As Nigerians approach the month of great decision via ballot box, there appear to be echoes of war emanating from the camp of ex-militants; now ex-agitators, they started drumming songs of war when enemies of Nigerian State–those who believe that this country of ours is an extension of their grand father’s estate, that anything short of Northern presidency come 29th May, 2015 would not be considered a legitimate government.
It is on record that up till this moment of writing this piece that none of Gen. Buhari’s billboards has been pull down or any of his campaign vehicles set ablaze in the southern part of this country. It is something worthy of commendation that the APC’s presidential campaign rallies in the South are progressing smoothly and unhindered across the entire states in the Southern part of this country without any pro-Jonathan and PDP supporter insulting Gen. Buhari or stoning his convoy even in Bayelsa, the home state of President Jonathan. The decent behaviour of pro-Jonathan supporters in the South in respect to the APC’s presidential campaign rallies cannot be interpreted by Gen. Buhari’s worshippers in the North as an act of cowardice.
The ignoble burning of President Jonathan’s campaign buses in Jos, Plateau State; destruction of pro-Jonathan billboards in the North, stoning of his convoy in the Gen. Buhari’s Katsina State and the recent open insult and booing of President Jonathan in Bauchi State has drawn the ire of ex-militants in the Niger Delta region. After observing the unruly behaviour and violent tendencies of the APC’s supporters especially in the Northern part of this country, coupled with violent attacks being meted out gainst pro-Jonathan campaigners while Gen. Buhari and the leadership of the APC look the other way, leaders of ex-militant groups in Niger Delta summoned an emergency meeting of prominent Niger Delta ex-militants which was held in Bayelsa State recently to assess the ugly developments as regards 2015 presidential election.
After the meeting of ex-militant leaders that lasted hours, they rose from the meeting vowing to ensure that President Jonathan wins the February 14 presidential election, without which there would be war. The former militant leaders took the position recently in Government House, Bayelsa state, at an enlarged meeting attended by the following: Mujahid Dokubo-Asari, leader of Niger Delta Peoples Volunteers Force; Victor Ben Ebikabowei, aka, Boy Loaf, and Government Ekpudomenowei, aka Tompolo. Also in attendance were the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs, and Chairman of Amnesty Implementation Committee, Kingsley Kuku; Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson and his deputy; President General of Ijaw Youth Council, Udengs Eradiri, and others. Addressing the meeting, Dokubo-Asari condemned in strong terms the alleged intimidation being meted to the people of Niger Delta, saying the people could no longer bear it again. “For every Goliath, God created a David. For every Pharaoh, there is a Moses. We are going to war. Every one of you should go and fortify yourself,” he said.
Before the recent political development, Nigeria’s oil-rich region had enjoyed relative peace as a result of Amnesty programme which culminated into astronomical increase in crude oil output which rose from pre-Amnesty era of 700,000 barrels per day to 2.3 million per day. Some multinational oil and gas companies have started panicking as a result of this omnibus threats emanating from ex-militants leaders, because they will not want to experience another era of violent disruption of oil facilities and kidnapping of oil workers in the region.
The anger of ex-militant leaders is erupting from the obvious fact that 2015 presidential election is already being rigged in favour of a Northern candidate against President Jonathan. A situation where pro-Jonathan supporters are being prevented from campaigning in the North, while Gen. Buhari is busy crisis-crossing all the nooks and crannies of the Southern Nigerian leaves much to be desired! It is very pathetic that Northern elders are unleashing Almajiris on President Jonathan’s groups in other to intimidate them out of the region, thereby giving undue advantage to Gen. Buhari of All Progressives Congress (APC), whose utterances and body language are encouraging violence. The story of baboon and dog soaking in blood is still fresh on the minds of Nigerians.
Reacting to the recent attack on President Jonathan’s campaign convoy, Dokubo-Asari condemned the attack maintained that the survival of Nigerian economy rests on the oil-region of Niger Delta, if anything happens to President Jonathan during the campaigns, Nigeria would be history. On his part, BoyLoaf condemned the attack on President Jonathan in the North, saying nobody has monopoly of violence. He said there is nothing like one Nigeria, pointing out that oil is the only thing binding Nigeria’s diverse nationalities together. While maintaining that President Jonathan would win the election, he however said, “If the North takes power from President Jonathan, the people of Niger Delta region would take back their oil.”
