By EMMA AMAIZE, REGIONAL EDITOR, S/SOUTH
IT was on June 25, 2009 that former President Umaru usa Yar’Adua proclaimed unconditional amnesty for militants in the Niger-Delta region as a step towards resolving the long-drawn-out insecurity in the region. The action led to what is known today as the Niger-Delta Amnesty programme with demobilization and reintegration phases designed to last over five years. The requirement for involvement was surrender of arms and unconditional renunciation of militancy by militants within a 60-day casement that terminated October 4, 2009.
Government’s contention was that development would not come in an atmosphere of bloodshed and for agreeing to cease hostilities; it pledged its commitment to institute disarmament, demobilization, rehabilitation and provision of reintegration assistance to the militants. Government’s benefit from the exercise was the reduction in crime rate and essentially increased business activities and foreign direct investment; and increase in revenue accruing to Federation Account.
Some ex-militants holding trophies they won for outstanding performances in training
Three years on, stakeholders are sharply divided on the accomplishment or otherwise of the programme. While some claimed the amnesty programme was only a means to resolving the Niger-Delta problem and not an end by itself, others believe the programme still has a long way to go and should be reviewed.
Consensus on return of logical peace
There is nevertheless a consensus that logical peace has returned to the region as a result of amnesty programme. There is also concord on the fact that oil production has increased and likewise an increase in inflows into the Federation Account. However in terms of infrastructural development, unemployment and economic drought in the region, there is basically no change.
Reduced violence but has failed – Mitee, Ogoni leader
My view is that whatever it is worth, the process has succeeded in reducing to a large extent the violence in the region. Beyond that, however, in so far as it has been prosecuted as a standalone, instead of being part of a peace process that involves the peoples of the region, not just the militants, it has failed to deal with the fundamental problems of the region.
Also in so far as it has also been prosecuted as a project between the militants and the federal government, excluding other critical stakeholders, especially those who have prosecuted their grievances non -violently, it has reinforced the sad impression that only violence can be rewarded.
By concentration in dolling out cash stipends without work, it has also reinforced the wrong notion that money can be earned without work. Utilizing the stipends in some form of employment subsidy would be my preferred option, especially if it also targets youths unemployed generally and not just those who used violence.
We’ve not seen development yet – Boyloaf, ex-militant leader
Victor Ebikabowei Ben, alias Boyloaf, was the last “General” standing in the Movement for Emancipation of Niger-Delta, MEND, Amnesty was not about training alone, but about issues of neglect, marginalization and abandonement of the Niger-Delta region. Well, in my opinion the amnesty has not done so badly, but it would have been better if things were done correctly.
I was one of the first leaders, who led over 32 other leaders to accept amnesty at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, when amnesty was proclaimed by the late President Yar’Adua, I made my stand very clear when I accepted amnesty that we were giving peace a chance for rapid development to commence, three years after how much of the development have you seen?
Rather, all what the people see about amnesty today is training of ex agitators, was that our singular reasons for taking up arms? What about infrastructural development, our communities, our means of livelihood, which was the front burner of the entire struggle? We must , as a matter of urgency, take the right decision in the best interest of the people of the Niger Delta.
When amnesty was proclaimed, there was a clear implementation document, we agreed on something, which resulted in our laying dawn of arms. Where is that document today or how much of it has been implemented? We had an agreement and that agreement resulted in the setting up of several committees. Where are those committees today? Our major agitation was neglect of the region that produces over 90 per cent of the nation’s resources; amnesty in the Niger Delta was not all about training.
Issues of the agitation
Special Adviser to the President on Niger-Delta and Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, PAP, Hon. Kingsley Kuku is only doing his best based on his understanding, but the key issues of the agitation have been left behind, politicians and some group of cabals who did not even participate in the struggle have hijacked the entire process, people who have not even seen a bullet in their eyes before, talk less of fighting in our struggle days, now hide under the cover of different names in the State House and misadvise the President.
It’s a win-win situation for Govt/Ex-militants- Igboanugo, leader, Nigerian community, The Netherlands
The advantage so far is government and the ex-militants see the three years amnesty programmme as a win- win situation with a happy ending. There is peace in the region and the oil output has reached a peak of nearly three million barrels per day.
There is no longer bloodletting in the region in the name of militancy. The local and international investors are going to the region in large numbers to put their money where their mouths are because of the peace that is securing their investments.
I score amnesty programme 80 per cent – Prince Clement Bebenimibo, Conflict Management Expert
I will score the amnesty programme 80 per cent. Some of the boys trained overseas and are already engaged. It is unfortunate that Umaru Yar’Adua is dead, but I see him as one the best Presidents that understood the feelings of the Niger-Delta people and we thank God for him.
Amnesty programme is working – Dr, Chris Ekiyor, former National President of the Ijaw Youth Council, IYC
The Presidential Amnesty proclamation of June 25, 2009 by late President Yar’Adua is a major mile stone in the history of this contraption called Nigeria. It is perhaps the only visible face of government in action. To my mind, it has provided the required peace that should pave way for monumental infrastructure development, economic enhancement and capacity building.
Nonetheless, it will be suicidal to think that the amnesty program is now a replacement for the fundamentals of governance in the Niger-Delta.
Taking proactive steps
In my opinion, President Goodluck would have failed Nigerians and his Niger.-Delta people, if in the next couple of months, he does not take steps to be more proactive in addressing the very gaps that hitherto cause the agitation in the first place.
He must not imagine that the over 10 million non -militant youths of Niger-Delta do not count in the scheme of things, or the rest of non Alamajiri youths also do not count, he, therefore, needs to do the necessary in providing the enablers to create wealth and jobs for these groups of Nigerians
It has been hijacked – Hon Emmanuel Arigbe-Osula, former Minority Whip, House of Representatives
The amnesty programme was no doubt a wise reconciliatory and affirmative program by the government of late President Yar’Adua to bring peace to the region and bridge the developmental gap created by years of neglect by past leadership of our country of the nation’s revenue sustaining region.
However, I am sure that the hijack of the process by some opportunistic people has given further projection of this measure an impression distinct from the original design, which is, being a reward of some criminality which might encourage unfortunate and unintended measures across the nation.
The mere fact that the prevalence of years of bad governance still exists today might have given the majority of Nigerians the impression that the only way to get respite from neglect might be collective agitation and arm struggle, even if it requires some level of illegality for the government to hear your cry before it acts or does something about it. What a shame! It is unfortunate that this present government is surprisingly going the bad path of its predecessors.
N-Delta is still pauperized – Oghenejabo Ikimi Esq. National coordinator of the Forum for Justice and Human Rights Defence, FJHD
Sincerely speaking, I never supported the idea of an amnesty programme as propounded by the then President Yar’Adua’s government in June 2009 as a way of disarming the Niger Delta militants. To me the venture was both a waste of energy and public funds.
My conviction stemmed from the fact that if the militants were actually fighting for the development of the Niger Delta Region, the commencement of a massive infrastructural and human capital development of the region by the Federal Government would have been enough to disarm these patriots fighting for the emancipation of their region and her people from decades of neglect, pandemic poverty, massive under development and environmental degradation.
Environmental degradation
However, three years into the amnesty programme, I make bold to say that the region has witnessed relative peace except for some pockets of militancy lately and many of the disarmed militants have since been re- integrated and have acquired new skills, courtesy of the programme, but the entire region and her people remain largely neglected, pauperized, massively under developed and environmentally degraded and subdued than ever.
As a matter of fact, some of the beneficiaries of the programme are not militants and have neither seen a creek nor have they seen or handled an AK 47 riffle before, but due to their jobless state merely crashed into the programme with the aid of some “generals”, who in turn have squandered and sub- changed these youths of their monthly stipends.
On the way forward, I call on the Federal Government to immediately set in motion a Marshall plan to massively develop the Niger Delta region without delay as it is the primary responsibility of government to ensure the welfare and security of her citizens in accordance with section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
It has created peace – Joel Bisina Bisina, peace activist, and expert in conflict management mediation and founder /executive director of Niger-Delta Professionals for Development, NIPRODEV. It has created relative peace in the region, provided opportunities for government and other development partners to move into the region to accelerate development processes. The biggest challenge is consolidating on the gains and transforming the gains into a positive outcome.
Transitory success – Comrade Sunny Ofehe, Founder of the Hope for Niger-Delta Campaign, HNDC, based in The Netherlands.
The amnesty granted to Niger Delta militants can be seen from a tripod point as a temporary achievement looking back the last three years. First, it brought the current peace to the hitherto restive region. Secondly, it has restored Nigeria’s position as Africa’s leading oil exporter a position it had lost to Angola. Thirdly, the damaging international image of the region as a result of the kidnappings of oil experts has also improved.
I say temporary because a few factors are inimical to the sustenance of these achievements. The major success story so far from the amnesty granted is the international training program that has brought exposure and higher learning opportunities to Niger Delta youths that had lost hope in life and become frustrated.
“The question now is that for how long will the government continue to pay? What happens if the government decides to stop the payment of these wages? It is clear that the youths will have no means to sustain themselves and with no permanent job, they will surely become vulnerable and this could lead to fatal insurgency.
More funds should be provided – Mr. Opukeme Hendricks, also a Niger-Delta activist
One remarkable post amnesty achievement has been the fact that oil production has leap –jumped to pre-crisis daily production quantum of 2.700,000 barrels per day. Aside this, there exists today maximum peace and security in the Niger Delta region except for pockets of criminal activities which to say the least is not abnormal.
An appraisal of the amnesty programme would be incomplete without reference to the rehabilitation and reintegration processes ongoing in the country and abroad. It is on record that thousands of agitators have been trained and rehabilitated with professional skills and competences that they hitherto lacked in their communities.
The training and rehabilitation programmes have since been commended at home and abroad. The multinational oil corporations have thus heaved a sigh of relief, so also as the communities, which were daily bombarded by the Joint Military Task Force.
