Nigerian Ex-Militants Vow to Stop Crude Oil Revenue to North If Jonathan is Stopped in 2015

President, Goodluck Jonathan

By Sunday Okobi  and Okon Bassey 

Repentant militant leaders in the Niger Delta region yesterday threatened to cut off every avenue through which states in the northern region of the country get supply of petroleum products if through any of their actions, the President, Goodluck Jonathan, is stopped from seeking a re-election in 2015.

Rising from a meeting in Oron Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, the ex-militants further threatened to embark on actions to stop the North from benefiting from crude oil proceeds generated from the Niger Delta.

The former freedom fighters drawn from the nine states under the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) had converged on Oron under the aegis of the Leadership, Peace and Cultural Development Initiative, where they also assessed and condemned the handling of NDDC projects by contractors.

The president of the group, Reuben Wilson, said in an interview with journalists that their interest was to ensure that Jonathan returned to office in 2015 and that anybody who opposed the idea was considered an enemy of the region.

“We met in Oron to review developments in the country, particularly as it concerns the interest of the Niger Delta people. You will agree that the Niger Delta is the main stay of the nation’s economy.
“You will agree with me that the Niger Delta people are sustaining the economy at great inconveniences and pains to its people and the environment. It is the only time that the region has had the privilege of producing a president for the country.

“It is unthinkable that the North will be plotting against our son, intimidating him with bomb blasts here and there and causing the untimely death of scores of innocent Nigerians, all because they want to take back power.

“We have always seen the need for us to live together as one indivisible country and this is what Mr. President believes in. However, with the way things are going, we have been pushed to the wall and we cannot but react.

“Accordingly, the former freedom fighters have agreed that all the routes through which the north has been benefiting from crude oil finds coming from the Niger Delta will be cut off, if they insist on forcing Mr. President out of office.

“We will expect them to use whatever means available to them to generate their source of revenue with which they will run the presidency. They cannot be using our sweat to enjoy when we, the producers of the wealth, are not allowed the constitutional right to two terms in office,” he said.

In another development, about 500 groups supporting the re-election of Jonathan have asked the president to ignore those not in support of him running for a second time after his first tenure expires, and seek a second term in next year’s presidential election.

The groups from around the country, under the umbrella of the Goodluck Initiative For Transformation (GIFT), represented at an international press conference held in Abuja over the weekend on June 27, also condemned the widespread of terror attack by the extremist Boko Haram group.

According to the convener of the conference held at the Rock View
Hotel in Lagos, and the National Coordinator of GIFT, Chindeu Okpalanma, in his speech, said that the conference was organised to address issues in the polity, reiterate the oneness of Nigeria and that President Jonathan remains the person to take us to the Promised Land.

“One reason why we are mounting pressure on the president to seek re-election is that with the barrage of noise from critics of the president, we want President Jonathan to realise that there are millions of Nigerians who are appreciative of the transformation that he is doing and want him to contest again. We don’t want him to consider the criticisms and then decide not to contest; we want him to contest,” said Okpalanma.

According to Okpalanma, “We must understand that what president Jonathan promised us during his first campaign was transformation.

Now, transformation is a process. Those people who were profiting from the old rule are bitter that the president is not doing things in the business as usual manner. This is the reason why he is having this great opposition.”

Highlighting some of the sectors of the economy being transformed to include transportation, agriculture and power, Okpalanma said, “This government has done well in delivering on her promises, despite the challenges we find ourselves in. President Jonathan’s transformation agenda has touched every sector of our economy today, and things are improving. Institutions are also being empowered to function properly.”

Also concerning Nigeria’s attraction to foreign investors as an investment destination, Okpalanma said, “The president is working and the federal government has put policies in place that in no distant time would yield fruits of job creation for the young ones. An instance is the interest of global car brand, NISSAN and other companies that have showed interest of setting up manufacturing plants in Nigeria.”

In his address, Director of Corporate Affairs for GIFT, Ken Ajieh said: “We will continue to speak for our over 10 million members who want the president to return a second time. We believe that in no distant future the president would respond to this call positively.

“The Ekiti State election has shown that you must be close to the people as a politician and this is the type of democracy that the president stands for and for this we want to urge him to run again.”

On the Boko Haram menace, Okpalanma in his speech, said: “The government of President Goodluck Jonathan remains a government

dedicated to transforming Nigeria and ensuring we live in peace as a people. It is our conviction that this government is doing everything to ensure this problem of terror is tackled and extinguished. We know that for certain the president is working and making concrete steps to bringing back our Chibok girls and are certain that in due time Nigerians will get purposeful results.”