Date Published: 10/29/09

Amnesty Row: Burst that combing of the creeks

The fragile peace that has been achieved in the disarmament should not be allowed to erode. When the militants were returning the arms and ammunitions in their possession, many including the Amnesty and Disarmament Committees, were not in doubt that not all of it were turned in.  With this hindsight, it is necessary that the proposed combing of the creeks for remnant arms should not be conducted.

Recently, the repentant militant leaders have publicly warned against this, stressing that conducting that would give rise to suspicion that the federal government might be looking for alibi with which to inflict some injury to the achieved ‘fragile’ peace. It may also send some of the militants regretting their embrace of the amnesty programme.

What the federal government need do is instead of embarking on something that might escalate discordant, it should hasten in practical terms those things that would show some post-amnesty programmes.  Let there be immediate beginning with some signs to show that the sincerity it imparted to the affected militants and the affected areas as regards the amnesty deal. Let the federal government have it behind its mind that whatever arms still left behind which they are trying to comb out could be very insignificant as to ignite any serious threat. 

Government needs the cooperation of the stakeholders to keep the tempo on. There are other areas that should be tackled in the Niger Delta area and they include fighting the oil bunkering menace which the former militants can help in giving clue on how to curb; some militants had revealed that some former and serving military in the creeks together with some foreigners are seriously into the business. Nigerian looses more on daily basis than what the militants perpetrated.

Ndubuisi Nwaorh

245 Zik AvenueAWKA, Anambra State