Following his release from prison at the weekend, the Federal Government is set to engage former governor of Bayelsa State, DSP Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, in its peace moves in the restive Niger Delta, THISDAY has learnt.
The Federal Government, it was gathered, entered into negotiations with the former governor to provide a soft landing for him because it realised that he was one of those that held the ace to the final resolution of the Niger Delta crisis.
�It was part of the deal. Government would negotiate with him and secure freedom for him so he can be part of moves to resolve the crisis. Government knows Alamieyeseigha is very crucial to the resolution of the problems in the Niger Delta,� said a source in Abuja.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger-Delta (MEND) and other militant groups in the area had earlier listed the release of the former governor as one of the conditions for peace in the area.
THISDAY also learnt that the British authorities had earlier advised the Federal Government to involve the former governor if it was serious about achieving a lasting peace in the region.
Alamieyeseigha is expected to work hand-in-hand with the Vice President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, who has made the resolution of the Niger Delta crisis his major task and has relocated to Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital for the assignment.
The vice president had met his former boss in Lagos two weeks ago where the deal to negotiate freedom for the former governor was struck.
Last Thursday, the former Federal High Court in Abuja presided over by Justice Muhammed Shuaib, handed down a two-year jail term on each of the six-count charges.
But the terms were to run concurrently from the day of his first arrest on December 9, 2005.
Alamieyeseigha was, however, released by the prison authorities last Friday and was said to have moved into his residence at Reverend Akinbiyi Road, Government Reservation Area (GRA), Ikeja, Lagos.
The reprieve granted the former governor followed the plea bargain entered into between him and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) which was prosecuting him for corruption.
Alamieyeseigha pleaded guilty to the charges following which he was convicted.
�I am 55 years-old. I have lost my wife and children. I have gone through the shadow of death. I am carrying the matter which I opposed to. If am a younger man, I would not have pleaded guilty to these charges because I could have defended myself if I was much younger. This cannot be the case now,� he said while pleading guilty to the charges.
The vice president will personally oversee everything concerning Niger Delta, including the security of the area.
Meanwhile, the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Dr. Godknows Igali was over the weekend honoured by Nigerians Professional in Diaspora, an organisation of over 400 Nigerian professionals from 32 different countries. They converged on Abuja as part of the second Nigeria Diaspora Day.
Igali told the organisation that he would soon be leaving office to make way for the full coordination of Niger Delta issues by Vice President.
Igali paid tribute to Jonathan and President Umaru Yar�Adua, saying they had total commitment to not only the restoration of peace in the Niger Delta, but also to the development of the area. He said under the present administration, there was better co-ordination of the peace process in the area and that government was doing everything possible to take all the communities along in what was being done to bring the situation to normalcy. �There�s a focus on development and there is a focus on constructive engagement of the militants. All these are being personally led by the president and the vice president. There is a focus on good governance and transparency in the Niger Delta. This government is determined to take all the communities along.
�There is now a better co-ordination of the peace process in the area, thanks to the vice president�, he stated.
Igali thanked the Nigerian Professionals in the Diaspora for the award, saying it came at an auspicious time when he was bowing out of office after contributing his quota to the peace agenda of the Niger Deltaand expressed gratitude to government for the opportunity given him to serve the country in that capacity.
�I have avoided awards, never wanting to take them. But I consider this very special before it came at a time I was rounding off my work as special adviser to the president on the Niger Delta. I�m grateful to the militants for agreeing to meet with and talk to us and the government for giving me the opportunity to have served in this regard�, he added.
The Nigerian Diaspora Day, fixed for July 25 of every year was declared in 2005 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo to recognize the Nigerians in the Diaspora as important stakeholders in the development of the country.
The special award on Igali was the high point of the activities to round off the conference at the prestigious Transcorp Hotel, Abuja which President Umaru Yar�Adua declared open last Thursday.
Former president of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Mr. Oyinfie Jonjon, has however said the release of Alamieyeseigha would not fully restore peace to the Niger Delta as, according to him, only two of the three conditions necessary for peace to return to the region had been met.
He listed the release of the leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteers Force (NDPVF), Mujahid Asari Dokubo, and that of Alamieyeseigha as the two conditions already met explaining, however, that the third condition was for government to withdraw troops deployed to the region.