa Ibom government amnesty coordinator, Mr. Michael Eyo who is a Permanent Secretary in the governor’s office does not pick calls from (ex-militants) any longer. The ex-militants have been thrown out of the hotels and other accommodations and the government is not living up to the amnesty agreement. The ex-militant leader in the state is threatening to go back to the creeks if this attitude does not change immediately.

As for the militants in Delta State, the ex-militant leader Chief Togo who surrendered with his group of 300 boys in the state feels neglected and was quoted as saying: “Neither Mr. President nor my state governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has deemed it fit to open a discussion with me for the way forward. I feel deceived and sidelined in the whole peace process.”

        Whoever says these are mere misgivings should not be surprised when such misgivings degenerate into real actions. The governments involved must buckle up and make this peace process more far reaching and effective.

Dr. Julius Madaki, Seriki Close, Bauchi, Bauchi State