The federal government has said it may suspend military
operations in the Niger Delta region to give room for dialogue with various
militant groups in the region.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe
kachikwu while briefing newsmen on Monday in Abuja, appealed to the militants
in the Niger Delta to sheath their sword and embrace dialogue with government.
According to him:
“My first appeal
will be to my brothers who are engaged in these acts of protest to sheath their
sword and daggers and come back to the table so that we can have a
conversation.
There is no doubt
that over the decades of oil production, a lot of things that ought to have
been done in the oil geographical areas were not done.
The answer to the
issue will not be heating up the grounds. The Federal Government is committed
to continue the dialogue and the president has appointed a team,’’ he said.
He added that the team will be led by the National Security
Adviser (NSA), the minister, opinion leaders and all the service chiefs.
He noted that the dialogue was expected to wrap up in one
week, adding that the NSA had been directed to work with the armed forces to
de-skill the intensity of operation to ensure the dialogue held.
“Probably, we will suspend the operation of the military in
the region for a week or two for individuals in the creeks to converge for the
dialogue,” he added
He urged the militants to allow the truth reign and gave an
assurance that the Federal Government was ready to intensify efforts to ensure
development in the region.
kachikwu added that over the last few months, the country
had lost 600,000 barrels from various attacks by the militants.
“We are making
effort to see how we get the barrels back but my attitude is that when citizens
are harping on something, we need to engage.
The take of the
president is to try and engage in a dialogue, I know that given the intensity
of the attack, it has caused a lot of trouble.
Both in terms of
production and continuity of production and certainty of career plans in the
oil industry, the best option is ensure adequate security measures in those
areas,” he added.
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