The
Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has withdrawn the ultimatum given to the
federal government to meet the demands it presented in November 2016.
On Monday,
Edwin Clark, co-convener of the group, had accused the current administration
of not being sincere in its negotiation with the stakeholders of the region.
He had said
if things continued that way by November 1, PANDEF would abandon the
ongoing peace deal.
But speaking
at the end of a meeting with Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on
Thursday, Clark said leaders of the region had agreed to work with the
government.
According to
a statement by Laolu Akande, spokesman of the acting president, the elder
statesman said Osinbajo’s visit to the Niger Delta contributed to the peace in
the region.
“The meeting
was excellent. We met with Mr Acting President. He was very forthright,
truthful. We were very satisfied,” Clark was quoted to have said.
“There is no
ultimatum. We agreed on many things and we came in with our own address,
presented it; the ministers presented their cases. Mr Acting President rounded
it off and we saw in him the genuineness, truthfulness and forthrightness.
“He is a
gentleman and we support him. We are satisfied. We did not use the word
‘ultimatum’. We only said we would withdraw. But we have agreed to work
together.”
Osinbajo
expressed the full commitment of the federal government to realise a “new and
prosperous” Niger Delta developed through “forthright partnerships” between
the federal government, state governments, private sector and local
communities.
“We are
fully committed and thankful for your contributions and feedback. We are
working on this day by day. From the beginning, we took the 16-point demand
very seriously and we also developed our own plan mostly based on those
demands,” he said.
“Personally,
I believe the issues of the Niger Delta must be addressed. When I undertook the
visit to the Niger Delta region, my sole intention for participating in this
process is that we need forthrightness and a hands-on approach.
“There is no
week that has passed that I‘ve not held one meeting or the other on the Niger
Delta issue. I’ve spent quality time looking at how we can implement this (new
vision).”
The acting
president said the government would implement the new vision in a way that is
fair to all parties.
“It can’t be
done overnight. We are also looking at the integrity of the process so we can
meet our targets. We are not out of line. Everything is on course the way we
set it out. We have got to do it right,” he said.
PANDEF also
agreed to join the inter-ministerial group, consisting of all relevant
ministries, departments and agencies, MDAs, with the involvement of relevant
state governments led by the acting president.
The group
meets regularly to drive the different initiatives and ensure effective and
ongoing implementation of the government’s Niger Delta vision.
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