Emergent
militant group, the Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, has listed some conditions that
should be met by the Federal Government before peace can be returned in the
Niger Delta, vowing to “crumble the economy” if its demands are not met.
The group of whom
President Muhammadu Buhari had ordered the military to crush, had claimed responsibility
for the recent bombings of the Chevron valve facility, and the 48-inch trunk
line supplying crude oil to Warri refinery.
The NDA listed their
demands to include: the immediate implementation of the report of the 2014
national conference or the country would break up and insisted that the
ownership of oil blocks must reflect 60 per cent for the oil-producing people
and 40 per cent for others.
The
Guardian reports that the NDA also asked Buhari, the Department of State
Services, DSS, and Timipre Sylva to apologise to the people of the Niger Delta
region and the family of the late former Governor of Bayelsa State, Diepreye
Alamieyeseigha for killing him ‘‘with intimidation and harassment because of
his party affiliation.’’
Stressing
that the nation’s only maritime university located in ‘‘the most appropriate
and befitting place Okerenkoko must start the 2015/2016 academic session
immediately,’’ the militants asked the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi
Amaechi to apologise to the Ijaw and the entire Niger Delta people for his
‘‘careless and reckless statement about the siting of the university.’’
According
to them, the Ogoniland and indeed all oil-polluted areas in the Niger Delta
must be cleaned up and compensation paid to all oil-producing communities.
While
sympathising with the Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, the NDA demanded that
the leader of the group, Nnamdi Kanu, should be released unconditionally as a
court has ruled. It said that the Niger Delta Amnesty programme must be well
funded and allowed to continue to function effectively.
Faulting
the Buhari’s anti-corruption campaign on the grounds that it is skewed in
favour of his political associates, they held that all members of the All
Progressives Congress, APC, who are indicted in any corruption-related cases
should be made to face trial like members of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
The
group warned oil multi-nationals and foreign investors to observe this
ultimatum, as their business interest in the country must be the first target
of attacks.
