| A new group, Movement for the Sovereign State of the Niger Delta (MSSND) has debunked the claim by another group that the Ijaw are planning for a guerilla warfare with the Federal Government. The National Coordinator of the MSSND, Mr. Bailbond Esaba who said this in Warri over the weekend said that even though the people of the Niger Delta are desirous for a country of their own they do not intend to get it by going to war with the Federal Government . According to Esaba, the claim by the South South Liberation Movement (SSLM) that they are embarking on guerrilla warfare with the Federal Government is erroneous and has not gotten the blessing of any body, most especially the Ijaw groups in the country. Esaba said that all Ijaw groups in the country at a meeting held last week and attended by representatives of the Federated Niger Delta Ijaw Communities (FNDIC), Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force (NDPVF), MOSIEN and the MENINBUTUS among others resolved to give dialogue a chance and negotiate with the Federal Government on problems in the Niger Delta. He said that at no time did they agree with SSLM to lunch any guerrilla warfare in the region. “Everything we do, we do after adequate consultation, the SSLM leader, Mr. John Adie did not consult any body, before issuing that statement”. He made it clear that despite this, the collegiate leaders of Ijaw groups is against the committee set up by Mr. President to look into the problems of the Niger Delta which will be inaugurated today. “If Mr. President want peace and development in the Niger Delta, he would directly handle all development projects in the Niger Delta. Setting up committee, which will soon be bugged down by politics and internal wrangling, will not solve the problem. Let him speak to us directly instead of appointing people who will end up lining their pockets instead of developing the region and the people”. |
Apr182006