According to Punch, Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti state says it is shameful and embarrassing that President Muhammadu Buhari who is retired military general could succumb to threats from militants and cancel his scheduled trip to attend the flag-off of the clean-up Ogoni project. Fayose said the president’s failure to attend the flag-off of the clean-up Ogoni project today, June 2, because of the threat from Niger Delta militants was a demonstration that the president had surrendered to the superior powers of the militants.
The governor in a statement issued by his special assistant on public communications and new Media, Lere Olayinka, urged Buhari to dialogue with the Niger Delta militants, especially the Niger Delta Avengers so as to end hostilities in the oil rich region. He faulted the president’s approach to civil unrests of any kind under the government, saying it was causing more security problems in the country.
The governor said the president cannot afford to continue to talk tough on issues that dialogue can resolve. He said:
“Now that the president has surrendered to the threat and intimidation of the Niger Delta Avengers, he should emulate late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua by having a roundtable talks with the Niger Delta militants.”
“By not going to Ogoni today, because of threat from the NDA, our president has shown that he is actually afraid of the militants and the best thing to do in a situation like this is to dialogue with the militants so as to save Nigeria economy from imminent collapse.”
“It also shows that the president’s ability to secure Nigeria and its people is doubtful, because if the president could succumb to threat from militants and abandon his official function for his deputy, ordinary Nigerians should seek help elsewhere.”
Meanwhile, some close associates and allies of former president, Goodluck Jonathan are suspected of being behind the on-going crisis in the Niger Delta region, a top security source has disclosed. Leadership reports that following the spate of bombings of oil pipelines and other facilities by the militant group, Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), some close allies of Jonathan have been put under surveillance by the nation’s security agencies.