Mkpoikana Udoma
26 January 2017, Sweetcrude, Port Harcourt – A coalition of ex-agitators in the Niger Delta region have kicked against alleged plans to sack the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Brig. Gen. Paul Boroh, Rtd.
The ex-agitators during a protest in Port Harcourt also called for increased funding for the Presidential Amnesty Office.
The protesters, numbering over 50, carried placards with different inscriptions such as “General Boroh was never a mistake, we are in support of him”, “Leave Boroh alone, tackle herdsmen “ amongst others.
They accused the National Security Adviser, General Babagana Monguno, of allegedly frustrating activities of the Amnesty office, and scheming to have President Muhammadu Buhari sack Boroh.
Leader of the protest and the President of Amnesty Vendors Forum, Mr. Tari Okosi, who read the protest letter by the coalition made up of three different groups, said General Paul Boroh should be allowed to remain in office and do his job.
According to him, “Boroh has tried because he is giving his best to the people. Amnesty office is not for politics, it’s a office created to address the issues in the Niger Delta region and to curb youth restiveness in the region, which we all know about and which Boroh has succeeded in ensuring that there is no more pipeline vandalization or oil installation attack.
“We have enjoyed relative peace in the Niger Delta, therefore Mr. Boroh should be applauded and not victimized.
“We have been reliably informed that the National Security Adviser, General Babagana Monguno, had been interfering with the affairs of that office.”
Also speaking, President of the Abandoned Youths of Nigeria, Mr. Eferebo Opakariari, said the Amnesty Office was suffering, and poor funding was affecting the activities of the office.
“We want to use this opportunity to state that we have heard lot of complaints that people are trying to make the Amnesty Office uncomfortable to serve the Niger Delta people.
“The peace we are enjoying in the region today is courtesy of General Boroh and his appointment by President Buhari was not through any political advice.”
The coalition of ex-Niger Delta agitators further called on the Federal Government to provide jobs for Amnesty beneficiaries who have undergone trainings and also acquired skills in different fields of endeavor.
