IN Nigeria and the United States (U.S.), the Niger Delta crisis has continued to attract the attention of the two countries’ leaders.
Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed a motion to hold a public hearing on the crisis in the region. It expressed dismay at the discordant tunes in the Presidency over the nomenclature or shape the proposed Niger Delta summit would take.
The U.S. government said on Wednesday that only a peaceful approach to the Niger Delta dilemma would enjoy its support.
Washington’s latest option on the resolution of the conflict is encapsulated in what a State Department official described as “political dialogue.”
Reacting to recent developments in the oil-rich region, especially the “money-for-protection of oil facilities” deal between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and some militants in the area, U.S. said that though it would not comment on the arrangement, it condemned violence as a means of seeking redress by aggrieved persons in the region.
On Wednesday afternoon, when reporters sought the reaction of the U.S. government to the news that the Nigerian government-owned NNPC paid militants N1.4 billion( $12 million) to secure access to the site of a damaged pipeline in Delta State, the American government spokesperson, Gonzalo Gallegos, declined comments on the issue.
Instead, Gallegos, Director of U.S. State Department Press Relations, told reporters that the U.S. would continue to encourage peaceful means to address the Niger Delta crisis.
The American government’s peace path is endorsed by Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, who said yesterday that a majority of the people in the region believe in continuous dialogue despite the cancellation of the Niger Delta Summit by the Federal Government.
Leading the debate on the motion supported by 96 other members of the chamber, Andrew Uchendu from Rivers State recalled that the absence of peace in the Niger Delta had become a global concern because of its strategic nature. He lamented that the area that had been so endowed by nature with mineral wealth had been turned into a land of horror due to neglect. The lawmaker recalled that a series of initiatives taken both in colonial and post-colonial times had not addressed the crisis and urged the Presidency to come up with a realistic plan to solve the problem.
The motion enjoyed the favour of Abdul Ningi (Bauchi State), who said that “the problems of the Niger Delta are problems of Nigeria. ” He stressed that the resources in the area belong to Nigerians and the people of the area deserved better treatment.
He said some criminals had hijacked the cause of the Niger Delta struggle, adding that some of the so-called militants were businessmen disguising as armed men.
Bala Ibn Na’ Allah (Kebbi State) said: “There is no sacrifice that is too much to ensure stability in the Niger Delta.” He called on his colleagues to support the motion as intervention in the Niger Delta problem would save Niger a lot of embarrassment at home and abroad.”
Nasir Rabe (Katsina State) agreed with Na’Allah but suggested that the Federal Government should investigate the allocations to the Niger Delta area. CID Maduabum representing Nnewi North-South-Ekusigo Anambra State, called for a master-plan for the Niger Delta.
The Speaker, Dimeji Bankole, put the question and it was resolved that the chamber should set up a committee to hold a public hearing on the Niger Delta crisis.
On the role the U.S. would play to bring the conflict to an end, Gallegos said: “We ‘re going to remain supportive of efforts, including the promotion of political dialogue, to deal with legitimate grievances in the Niger Delta.”
Below is the interaction between Gallegos in Washington, DC and journalists on the crisis:
Do you have any reaction to the story in Nigeria about the government-state-run oil company paying off militants $12 million?
Yeah, I’m not going to comment on this general threat; however, we condemn any resort to violence in the Niger Delta. We encourage all parties to use peaceful means in resolving their disputes. And we’re going to remain supportive of efforts, including the promotion of political dialogue, to deal with legitimate grievances in the Delta.
The question was prompted by revelations from NNPC’s Group Managing Director (GMD), Abubakar Lawal Yar’Adua, that the corporation held talks with the militants and paid them N1.4 billion ($12 million) in two months before they allowed the corporation to repair a damaged oil facility in Delta State.
Yar’Adua had told the House of Representatives Committee on Finance probing revenue earnings and remittances into the Federation Account that the action was to stop further loss of revenue by the government.
His words: “The price we pay is very high. It is difficult to get expatriates to work in the Niger Delta. We paid militants $12 million because we were losing $81 million to the problem of the Chanomi pipeline in Delta State.”
The corporation has however denied that it paid such money to militants. According to the NNPC management, the money was paid to a community-based company to protect its oil facilities.
But MEND said the money was shared among top NNPC, JTF and Delta State officials while a pittance was paid as “protection fees” to unscrupulous persons masquerading as militants.
In a Voice of America (VOA) interview, Uduaghan described the threat by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) to blow up oil facilities in the state over the NNPC’s claim that it paid $12 million ransom to militant groups as unfortunate. He assured that the JTF had been alerted and was capable of protecting oil facilities and other infrastructure in the state.
On the need for the Niger Delta dialogue, Uduaghan said: “For the issue of the summit you referred to, the problem was that there have been a lot of reports and what the people of the Niger Delta are saying is that all those reports should be collated and a visible agenda set, such that whatever it is to be done in the Niger Delta, when to do it, who to do it and when to do it, and how to do it are adequately tackled. That is what the people of the Niger Delta are saying. It is not as if they don’t want a summit. We will continue to talk.”
Reacting to MEND’s threat, Uduaghan said: “That threat is unfortunate because over the years, we have tried to put up structures that will ensure that we have peace and security, and facilities, especially the oil facilities. If any group is trying to destroy such facilities, that will be very unfortunate, and we want to appeal that such threats are not necessary.
“In Delta State, we have our youths who have been helping us to maintain peace and security. I am reaching out to them and also alerting the Joint Task Force, which is the military task force overseeing the security of that area and also reassuring the people of Delta State generally to provide adequate security, especially for the workers and oil facilities.”
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), James Manager, has blamed the Nigerian state for the unrest in the region.
Manager said legislators from the Niger Delta in the National Assembly would henceforth make it a priority to ensure that multinational companies provide employment opportunities for qualified youths from the area.
He spoke yesterday during the graduation of 7,732 youths from the NDDC’s sponsored skill-acquisition programme in Port Harcourt.
He said: “Nigeria is the problem of the Niger Delta. It should look inwards based on the wealth coming from the Niger Delta for the development of the region. It is important that Nigeria should acknowledge that the region needs to be developed and it is the key to economy of the country.”