THE Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has endorsed the meeting between President Umaru Yar’Adua and one of its leaders, Henry Okah.
The group said it was a welcome development as it could lead to the attainment of genuine and lasting peace and justice in the region.
MEND, which five days ago declared its readiness to resume attacks on oil facilities and the military in the zone, said yesterday it might ask its fighters to stand down from their level of alert to pave way for dialogue with government.
The group said that after the conclusion of its campaign against the Federal Government, it would turn the heat on corrupt governors and other public officials, who impeded development in the region.
Its spokesperson, Jomo Gbomo, said yesterday that the response by the President’s spokesman, Mr. Segun Adeniyi, indicates that the Federal Government is now open to meaningful dialogue with everyone, including a team of eminent Nigerians nominated by MEND to negotiate on its behalf.
Members of MEND five-man Aaron Team, named on September 29, are Vice Admiral Mike Akhigbe (rtd), Prof. Wole Soyinka, Maj.-Gen. Luke Kakadu (rtd), Prof. Sabella Ogbobode Abidde and Annkio Briggs as liaison between the group and the team.
Gbomo said: “The response by the President’s spokesman that government is now open to dialogue with everyone can be interpreted to include our Aaron Team. When we hear from Okah regarding this shift in position, we will have to create the enabling environment for such talks to commence and that will mean asking our fighters to stand down from their level of alert and this may require a formal declaration of cease-fire.”
He said MEND supports Okah’s initiative and ready to work with him and the Aaron Team to achieve lasting peace in the Niger Delta.
According to him, “Okah declined to be a part of the Aaron Team but offered his advice from often. The Aaron Team is the body recognised by MEND to mediate on its behalf.
“We have not given them (Aaron Team) a brief. The key understanding is that they will be addressing the root issues responsible for the unrest in the Niger Delta which date back to post-independence.”
Gbomo said from the little MEND had gathered, Yar’Adua seems to have a good heart even though that not be sufficient to address the core issues affecting the Niger Delta.
“That he has offered to dialogue is a wise decision contrary to the utterances from Godwin Abbe (Interior Minister) who we have no respect for.”
MEND described government’s proposal to plough back at least 10 per cent of oil proceeds for development projects in the oil producing communities as a wise move, but remarked that this was still not good enough as the goal of the people was to control their natural resources.
Gbomo said the failure of the government to implement the recommendations of the Ledum Mitee-led Technical Committee on the Niger Delta, was an indication that it was afraid of addressing the root issues because certain forces were scared of true federalism.
“True federalism and a system that will remove immunity from governors so that they and others down the line can be brought to book for corruption. In fact, the governors and others that manage public funds will be our next target after we have been successful in this first phase of our campaign,” he said.
Despite the acceptance by some of its key commanders, MEND said it does not need to recruit more persons because the number of fighters in the creeks were enough, adding that those who have gone were not indispensable.