RUMBLINGS FROM THE CREEK...and gentle whispers of true leaders By Ena Ofugara

Only a fool will ask a man to drop his gun and not guarantee he gets his meals regularly. Except you plan on killing that man, or you have built a cell to keep all like him, including children born that will be like him, then you must ensure he...or majority like him have food. Anything short of this is to ask him....force him to pick up a gun again.

Those who folow this page will never see me criticize amnesty for Boko Haram. Much as I detest those bloodsuckers, I am realistic enough to know that a lion that has tasted human flesh is never allowed to be a circus lion. I know the power the Boko Haram leaders and youths have, being able to plunder and rape and blackmail and rule. Expecting them to put down their arms and go back to being shoemakers and cattle rearers without some sort of supplementary moneys, is wishful thinking. It is in this regard I watch closely Buharis moves to offer amnesty to Boko Haram.
Yes Buhari in his that campaign of APC where they promised to chop the sun up and give each Nigerian its energy on a plate, had criticized GEJ for attempting to negotiate with Boko Haram. In his now famous tough talks, he said "Boko Haram do not want peace, else they wil not kill 13000 (thirteen thousand) people". That statement however is the closest to the truth from my standpoint. Goodluck Jonathan would have handed them whatever if only they would stop killing. However, when people claim to kill for God, what can man offer them in exchange? Therein lies the major difference with the Niger Delta militants

The Niger Delta militants do not do what they do claiming a call from God. It is purely a fight for fairness. Yes people have become tone deaf to their plight. I hear the thoughts of many Nigerians not from ther, totally believing that they are the aggressors. That is sad sad sad. Comparing a people who cannot till their soil because the soil is dead for one thousand years, who cannot fish because the waters are forever polluted, who cannot breathe clean air as asthma and OCPD and wheezing breath is their lot as the air is filled with all kinds of chemicals...and still they cannot find jobs even in these companies,...companies dominated by Yorubas and Hausas and some Igbos, wealth spirited away to build ABuja, Lagos, Kano, Kaduna and the rest of Nigeria...yet people would call actions by these people "militancy, terrorism, treason, etc etc" . I even called it "militancy"

I have asked people what Boko Haram wants. I Ena Ofugara as a Niger Deltan can answer for my brother Mujahid Dokubo-Asari and say FOOD. They want FOOD. They want their homeland repaired. They want hospitals. They want Oloibiri where oil was found and which till date has no good hospital or road or water to drink, they want what you have in Lagos and Kano. However they can never get Oloibiri back because there is no more oil in that dead city in Bayelsa. It is dead forever.A thousand years must pass before the spilled oil can decay and form soil once again.

So I have answered what my people want. What does Boko Haram want?

While what my people want removes nothing that is yours from you, Boko Haram asks that I accept Allah? And that the Allah I accept must be a particular teaching? Is that what a people should desire and fight and murder over in this century?

I STAND PROUDLY TO DEFEND THE NIGER DELTA STRUGGLE, CAN YOU PLEASE DEFEND BOKO HARAM'S? What gargantuan idiocy leads men to equate both?

God bless Yar"Adua. Maybe like you, he had become tone-deaf and apathetic to the cries of the Niger Delta, cries first made by Adaka Boro which made Adekunle the scorpion to murder him; cries echoed by Saro Wiwa and the murdered Ogoni nine...murdered by Abacha, Yet the intellect of this consummate academic and pride to Fulani, He was smart enough to know these words rang true

"If you think peace is expensive, try war"

It takes some kind of a lack of true intelligence not to realize that whatever Tompolo and co are getting is inconsequential when juxtaposed with the destruction of all tank farms and oil facilities and human life....Hausa Igbo Yoruba, Oyibo, Niger Delta. He knows that amnesty represented the singular most brilliant move by any Nigerian leader. He knows that these militants are actually not the people stealing Nigerian crude. He knows Asari and Ayiri and all these Niger Delta warlords are Muslims because 99 percent of oil thieves are Hausa-Fulani and the army boys who took coups...Northerners and some allies in Yorubaland and Middlebelt/North Central. He from his grave would have seen that AL Mustapha went to visit Asari Dokuboh even before he went home or maybe soon after. WHY?

The Niger Delta militants are but boyboy to some true billionaires who have the contact to speak with countries to buy stolen crude. What president has Boyloaf spoken to? Is it not recently if ever he has come to the US? Who will teach him the French to sell to French refineries?

However, Buhari in his usual lack of intellect and strategy, same lack of strategy that cost him his Presidency in 1983, has again decided to absolve his Northern people of complicity in oil theft. It is the boyboy ship followers and miners that he has decided to show military mightwith. He has sent the planes up and killed once. WHAT STRUGGLE HAS BEEN ENDED BY KILLING ALL ADVERSARIES? Even the great Roman Empire negotiates and allows for Barbarians to have a few lands to themselves. The little moneys given Kuku to train ex militants...NIGERIANS is what is the PAIN of very evil people now.

SO THEY ADVISE BUHARI TO GO KILLING. Now let us assume that our army is so equipped and trained and invincible. Let us assume the creeks are mapped and easy to navigate. IS IT THE RIGHT THING TO KILL THESE PEOPLE WHO DO NOT KILL YOU? Is it not better to readdress the AMnesty Program, remove thieving hands and ensure it gets to the youths and women and children of that area? Is it to throw away the child and the bathwater?

"KILL KILL KILL" they tell Buhari. But they forget that our army is not exactly that of GENERAL PATON. They forget that this time it will not be warning shots but actual total destruction of the oil facilities and killing of expatriates. They forget that the army cannot guard the facilities from five people with the type of rocket launchers we saw being returned during amnesty. They do not calculate the costs. The army that could not protect Nigerians where trees are low and land dessert, is expected to protect amidst thick vegetation and rivulets and streams where navy boats can run into sand from not knowing the water.

Growing up in Sapele, I have stood and watched teachers like @Leleji of Okotie Eboh allow to students to fight till one dies. One thing I have noticed in all of these fights, even when you punch a mans teeth in, the teeth injures your knuckles. Very silly...usually Yoruba boys online come and make such pseudo-intellectual comments calling for the fight against militants. These people are the type that do not think things through.

Again I ask, why is Buhari's approach to militant payment and the Niger Delta not one of vetting the program and payments and making it better? HOW CAN HE BE OFFERING BOKO HARAM AMNESTY AND TAKING AWAY THE ONE OF THE NIGER DELTA WHOSE LANDS HAVE THE OIL? Is it because Niger Delta is part of the 5 percenters and Boko Haram 97 percenters?

Quote me on this NIGERIA WILL REGRET ANY ACTION THAT MAKES VIOLENCE AND WAR THE LEADING WAY TO DEAL WITH THE NIGER DELTA.
I say this again "Aside that it is evil and unfair, aside that the Nigerian army cannot protect the oil facilities and the damage will ruin the economy FINALLY, aside that Chevron Schlumberger and all will go home easily this time, as they will be blamed for every death and their corporate image cannot stand it in this age of social media, (SHell has already sold of all it owns on land) AMERICA AND RUSSIA WILL GLADLY BAN NIGERIAN OIL AS NOW NIGERIA IS COMPETITION TO THEM SINCE THEY HAVE BECOME OIL SELLERS TOO.

Those who follow this page and who disagree with me often like Chuks Dickson Uwagboi will remember when I said the price of oil will plunge and America will become sellers. That was four years ago and he Dickson asked for the article at the beginning of the oil price crash. Buhari in contras says the fall of oil price was "UNEXPECTED". Truth is that at this point, a lot of us younger men stand to know a lot more than these old men who lead. We follow events more closely and the books we read now is different from the books they read. So when we settle down to write, despite our bias, people should pause and say "there is sense even in nonsense". Here I repeat NIGERIA WILL REGRET AN ARMED CONFRONTATION WITH A UNITED NIGER DELTA.

Here is another plausible scenario. Boko Haram continues battling the Nigerian army from the North. Niger Delta Militants begin serious bombing from the south south. Biafra and their very ready youths see a weakened Nigerian army and take full advantage. WHAT HAPPENS? Is this possibility too far fetched? Boko Haram is already fighting. Tompolo is already calling for meetings of ex warlords, 70 percent of Igbos are tired of this contraption called Nigeria. SO IS THE ABOVE SCENARIO SO FAR-FETCHED?

But there exists calm voices of reasons, ALL COMING FROM PDP who have successfully held the country together for 16 years. Many people tink the Federal Government blocking a venue is the same thing as stopping a meeting. The stupidity astounds. Generals who own boats and can meet in the high seas or in the middle of Bayelsa unanounced, some people think barricading a building is problem solved. These calm voices have come from Goodluck Jonathan. It has come from Okowa, I am sure having made a call to Ibori intimating him of the needless eggshell situation brought on by a leader unaware of present-day reality. A leader still caught up in the idiosyncrasy of the 80's and early 90's. The Seriake Dickson and Alamieseighas and all Niger Deltans including Udom Emmanuel and Godswill Akapabio have all come to these boys to take it easy. They have said they will update the old man president and show him the folly of his actions and plans.

YES Unlike the Northern leaders who encouraged Boko Haram with words like "boko haram will never end until Jonathan leaves" and "Boko Haram are freedom fighters", these excellent statesmen from the Niger Delta, men well schooled academically and who can see clearand present danger to all concerned, these men have said they will talk to Buhari.

If you think peace is expensive, try war.

May God save us all.
cc lalasticlala,ishilove,seun

Pfttt
What did they do with the over 50% of oil money devoted to the region during Jonathan's reign of impunity?
Jonathan , patience ,madueke practically stole 60% of all revenues and devoted more than 50 % of the remainder to the South South .
Buhari should simply hand over the 17% derivation to the communities where the oil is mined . They are the ones who are suffering and not Askari and the other fraudulent militants .
For the post down below who blamed omoluabis for taking all the positions,how come the western regional part of the Niger delta is well represented in not only the oil companies, but also in the non oil , organised private sector .
From the illogical post of folks that I read on nairaland, I doubt they have the aptitude to pass through the aptitude test ,especially when a casual observer can easily see that most of the post originating from the other side lacks logical reasoning. ( yes ,you are tested for logic )
Anyway, this is what true merit looks like . Thank your God that Nigeria is not meritocracy else, we would be the Dons while you would be the serfs.
By the way , got 2 friends in the oil industry and the two were recruited overseas and were transferred to Nigeria after 2 and 4 years in Indonesia , United Kingdom and Brunei .
If you want to be like them , get an education. Quality education without expo.

The environmental degradation that is ongoing in the Niger Delta for years is simply mind boggling yet some people are calling for the total annihilation of these people as long as he feels safe in another region of the country.

I have never supported the divide and rule tactics of the Nigerian state which sends in money into the pockets of criminal enterprise and their political cohorts ,it is high time the fed should find a lasting policy based solution to this ticking time bomb else I'm afraid that any other form of uprising won't be business as usual.

Unfortunately Yorubas have taken over all the positions in the Multinationals operating in the region.

I wish Tompolo can start this revolution as many Niger Delta graduates are ready to lay down their lives if need be...

We are not slaves! Our environment is degraded, our resources carted away.

Yet they claim we belong to the 5th percentile...

If only our president could read the writing on the wall. War against Niger Delta is neve going to be the solution.

There is no way the Niger deltan issue will not result in an open violent confrontation. Nobody gives away their perceived advantage freely. So buhari and his sai chanting slaves can bring it on.

when trouble sleeps "yanga" go wake am...?

Truckpusher:
The environmental degradation that is ongoing in the Niger Delta for years is simply mind boggling yet some people are calling for the total annihilation of these people as long as he feels safe in another region of the country.

I have never supported the divide and rule tactics of the Nigerian state which sends in money into the pockets of criminal enterprise and their political cohorts ,it is high time the fed should find a lasting policy based solution to this ticking time bomb else I'm afraid that any other form of uprising won't be business as usual.

warlord trukkie

Wonderful writeup my brother, really wonderful@

kudos to you
lovely piece and truth in every word
God help us all

oduastates:
Pfttt
What did they do with the over 50% of oil money devoted to the region during Jonathan's reign of impunity?
Buhari should simply hand over the 17% derivation to the communities where the oil is mined . They are the ones who are suffering and not Askari and the other fraudulent militants

Some of you are clowns
50% during what? please stop the insult on GEJ
I tot the North wants the Oil producing communities to mean " WHOLE OF NIGERIA"
the 17% should be shared by Abuja and Niger after all the pipeline goes tru them

Biafra is here

He who has ear make he listen

The fly who follows a dead body will surely be buried with it

The zoo died a long time ago

Majority of those who has the license to these oil wells are non-Niger Deltans and it's easy for them to care less to the damage being done to the lands and environments since it's not their region or home.

The Northerns who own these oil wells don't care if there's oil spill or environmental degradation, all they care about is making their money.

The oil wells should be given to the Niger Deltans to own and manage, they'll be mindful and avoid any form of environmental pollution since it's their land.

Dearpreye, Barcanista, Ecoterrors, Rose2014, Utchgirl, Wombraiders, Emekamex, Aprokoman, Francizy, Biafranqueen, Mizmycoli, IsraeliAirforce, Opiaoku, NDPVF, Anonimi

There should be more awareness about the degradation going on in ND, the Niger Deltans need to rise up and fight against stipends being paid to them as amnesty money why the Northern oligarchs cart away the Cash cow.


Tompolo played a fast one on DAFTUS by announcing his meeting in public, I can bet my life that they ve had meetings before giving DAFTUS a little spook to remember that they are still around

MyPWisINCORRECT:
Unfortunately Yorubas have taken over all the positions in the Multinationals operating in the region.

I wish Tompolo can start this revolution as many Niger Delta graduates are ready to lay down their lives if need be...

We are not slaves! Our environment is degraded, our resources carted away.

Yet they claim we belong to the 5th percentile...

And Buhari had the guts to say he's out to marginalize the same part of the country. After taking a $2.1billion loan to rebuild NE

Did I mention he's also trying to grant amnesty to BH

Where will all these money come from?


In a sane country, hat statement is enough for the dullard to apologise and resign cos he's too bigoted & confused to be a president of Nigeria

Sometimes I feel weak and sad whenever I remember the ongoing degredation of the Niger Delta. I have never supported the so-called Amnesty program by the Yar'adua/Goodluck administrations because it was designed to reward militants rather than bringing lasting solution to the people of the region. What has really changed between 2007 and now? Inasmuch as it was good then to negotiate peace with people in the armed struggle, it was also good to appreciate what led them into the armed struggle and what they were fighting for. The Ministry of the Niger Delta Affairs was given the mandate among other things to take care of core problems in the region but unfortunately, it has done little or nothing between 2008 till this moment. The NDDC created by Obasanjo to serve as an intervention agency also hasn't achieved anything since its formation.

We all need to realise that the solution to ND problem is not through continuous and unsustainable payment of stipends to former creek warlords, but will only come through a short and long term strategic plan.

My Suggestion for the Short Term is that the 13% revenue that accrues to Oil producing states be paid directly to Oil producing communities. The communities and not States governments should use this money for their own development. Also, the oil companies should review their employment policy so as to accommodate locals that are qualified and also encourage them to rise to top management. In fact, there should be legislation to this.

For the long term plan, there should be a Sovereign National Conference. The position of the ND should be fiscal federalism that will see States retains 50% of revenue from their domain. Of the 50% to states, 25% should go to the producing Communities, while the states use the rest 25% + Taxes and other revenues for development of the states.

Back to the Amnesty talk, the government should shelve any plan of bombing the region irrespective of their position on the amnesty program.

Candyrain:
Dearpreye, Barcanista, Ecoterrors, Rose2014, Utchgirl, Wombraiders, Emekamex, Aprokoman, Francizy, Biafranqueen, Mizmycoli, IsraeliAirforce, Opiaoku, NDPVF, Anonimi

Thanks for the mention. This poignant and profound article deserves a second reading from him.

ECOTERRORS:
There should be more awareness about the degradation going on in ND, the Niger Deltans need to rise up and fight against stipends being paid to them as amnesty money why the Northern oligarchs cart away the Cash cow.


Tompolo played a fast one on DAFTUS by announcing his meeting in public, I can bet my life that they ve had meetings before giving DAFTUS a little spook to remember that they are still around

DAFTUS

You are right. They only wanted to see what his reaction would be and I'm sure they got what they wanted.

Rose2014:


And Buhari had the guts to say he's out to marginalize the same part of the country. After taking a $2.1billion loan to rebuild NE

Did I mention he's also trying to grant amnesty to BH

Where will all these money come from?


In a sane country, hat statement is enough for the dullard to apologise and resign cos he's too bigoted & confused to be a president of Nigeria

Resigning after erring and making shameful statement is a taboo in Nigeria

I remember a policeman that said so many shameful things against Obama during his second term election, the man resigned after Obama won citing that there's no way he can work under his administration after saying those shameful things against him.

That can NEVER happen in Nigeria.

ECOTERRORS:
There should be more awareness about the degradation going on in ND, the Niger Deltans need to rise up and fight against stipends being paid to them as amnesty money why the Northern oligarchs cart away the Cash cow.


Tompolo played a fast one on DAFTUS by announcing his meeting in public, I can bet my life that they ve had meetings before giving DAFTUS a little spook to remember that they are still around

There're tens of thousand of young Niger deltans, who have been part of the amnesty program, 99% of them never carried a gun to fight. The amnesty program is not about paying stipends to militants, but a social engineering program for youths in the area. About 90% of these youths are in one education program some where on this planet. Let's stop equating amnesty with paying stipends to militants, this has never been the case

dearpreye:


Thanks for the mention. This poignant and profound article deserves a second reading from him.

Anytime bro

Candyrain:


Anytime bro

A profound message of this magnitude must be read with an intention to grasp the full import. Thanks brotherly!

atlwireles:


There're tens of thousand of young Niger deltans, who have been part of the amnesty program, 99% of them never carried a gun to fight. The amnesty program is not about paying stipends to militants, but a social engineering program for youths in the area. About 90% of these youths are in one education program some where on this planet. Let's stop equating amnesty with paying stipends to militants, this has never been the case

thanks, the government need to do a lot about the environmental degradation because I know none of the BIG 3 in nigeria will keep quiet with this kind of carnage going on in their land

Candyrain:
Dearpreye, Barcanista, Ecoterrors, Rose2014, Utchgirl, Wombraiders, Emekamex, Aprokoman, Francizy, Biafranqueen, Mizmycoli, IsraeliAirforce, Opiaoku, NDPVF, Anonimi

Thanks for the mention.

Candyrain:
Dearpreye, Barcanista, Ecoterrors, Rose2014, Utchgirl, Wombraiders, Emekamex, Aprokoman, Francizy, Biafranqueen, Mizmycoli, IsraeliAirforce, Opiaoku, NDPVF, Anonimi

My broda i dey ooo !

Everybody is now seeing d stuff Bubu is made of. Bubu is planing 2 giv Amnesty 2 BH and very soon d fed govt wil be paying dem dues, imagine ?
Whilst d fed govt hv turn deaf ears 2 d ex militants of ND . They hv refuse 2 pay dem 4 some time now.

Wht ealse wil i say; PMB is partial. He only care 4 d northerners while abadoning oda zones 2 dia fate.

We r tired of dis marriage biko, let everybody ansa his papa name @ least 4 d sake of peace.

People fail to recognise the need to deal on terms of equity and fairness. From the word go, every policy and arrangement of governance has been skewed in favour of the North...from creation of states and local govt areas to census figures and on to the consistent North South divide we currently have. Granted, Nigerians esp Southerners like comfort and just want to have a stable, conducive environment to develop but in time, this systematic pushing to the wall will definitely result in a comeback and it will most likely be an unpleasant one. Rubbing supposed supremacy in the face of others does not bode well for the communal good. Regionalism remains the way to go if we are to remain an indivisible entity, with negotiated terms of engagement going forward. It is time for all leaders to look inwards, constitute think-tanks if need be and come up with innovative ways of harnessing resources for common development of their regions. wisdom and love for country should prevail now, over greed and any perceived supremacy. The Constitution must be completely overhauled to recognise the regions and rotational leadership which must be adhered to...The truth must prevail at the end of the day.

Well written article.

He who hath ear,let him hear

Yet one goat is asking for boko haram amnesty! Left for me, if the government wants to stop true militants amnesty, he should discuss with them and have them know that these money plus much more will be channeled to rebuilding their home. After that the government shouldn't waste any time to get down to work. ND needs money more than any region in Nigeria as it stands..

francizy:

When you think about all these, you can't just help but ask yourself "which kind country I find myself sotey?" It's disheartening seeing the suffering and damage being done to people who are the livewire of the country.

Candyrain:


When you think about all these, you can't just help but ask yourself "which kind country I find myself sotey?" It's disheartening seeing the suffering and damage being done to people who are the livewire of the country.

Injustice of the highest order I tell you..

MyPWisINCORRECT:
Unfortunately Yorubas have taken over all the positions in the Multinationals operating in the region.

I wish Tompolo can start this revolution as many Niger Delta graduates are ready to lay down their lives if need be...

We are not slaves! Our environment is degraded, our resources carted away.

Yet they claim we belong to the 5th percentile...

THOUGHT THE Igbos SAID WE YORUBAS ARE SLAVES IN NIGERIA.HOW COME WE DOMINATE THE TOP MANAGEMENT OF ''OYEL'' COMPANIES?