From Ben Dunno, Warri
INDICATIONS have emerged that the peace meeting between the Federal Government and the Pan Niger Delta Elders, Leaders and Stakeholders Forum held in Abuja last week might not lead to the peaceful resolution of the crisis in the region.
The Niger Delta Greenland Justice Mandate (NDGJM) yesterday threatened more devastating attacks on some upland major oil installations in the region.
The threat came just as the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) yesterday described the demands put forward by the South South dialogue team to the peace parley with the Federal Government as a step in the right direction towards a sustainable peace across the region.
Meanwhile, the traditional spokesman of the Gbaramatu kingdom, Chief Godspower Gbenekama has advised members of the various stakeholders who represented various ethnic groups to the peace negotiation parley with the Federal Government to as a matter of urgency call for a town hall meeting in their constituency to brief their people on the outcome of the meeting so as to bridge the communication gap between the people and government on how to chart a new course towards the development of the region.
The NDGJM in a statement by its spokesman, Gen. Aldo Agbalaja, threatened more devastating attacks on oil installations based on its distrust in the caliber of people that represented the region at the peace talk, even as it noted that it was not unaware of the Federal Government’s intention to declare a full scale war in the region in the eventual failure of the parley.
The statement reads in part: “The humiliation that came with the meeting of the PANDEF with the Nigerian president, Muhammadu Buhari, did not come to the NDGJM as a surprise. We expected it because we know even the government knows the character and intent of most of those he led to the meeting.
“The only painful part is the fact that the humiliation is stamped on the collective image of our people. However, we want to dare President Buhari and his administration to attempt or fully carry out his military action against our people and see the response that will follow.”
“We want to say here, without mincing words, that we are aware of his intentions; we heard loud and clear his hostile message. We understand his message even beyond his uttered words and the NDGJM is saying we are ready for his worst”.
The group added: “We know he has severally threatened war on our people, which threats we had been calm enough not to respond to. But at this point we believe it is time for us to come out to say to him that enough is enough. If it is war, bring it on; we are no cowards. Just be sure you can sustain the consequences because this is not going to be another vanquished ‘Biafran uprising’. Niger Deltans are nobody’s slave; we shall fight until there’s nothing left to defend.”