Ijaw Youths Warn Buhari Not to Tamper with Amnesty Programme

For the sake of peace in the Niger Delta region, the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), has urged President-elect, General Muhammadu Buhari (retd), not to tamper with the Amnesty Programme, designed by late President Musa Yar’Adua, for the restive Niger Delta youths.

Arising from its enlarged stakeholders meeting, held at Tuomo community, in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta state, IYC said, sustenance of the programme would not only boost the nation’s oil resources, but would continue to engender peace in the Niger Delta region.

In a communique signed by IYC’s President, Comrade Udengs Eradiri, the group also deliberated on the March 28, presidential election and resolved that the outcome of the election, has further polarised the Nigerian state into regional and ethnic lines, hence, nothing to celebrate in the victory.

The communique read in part: “That we note with sadness the deliberate efforts by the core north and a section of the south west, to frustrate the administration of President Jonathan and force him out of power through false media propaganda and insurgency in the north, in connivance with some foreign countries, who displayed obvious bias during the electoral process.

“Congress note the goodwill and felicitations of President Jonathan and Nigerians in general, towards General Buhari on his victory, but note with sadness that General Buhari refused to congratulate the victors in 2003, 2007 and 2011, when he contested and failed.

“This act of statesmanship by President Jonathan shows the level of patriotism of Niger-Deltans towards the survival and unity of Nigeria.

“The events leading to the elections clearly show that the electoral process was deliberately planned to rig out President Jonathan from the onset.

“The desperate scheming by the core north and south western part of the country, to take back power, is to enable them have access to the oil resources of the Niger-Delta.

“We note with satisfaction the achievements of President Jonathan in his years in office, despite the fact that he worked in the most difficult environment.

“Congress observed that President Jonathan carried out a lot of reforms and achieved great feats in the areas of Agriculture, power, transportation, electoral process, economy, oil and gas sector, maritime sector, peace and security in the Niger-Delta etc. Nigerians would soon derive maximum benefit from the achievements of President Jonathan in the power sector.

“President Jonathan’s extra-ordinary peace building efforts ensured and is responsible for the existing peace in the Niger-Delta region and the resultant increase in oil production and increased oil revenue” the statement added.

Thousands of Ijaw Youths, under the auspices of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Worldwide met on Sunday, the 5th of April, and the meeting had in attendance founding fathers of the IYC, past and current leaders of the IYC, various Ijaw youth organisations and students from all the Ijaw Communities in Nigeria, including representatives of the IYC chapters in Abuja, Lagos, Europe, America, South Africa and Ghana, after exhaustive deliberations came out with eight point resolutions.