By Abujah Racheal
Abuja – The Federal Government will utilise the Centre for Peace at the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs to design sustainable peace building initiatives in the region.
The Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs, Prof. Claudius Daramola, made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Abuja.
Daramola said that there was the need for government to take proactive measures to halt further breakdown of law and order and reduce tension and agitation that had become recurring decimals in the region .
He called for the promotion of peaceful co-existence for the betterment of the Niger Delta region and the nation at large.
“Peace is an essential ingredient in any society for meaningful development to take place.
“The challenges facing the Niger Delta are enormous and would require patience, as well as a systematic approach in resolving them and the present government is already doing that.”
Daramola said that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government was adopting better ways to resolve conflicts in the region.
He said that the president had undertaken programmes targeted at addressing the socio-political and economic needs of the region’s population, especially the youths.
“One of such programmes is the training and empowerment of youths in various vocations and the establishment of skill acquisition centres for the training and empowerment of Niger Delta Youths in the nine states of the region.”
He, therefore, advised youths in the region to resist the temptation to destroy their future and the socio-economic life in the Niger Delta.
He warned that people involved in the destruction of oil and gas pipelines were destroying the environment and disrupting the activities of multinational oil companies, thereby causing revenue loss, sicknesses and diseases.
The minister said it was the region ‘s collective responsibility to take appropriate actions to checkmate negative activities in order to secure the future of the country and the coming generations.
“The Federal Government will continue to engage stakeholders at the community level as a panacea for resolving conflicts in order to create a conducive environment to fast-track the development of the region.
“A meeting of stakeholders at the level of communities is indispensable as the country is faced with renewed issues of youth restiveness, pipeline vandalism, kidnapping, cultism, oil theft, and other politically motivated vices.
“We hope to use such platforms to interact directly with the grassroots for sustainable peace in the region.
“In any given society, the role of local communities is crucial in enhancing peace, growth and development.”
Daramola said that Buhari had given his support to the Ministry’s programmes aimed at creating a synergy with the grassroots.
He said such a synergy would support the administration’s change mantra, and promote peace for a prosperous Nigeria.
Daramola disclosed that the ministry had commenced free Malaria, Blood Pressure, Diabetes, HIV tests and drug administration programme for the people of the region.
“The essence of the health programme is for the people to know their health status with a view to promoting healthy living, ” he said.
