A group , the Coalition of Niger Delta Agitators , on Thursday threatened to resume attacks on oil installations in the region.
The group , in an electronic mail , also said northerners and the Yoruba in the Niger Delta should leave the region before October 1 , 2017 .
The northern youth leader , Yerima Shettima , whose group gave a quit notice to the Igbo in the North , declined comment , when contacted by one of our correspondents .
Two northern elder statesmen , Alhaji Balarabe Musa and Alhaji Tanko Yakasai , have however urged the Federal Government to act fast and calm the fresh agitations by the Niger Delta groups.
Balarabe , a former governor of old Kaduna State , said , “ The Federal Government should be straightforward , hard and just in dealing with this issue . This new development shows that it is almost the whole country which is involved in this subversion . If everyone is asking others to leave the country, then who owns Nigeria ?
“ We can deal with this case only when we have a strong , fair and just government . But this government is not. It is a failure of the government that is bringing up these agitations. Nigerians expected a lot of changes but we have seen nothing .
“ If these people had businesses to do , what time would they have to be agitating ? How long can the oil sustain us ? From all international indications , the oil may finish in 20 years . These agitators are doing this because some nonentities and faceless northern youths gave the same ultimatum and the government is in a disarray. ”
Yakasai , who is also the Chairman of the Northern Elders Council , said , “ To the best of my knowledge , there had never been any conflict between the North and the Niger Delta . There is no context to situate this. There are talks between them and the government already .
“ The government knows what to do. Nigerians believe the government is competent to handle this matter. But don ’ t bring the North into it . ”
