Date Published: 07/14/09
14th July 2009. Press Release.
LAGOS AC CALLS FOR CAUTION ON MEND ATTACK.
With the attack on Atlas Cove by the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), the Lagos State chapter of the Action Congress has called on both the government and MEND to ensure that the Niger Delta crisis is effectively resolved without further loss of lives and damage to properties. The party said it is issuing this appeal bearing in mind that the nation cannot afford to continue threading the bloody path while the central issues in the Niger Delta question remains unresolved.
In a release in Lagos, signed by the party’s Lagos State Publicity Secretary, Joe Igbokwe, Lagos AC says it feels concerned that the Niger Delta crisis has been externalized to perforate the peaceful coexistence of Lagos. It says it fears that such pose great danger to the peace and unity of the country if not quickly resolved.
“It is apparent that full-scale military action against the militants and people of the Niger Delta is proving incapable of solving the Niger Delta problem hence the present generalization of the militant attacks to such a cosmopolitan and important state as Lagos. While we share the sympathy of the people of the Niger Delta, we equally believe that towing the paths of peace and compromise will go a long way in finding lasting solution to the crisis. We therefore call for sincerity of purpose on both sides in finding how best o deal with what is fast becoming an intractable situation.
“Lagos AC fears that taking the struggle beyond the Niger Delta will quicken the growth of the insecurity of lives and properties, which at present, remains at a very high level all over the country. We fear the gun culture that will be unleashed by this decision to involve a state like Lagos in the burgeoning crisis. We believe that all must see reason to fundamentally deal with this crisis before it consumes the entire country. We state that far-reaching action plan be quickly put in place for not only the Niger Delta but the entire country, as the Niger Delta crisis should not be decided in isolation. We therefore call for an urgent review of the decision to unleash war on the Niger Delta while we call on the Niger Delta activists to embrace peace and genuine dialogue, led by true representatives of the Niger Delta people and other progressive Nigerians in other to successfully bring to an end the present crisis in the country.
“While we commiserate with the families of those that lost their lives in the MEND attack on Atlas Cove Jetty, we call on all to ensure that a repeat of such attack in Lagos does not re-occur. We commend the good people of Lagos State for their resolve to forge ahead after this attack and we express the hope that the crisis would be resolved for the good of all Nigerians and in no distant time.”
Joe Igbokwe
Publicity Secretary,
Lagos AC.
