The crisis in the Niger Delta has gone from mere agitation for resource control to a full blown conventional warfare.
We hope that this is not another attempt to turn the country into a civil unrest. We are disheartened that militants in the Niger Delta have continued to disrupt the production of crude oil inspite of the spirited effort by the new democratic government to bring stability to the region.
The recent so-called oil war purportedly declared by the militants in the Niger-Delta, is nothing other than an act of criminality.
We are aware that the crisis in this oil-rich region of Nigeria has dragged on because of the involvement of some criminal elements who operate as a cartel, digging deep into the nation’s economic nerve through illegal oil bunkering which is a very lucrative business and a quick and easy way to get rich in a matter of minutes or days.
Let us stop this violence now. Certainly, violence will not solve any matter of national interest. Let us stop creating a situation of insecurity and instability in the Niger Delta region.
We have said before that the entire area covered by the Nigerian oil industry must be mapped out and only those who are oil industry workers should be seen in the mapped-out areas. All other settlers who had before been so located near or within the mapped out area must be relocated at nearby towns and cities.
The industrial area must be protected now. Our brothers and sisters should realize that the oil industry is for Nigeria and not the foreign companies….
Most of the foreign companies are on our land because they have the technical knowledge and they have spent time and money to build all these facilities and the drilling sites that are now being blown up by the militants.
Let us stop this violence, after all since 1960, only six years period may have been peaceful in Nigeria and we do not even think so because we are still asking questions and want to find out what happened between 1960 and 1966 that resulted to the civil war that lasted up till 1972 before the Murtala Mohammed’s coup de tat and the subsequent processes that have lasted till 1999 when a democratic system of government came up.
We are now into the second phase of such government, but we are all aware of various problems confronting us as citizens from the top to the bottom. We cannot solve our problems in a violent way. Who among us does not want Nigeria to be a peaceful country?
Let no group of persons whether in power or so wealthy sponsor violence in Nigeria either in the South, East, West or North. Enough is enough. We want to see how the coming seven years could be used to resolve most of our problems if not all. But the question is, how can we achieve these plans in the face of violence?
We can all see the damage that has been done to families, to fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, youths, juveniles and even the very young ones and if the only way to attain a good social standard is through this new democratic venture, why are we not patient now to see what could be done. Afterall, aggression cannot help any one of us and over reaction is even dangerous.
We should be thinking of what we can do as governors, and the governed so that the unity of the country is maintained, further innovations embarked upon, reconstructed to avoid wastages, managed effectively and provisions made available for work so as to reduce unemployment and the subsequent travelling out from the country by our able-bodies young men and women. These are the Nigerians of tomorrow. No matter what we think now, let us prepare today for the Nigeria of tomorrow. This is the task before us as Nigerians. This is the task of this government. United we stand to face the challenges of this present time and the challenges of life.
My dear vibrant youths of the Niger Delta, give peace a chance. A lot will be done to remedy the ills that have been going on for over thirty years. Give peace a chance so that we would have sufficient time to execute all the measures planned to benefit all and portray Nigeria as a great nation. Long live the Nigerian people.
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