Amnesty c’ttee, ex-militants disagree on stipend

Posted by admin Niger Delta Monday, October 3rd, 2011

WARRI-Presidential Committee on Amnesty, Abuja, weekend, opposed the claim by a group of former militants, under the aegis of Transformed Niger Delta Ex-Militants Forum, that about 12,000 ex-agitators, who passed through transformational training at Obubra Camp, Calabar, Cross River State, had not been paid their monthly stipend.

The ex-militants, in a letter to President Goodluck Jonathan by their chairman, Prince Meshach Bebenimi-bo, and two others, deman-ded immediate payment of their monthly stipend and housing allowance for 2009, 2010 and 2011.

They also demanded posting to chosen institutions of learning and training for those who had completed their transformation training.

Head, Media and Communication, Amnesty Office, Mr. Henry Ugbolue, who reacted to the allegation, said: “The Amnesty Office is not owing any ex-agitator monthly stipend. Anyone claiming he was being owed is an impostor. All ex-agitators enrolled in the amnesty programme were well aware that the Amnesty Office never ever owe them. Usually, we pay on or before 28th of every month.

“A number of ex-agitators, who had passed through the demobilisation phase in Obubra are awaiting placements in training or skill acquisition centres. They will be placed. The processing is a tortuous one.

“Already, about 5,200 of the 20,192 who passed through Obubra had been sent to training centres. Others are on queue and the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Mr. Kinsley Kuku, is working round the clock to achieve their placements in re-integration centres.”

-Vanguardwp_posts