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By Amos Odhe
Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri, has called for adequate funding of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) for it to function effectively.
Senator Diri made the call on Friday when he received the PAP Administrator, Dr Dennis Otuaro and his delegation in Government House, Yenagoa.
The governor, who stressed that funding was critical for the survival of the programme, advocated the need for state governments and National Assembly members from the Niger Delta to collaborate towards addressing its funding challenges.
He said: “There is no place that will survive without funds. These are some of the issues that we as governors can also support you in ensuring that our National Assembly members make the contacts and synergise so that these issues will not be left for you alone to handle.”
He advised Dr Otuaro to build linkages across relevant state governments within the region to ensure that the programme made meaningful impact, noting that the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) also faces similar challenges, which had affected its activities.
The Bayelsa governor admonished those calling for the scrapping of the programme, saying the issues that led to its establishment were still prevalent.
According to him, despite the transition to renewable energy, crude oil production still plays a vital role in the nation’s economy and advocated for continuation of the programme.
Giving a brief history of the armed struggle of the Ijaw people from the days of Jasper Adaka Boro, Diri said: “The ljaws, for long, have been suffocated in a structure that they had given their all in terms of human and natural resources. Over the years, there has been a long cry of neglect and underdevelopment.
“The initial armed struggle in Ijawland basically fought for justice and development. The community called Oloibiri in Bayelsa State, where crude oil was first struck in commercial quantity in 1956, is now a shadow of itself. Nothing was ploughed back into Oloibiri that brought out all the trillions of naira for Nigeria.
“I like my brothers from other states to recognise that amnesty was not a gift to the Niger Delta but to bring succour to a people that had been abandoned.”
While commending the previous administrators of the programme for creating training centres across the region, the governor decried the vandalism at the training centre in Kaiama in Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area of the state and urged Otuaro to revamp it.
In his remarks, the PAP Administrator requested the support of the state government in the area of funding for its training programmes.
Otuaro said the programme was at the rehabilitation and reintegration stage and thee was need to consult with all relevant stakeholders to ensure its success.
He noted that from 2014, funding for the programme reduced by half while its scope was expanding, particularly when it has about 1,681 students in tertiary institutions in the country and 38 students studying abroad.
Otuaro also disclosed that 98 maritime cadets have just been deployed within the country, stressing that there was need to expand the programme to accommodate women stakeholders that are business-oriented.
He applauded Senator Diri for his administration’s efforts in ensuring that Bayelsa remained peaceful, adding that ljaw people were happy with the prevailing peace and security as Bayelsa is the homogenous state for all ljaws.
