Pa Edwin Clark, the leader of Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), has written an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari, accusing him of being the cause of the renewed restiveness in the Niger Delta region, IgbereTV reports.
In the open letter seen by IgbereTV on Friday, Clark expressed his opinion to oppose President Buhari’s claims that his regime had fostered lasting peace in the oil-rich region.
Clark, who is also a leader of the Ijaw Nation, said Buhari’s predecessors like the late President Musa Yar’adua and Goodluck Jonathan, should be the ones claiming credit for any peace enjoyed in the South-South.
“There is no doubt that a good amount of peace has come to the Niger Delta in the past few years. However, your claim as having been the main architect that brought the peace does not properly convey what transpired,” the PANDEF leader said in the letter.
“If you will recall, your excellency, before your government came on board, insecurity which had reduced substantially during the tenure of your predecessor, resumed at a very alarming rate.
“The period saw the emergence of a new group, the Niger Delta Avengers, which virtually held your government hostage, oil production went down to as low as about 800,000 barrels per day.
“Your government adopted a military approach to quell the agitations, by deploying the so-called ‘Operation Crocodile Smile’ in August 2016, which did not in any way solve the problem.
“Mr President, may I make it very clear to you that the area is sitting on a keg of gunpowder, and any attempt to scrap the amnesty programme may produce unpleasant consequences to all.”
