Some stakeholders in the Niger Delta have called for the transition of the Presidential Amnesty Programme to the Niger Delta Stabilisation Programme, saying the latter was more sustainable.
The stakeholders under the aegis of Niger Delta Peace Initiative also called for the appointment of the Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Col. Milland Dikio (retd.) to head the NDSP.
The NDPI in a statement by its Secretary-General, Moses Kolomo, and Publicity Secretary, Jacob Aduna, described Dikio as an asset in the stabilisation of the region.
They said transiting the programme to NDSP would remove the militancy tag in the Niger Delta associated with PAP and lead to an influx of investors to the oil and gas rich region.
They said the new programme, if established by the government, would enable the retention of the services of Dikio, whose capacity in managing PAP would ensure the realisation of NDSP and total transformation of the youths in the Niger Delta.
The stakeholders further said the NDSP should be designed to focus on the young people between the ages of 12 and 18 to stop the rising influx of youths within the age brackets into cultism.
They said if the trend continues unabated, a new generation of youths would be deceived to begin a fresh arms struggle against the Federal Government.
The statement reads, “We don’t want to lose Dikio because this is the first time someone has shown selflessness, capacity and genuine motive in the management of the affairs of any Niger Delta programme.
“Since the amnesty programme is not sustainable, we are calling for the transition of PAP into the Niger Delta Stabilisation Programme with the appointment of Dikio to manage it.
“We know that Dikio has perfect understanding of NDSP. We overheard him mention it in different fora and we think it is the best for the Niger Delta region. So, he is the best person that will handle such intervention. We understand that the NDSP will focus on young ones between the ages of 12 and 18.
“This age bracket will determine the future of the Niger Delta. But with the rate people at this age bracket are joining cultism, we are afraid that if no deliberate intervention like NDSP is rolled out by the Federal Government, the region may witness another round of violent agitation in the nearest future.”
The stakeholders added that Dikio had been a pride to the people of the Niger Delta in the management of amnesty programme, hence he should be allowed a longer time to stabilise the region.
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