N’Delta elders petition Monguno over FG’s panel on oil theft

Elders and stakeholders from Niger Delta have expressed concern over the dwindling fortunes of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) due to alleged divided attention of the Interim Administrator, Maj. Gen. Barry Ndiomu (rtd.), following his appointment also as the substantive chairman of an 11-man committee  of the Special Investigative Panel on Oil Theft in the region by the Presidency.

They listed some of the programmes not getting expected attention as staff welfare, payments to PAP beneficiaries, tuition fees payment to beneficiaries, empowerment programmes, payment to contractors and a host of other issues bordering on national security.

The stakeholders, under the aegis of Movement for the Sustainable Development of the Niger Delta (MSDND), in the letter addressed to the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd.), stressed the urgent need to have Ndiomu focused on Federal Government’s task of fighting crude oil theft.

The letter, dated February 3, 2023, and signed by the convener of MSDND, Chief Ayebatekena Olodi, and its Secretary-General, Chief Godwin Pere-Ebikabowei, stated: “In the light of the unfolding, scary and scandalous revelations emanating from the office of the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Mele Kyari, to the effect that Nigeria loses a staggering sum of $1.9 billion USD monthly to oil theft. This revelation is not only mind-boggling but calls for urgent and proactive measures by the government of President Muhammadu Buhari to stem this ugly tide before insolvency sets in.

“Given that our nation’s security and livelihood is at stake, we urgently call on you to use your good office to empower Ndiomu, the substantive chairman of the Special Investigative Panel on Oil Theft in the Niger Delta region, to focus on his herculean tasks in our nation’s fight against crude oil theft to ensure the smooth operations of his eleven-man committee without any distractions from over 30,000 ex-militants, staff, and thousands of stakeholders from across the nine (9) states of the Niger Delta region.

“Based on these facts, we the Movement for the Sustainable Development of the Niger Delta hereby submit this urgent petition to your office to beseech you to use your good office to recommend someone with proven track record from the Niger Delta region to President Muhammadu Buhari for appointment as the Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme because the affairs of the PAP are being neglected and the PAP is in dire need of a visionary leader.”

The group urged the National Security Adviser, who supervises the Presidential Amnesty Programme, to recommend someone with a good track record from the Niger Delta region to President Muhammadu Buhari for appointment as the Interim Administrator of PAP.