Ijaw youths from across the nine states of the Niger Delta under the aegis of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) has called on the President Muhammadu Buhari led federal government to make its anti-graft crusade holistic and stop demonising the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
President of the IYC, Comrade Udengs Eradiri who spoke to newsmen in Yenagoa Sunday said for President Buhari to be taken serious about his anti corruption war, he should also cause proper investigation into how the nation oil blocs were shared and if it followed due process.
His words, "if President Muhammadu Buhari is sincere with his anti corruption drive he should also visit and investigate owners of Nigeria oil blocs. We must also investigate how those oil blocs were shared and if due process was followed?"
Continuing he said, "go to UK, almost all the houses on some streets are owned by Northerners who stole Nigeria money, so why are they just on Goodluck Jonathan' men, just to demonized Goodluck.
"Goodluck should have won Nobel Prize for Peace. Goodluck deserves a Nobel Peace prize, Goodluck deserves respect from Nigerians, as far as we are concern the anti-corruption fight is a fight against the Ijaw people."
On the crusade against illegal refinery and illegal bunkering in the Niger Delta, the IYC President said the use of force alone would not stem menace and urged the federal government to put in place an economic plan as an alternative for the people of the Niger Delta region involved the business so as to discourage them from participating in the illicit trade.
He said, "we have said in the past that in as much as we support the present administration war against oil theft, it must come with an economic plan as an alternative so that as you are going in to stop them from their way of life, provide an alternative."
"They say oil theft is economic sabotage, what of the illegal mining that are going on in the North. Is that not worst economic sabotage? At a point there was lead poisoning as a result of illegal mining, and the monies that they realize from illegal mining is huge, why do we not have the JTF policing illegal miners, knowing full well that the monies realize from gold illegally mined is far much more than monies realized from stolen oil.
"Why are we not talking about those minerals in the north that are illegally mined to the pockets of individuals, why is it that only Niger Delta oil that is on the pages of newspapers."
The IYC President also expressed worry that the Single Treasury Account system is already having a toil on the economy of the country adding that the Amnesty and the Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC are bearing the effects, as according to him, projects are suffering in the region.
Eradiri said the Amnesty Programme is in jeopardy as the activities at the office is going at a snail speed because the Single Treasury Account system is making it difficult for these institutions to carry out their constitutional and statutory functions.
The IYC however call on the President to exempt the NDDC and the Amnesty office in order for these institutions to freely carry out their responsibilities of training young people from this region as at when due and also developing the Niger Delta.
'We call on the President to exempt the NDDC from the Single Treasury Account. Our understanding is that institutions that are revenue generating, such as NNPC, NIMASA, NPA should generate the monies and inject them to a purse,not institutions that are set up particularly for special purposes, like the development of the Niger Delta, with the Single Treasury Account System. Projects are suffering in this region ,the Amnesty Programme is more of a snail speed because the TSA is making it very difficult for these institutions to carry out their constitutional and statutory functions," he said.
Eradiri also call on the government of the United Kingdom to stay away from the Ijaw and the Niger Delta people under the pretext of fighting corruption adding that the selective persecution of the Ijaw and the Niger Delta people by the Federal Government would no longer be accepted.
The IYC President also called for the unconditional release of the Radio Biafra Director, Nnamdi KANU, saying he is only exercising his rights and such there was no reason he should be arrested.
Eradiri said the issues that he raised are fundamental to the existence of the country.
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