Stakeholders in the Niger Delta have raised concern over recent threat by militants in the region to resume hostilities if the planned impeachment of the Rivers State governor, Siminalayi Fubara, is carried out by the Martin Meanwhile-led House of Assembly.
A militant group, Niger Delta Rescue Movement, NDRM, issued a warning to the Federal Government that it would not hesitate to return to destroy the oil pipelines in the region if the political tension in Rivers State was not resolved.
The dreaded militant group also urged non-indigenes resident in the state to leave as they could not guarantee their safety in the face of the ongoing political crisis.
The militants said this in a trending video on a social media platform.
“We the Niger Delta Rescue Movement wish to express our deep concern regarding the recent development in Rivers State threatening the smooth governance of our beloved state under the leadership of Governor Siminalayi Fubara,” a supposed leader of the group declared in a letter he read.
“It has come to our attention that certain individuals proclaim as lawmakers have issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the state governor to present the 2025 state budget. This blatant attempt to destabilise the state is not only alarming but also a clear attempt to coordinate efforts to incite hell potentially leading to a state of emergency or even an impeachment.
“We call on President Bola Tinubu to intervene immediately and stop the action of Nyesom Wike and his associate whose intent is to drag Rivers State to avoidable crisis. The people of Rivers State like stability, progress and a conducive environment for governance.
“Furthermore, we must make it abundantly clear that the youths of Rivers State will not sit idly while our state is dragged into tumult. If the federal allocation due to Rivers State cannot be released promptly, we will have no choice but to take decisive action including hitting oil production.
“We can’t generate money into the federation account and not have our share. Our workers deserve their salaries, our government needs the necessary resources to carry out essential development projects”.
They further urged the non-indigenes to leave the state for their safety, stating: “We urge all non-indigenes in Rivers State to consider their safety and leave the state promptly as the situation may escalate. We cherish the safety of all residents and urge for a peaceful resolution to this crisis. Enough is enough. We stand united for the rest and future of Rivers State. We demand respect from our leaders and focus on the development of our region.’’
Reacting to the development, the Chairman Board of Trustees, BoT, of the Community Development Committees of Niger Delta Oil and Gas Producing Areas, CDC, Joseph Ambakaderimo, said the political crisis brewing in Rivers State should not be allowed to snowball into a conflagration that would impact the economy of the country.
He said: “Except we have forgotten so soon where we are coming from in terms of oil production that went down to seven hundred Thousand barrels per day. The threat from militant groups who may be regrouping must be taken seriously. To destroy is easy but to rebuild takes time.
“It is instructive for the gladiators to sheath their swords by finding common ground and patch things up before it is too late. Anything less than a million barrels per day of Oil production cannot sustain government expenditures. In terms of revenue losses the government may suffer if the threat from the militant groups is actualized, we may be talking of about three trillion naira every day of revenue losses to government.”
Also, the former President of Trade Union Congress, TUC, Peter Esele, said if the threat from the militants is carried out, it would have far-reaching economic and security implications.
“It will scare aware potential investors from the region. The economic importance of the Niger Delta region cannot be overemphasized. That is why government must do everything possible to ensure that the threat is not carried out,” he said.
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Esele noted that the Nigerian government cannot afford another phase of economic sabotage the way it did in early 2000 when oil production went to all-time low due to the activities of militancy in the region, advising government at all levels to ensure that political crisis in Rivers State does not take the country back to those dark days.
According to the foremost unionist, “Sometimes you don’t agree with the judgment of the Supreme Court, but you have to accept it because it is the last court of the land. Refusal to accept the judgment could lead to anarchy and we don’t need that”.
He recalled that militancy in the early years of 2000 was understandable because it was based on justice and development. “Their agitation then brought what you have as Niger delta development commission, NDDC, Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, now scabbed and the Presidential Amnesty Programme. What is the recent threat by the militants all about? It is purely political interest which is very selfish. The two gladiators in the Rivers State crisis are fighting for their political interests. If Fubara knew that he would not obey his godfather who brought him to power.”
The former TUC President called on security agencies to go after politicians who are behind the threat to peace in the state and Nigeria in general, maintaining that for the economy of the country to thrive, peace must be made a watchword.
President of the Movement for the Survival of Ogoni People, MOSOP, Fegalo Nsuke, said he was most worried about the threat by the militants to hit oil facilities in the region as a retaliatory step to the Supreme Court ruling in the Rivers state crisis.
“I think the threats from the creeks are a serious one. It underlines the fact that in making laws, we should also consider what the reality is. Denying the government of Rivers State, funds to operate are essentially shutting down the government. That is something no institution of state ought to do. The government is essentially what maintains law and order, and when government becomes disabled, society becomes lawless.
Meanwhile, Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has said he would mobilise senators from Niger Delta region to intervene in the crisis.
He spoke yesterday in Abuja when he received a delegation of Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Youth Leaders Forum.
Akpabio warned those he described as armchair critics to stop running uninformed commentaries about the Senate
According to the President of the Senate, individuals who are not well grounded in the rules of the Senate should desist from attacks on the Upper Chamber.
Akpabio made the remarks against the backdrop of the recent decision of the Senate to suspend the Kogi Senator, Natasha Akpoti-Oduaghan for flouting the Senate rules.