AMNESTY: N'DELTA STAKEHOLDERS PASS VOTE OF CONFIDENCE ON KUKU, PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER

Amid protests by some self-acclaimed ex-militants over alleged exclusion from the amnesty programme, stakeholders in the Niger Delta yesterday passed a vote of confidence on the Presidential Adviser on Niger Delta and Chairman of the Amnesty Programme, Mr. Kingsley Kuku.

The Niger Delta leaders met in Sapele to review the situation and concluded that the amnesty office had done creditably well.

Meeting on the platform of the Niger Delta Grassroots Stakeholders Forum (NDGSF), the stakeholders gave Kuku a pass mark and urged him to continue the good work he had been doing in the amnesty programme, which had sustained peace in the once volatile region.

Some ex-militants from the Niger Delta states joined in the meeting, which was also attended by representatives of youth bodies, community based organizations, cultural and traditional societies, community development associations, women groups, town unions and students union government.

Some ex-militants had in protesting alleged exclusion from the amnesty programme, barricaded the Abuja-Lokoja Road last week, subjecting travellers to untold hardship until they were dismissed by a detachment from the Nigerian Army

In the communiqué of the meeting signed by Obong Uyio Udosin from Akwa-Ibom State, Mr. John Duke from Cross-River State, Preye Bob-Manuel from Rivers State, Mr. Henry Sylva from Bayelsa State, Ajuwa Timinimi from Delta State, Mr. Ehenede Omoruki from Edo State and Mr. Stephen Jegbeye from Ondo State, the group said the entire process of the amnesty programme was being executed in line with the prescribed global standards and international best practices, adding that some critics of Kuku, were driven by selfish motives.

'The amnesty programme's success story has contributed greatly to the restoration of peace and security in the Niger Delta states and has uplifted the overall economic fortunes of Nigeria as an oil producing nation.

'That the special adviser to the President and chairman of the Presidential amnesty programme has managed and continues to manage the resources of the programme very prudently, in keeping with internationally acceptable extant guidelines.

'That the unguarded outbursts of certain individuals are most unwarranted and unfortunate.

'That the activities of those individuals are obviously being sponsored by persons, who do not have the corporate interest of the Niger Delta people at heart rather their own pecuniary selfish interests.

'That instead of them to think of how they can make inputs to improve on the gains made by this administration, they are busy trying to pull down and distract Kingsley Kuku from his focused agenda of transforming the lots of the ex-agitators in particular and the Niger Delta and Nigeria in general.'  'The entire Niger Delta people have implicit confidence in Kingsley Kuku in the way and manner he is running the amnesty programme and thus passed a vote of confidence on him without reservation.

'The Niger Delta stakeholders should support the amnesty programme so as to create the enabling environment for the actualization of scheduled development projects meant for the Niger Delta.

'The Federal Government should timely release adequate funds for the developmental organ established to fast track the development of the Niger Delta.

'That all Niger Deltans and indeed, all Nigerians should join hands with all tiers of government to fast track the development of the Niger Delta states.'