A few days after former militants revolted in Niger Delta by barricading the East-West Road, an ex-freedom fighter and Niger Delta activist, Sobomabo Jackrich, has urged President Goodluck Jonathan to investigate the activities of the amnesty office.

Also, he called for the removal of the head of the amnesty office.

While speaking in Port Harcourt, he stated that the amnesty office, headed by Mr. Kingsley Kuku, needs to give account of spending.

He stated that there was need to ensure the continuation of peace in the Niger Delta region and therefore, the government must address contending issues as well as ensure that the programme is not manipulated by “a few self-seeking individuals.”

While expressing anger over what he called shortchanging, arbitrary payment delays and others in the amnesty office, Jackrich accused Kuku of running the amnesty office the way he likes.

He accused Kuku of adopting a style that divides the camps of former militants, stating: “He is promoting the idea of proliferation of camps and this is not ideal for the programme, which has achieved relative success.”

The former freedom fighter said that to ensure peace, Kuku should be removed, as, according to him, he has betrayed the region and the trust reposed in his office.

Jackrich, who is director general of Network for the Defence of Democracy and Good Governance (NDDGG), also emphasised the need for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to beam its search light on the amnesty office.

He appealed to President Goodluck Jonathan to intervene, so as to alleviate the plight of repentant freedom fighters to avert looming crisis and help sustain the peace that has so far been enjoyed in the region.

He commended President Jonathan for establishing the amnesty programme, while accusing Kuku of indirectly truncating it by the way the office is being run.

Jackrick stated that he ploughed back a greater percentage of the amnesty money he collected to the society to alleviate the sufferings of many, with the view to affecting lives of the people.

He stated that his focus has been on youth empowerment, capacity building and funding viable projects. Also, he said he engaged in activities that would help cater to the needs of the less privileged as well as the old and weak in society.

Posted by admin on Oct 17 2013. Filed under Latest Politics, Niger Delta. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry