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  • Amnesty trained 14,366 ex-agitators, says Boroh

    Amnesty trained 14,366 ex-agitators, says Boroh

    The Coordinator, Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh has said about 14,366 ex-agitators were trained in the programme.

    Gen. Boroh spoke at News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) Forum in Abuja, yesterday.

    He explained their capacities has been developed in agriculture, automobile engineering, and aviation, with a further look at the sports sector.

    “As we speak, we have trained over 5,000 in education-capacity development, and over 22, 000 in skill acquisition and entrepreneurship development.”

    He said the programme granted amnesty to 30,000 ex-agitators of Niger Delta.

    Gen. Boroh said from now till December 17, more ex-agitators would be graduating from the scheme.

    According to him, its education programme is winding down and there is need to graduate more beneficiaries.

    He said education is a pivotal investment for human and economic development, influenced by the environment within which it exists.

    Gen. Boroh said the President Muhammadu Buhari administration was aware today’s youths need specific skills to survive the competitive world.

    The presidential aide said beneficiaries, now graduates, were aware of the socio-economic scenario of the nation and can help in developing the region and the nation.

    According to him, the beneficiaries can contribute towards nation-building.

    “From now till December 17, you will be hearing of graduations because we are winding down and positively for that matter as well as empowerment.

    “We are using government institutions, we think the resources we spent in this programme will be better utilised within the country.

    “That is why we are using government-owned institutions instead of institutions abroad, this is our focus.

    “Right now, we have trained about 14,366 ex-agitators in the programme and their capacities have also been developed in the areas of agriculture, automobile engineering, aviation sector and then we are also looking at the sports sector,‘’ he said.

    He said other areas included skill acquisition, entrepreneurship and educational development.

    Gen. Boroh stressed the need to sustain peace in the Niger Delta toward ensuring infrastructural development.

    He said the existence of peace was not negotiable as it will bring development in infrastructure, among others, in the region

    According to him, before now, Nigeria has a lot of infrastructure that were functioning, such as Ascon Oil Company in Delta State, rolling mills, railways and roads.

    He added that most of these were destroyed by conflicts in the region

    Boroh said the establishment of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) was to ensure peace and replace damaged infrastructure.

    The coordinator said we should revamp these infrastructure to create jobs that will bring peace, stability and development in the region.

    He said: “I was a young man 84/85 in Warri, I was a battalion militant when these infrastructure were functioning and massive jobs were created but now they have become moribund.

    “It’s a concern for the government to ensure that at least some measures of start over to revamp these infrastructure are achieved to create job opportunities that will ensure peace, stability and development in the Niger Delta region.”

    The Presidential aide praised the administration for bringing infrastructural development as well as peace to people of the region.

    He said the economic impact that infrastructure improvement has on nation building cannot be over-emphasised.

    According to the coordinator, the growth of any country’s economy hugely depends on the status of its infrastructure.

    He added that the dearth of infrastructure places serious limitation on human capital development.

    “The programme is one of the pivotal institutions responsible for ensuring peace, stability and development of the Niger Delta region.

    “We express deep gratitude and appreciation to Mr President for ensuring that his commitment during his campaign has come to bear.

    “He ensured that the Niger Delta region is of concern to him and that he would, with support from others, ensure the region is peaceful, stable and developing.’’

    On money spent so far, he said ‘’frankly speaking, peace is expensive…, it is difficult to calculate the exact figure.

    “But importantly, there is now peace; people are happy,’’ he said.

    Boroh, however, reiterated the government’s commitment in ensuring lasting peace in the area.

  • Oil to lose relevance in coming years, says Boroh

    Oil to lose relevance in coming years, says Boroh

    The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh, has urged stakeholders from the South-South to think outside the box and find other means of economic sustenance outside oil.

    Gen. Boroh, who is also the Coordinator, Amnesty Programme for Niger Delta, spoke at a seminar organised by the Ijaw Professional Association (IPA) at the Agip Recital Hall, Muson Centre, Onikan Lagos on Sunday.

    The theme of the seminar was “Social Inclusion, a Strategy for Peaceful Co-Existence’’.

    IPA is a non-governmental organisation (NGO) made up of groups of professionals that seek to fashion a development blueprint for the Niger Delta.

    Gen. Boroh restated that oil which had been the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy deposited in the Southsouth might soon lose its relevance in the world market.

    He called for urgent diversification into the other areas of economic interest to shore up the country’s revenue.

    “We are getting to the point of reality which we must tell ourselves. Oil was found in the southern region of Nigeria, but for how long will we depend on it for sustenance?

    “Very soon, in a space of two years, oil will lose its relevance because there are many researches going on now for a safer and better energy which has reduced the importance of oil.

    “We need to wake up to the reality that Nigeria’s oil economic value is fast depreciating as our biggest buyer, U.S. are not buying from us again. They now buy from India.

    “Then, should we ask about what we pride in as our resources are not being appreciated again, what should we then do? The answer is to diversify and think outside the box.’’

    Boroh said that thinking outside the box means that the region needed to look into the sectors that were more viable economically and explore for a better future for southern Nigeria.

    “The new oil in the world now is Information Technology and ICT. It is a gold mine that can provide many opportunities to our youths that still have their eyes on oil.

    “We need to tap into the ICT world if we are serious about progressing in the country and in the south region. Our youths should open up to the avalanche of opportunities in ICT world.

    “Another area I want to talk about is Agriculture; it is an area we should start to consider now to replace oil in our minds. Before oil, what we have been engaging in is agriculture and we need to go back.

    “We need to go beyond subsistence farming to commercial farming. We have the population in terms of human capacity to feed ourselves and the world,’’ he said.

    Contributing, the moderator of the event, former Commissioner of Information and Communication, Dr Austin George, alluded that diversification from oil should not be lip service only but a deliberate action plan.

    “We have been talking about diversification even now that the resources from oil are now dwindling. We need to implement the action plan now or never.

    “What have we been doing these years when the oil was still booming? Diversification is more than a theoretical declaration; it should be an action plan which we must act on now.

    “We need to diversify into ICT because it has generated a lot of opportunities. The future of our region is ICT. We need to know that.

    “Now we are getting to the age of driverless cars, these cars make use of applications to operate. So, we need to come to the realisation of our potential before it’s too late,’’ he said.

    Other discussants spoke on the need to have a deliberate plan to educate youths on how to make use of the opportunity around them.

    A panellist, Mrs Ommo Clark, said there were opportunities that abound in the ICT sector but remained untapped by the youth.

    “Some of the youth claimed that they are not using the internet whereas they are using it and unaware of how they can make a huge income from its use.

    “Technology is being used to solve many problems now; ICT can be used for what we call e-Commerce. We can now trade without going out of our homes. All transactions are now done on internet.

    “Instead of wasting money on social media, why can’t we turn it to productive use by advertising what we do; the services we provide on those platforms?

    “There are software applications that helps advertise businesses for free. Once you upload what you do on it the world is already aware,’’ she said.

    Another, Mr Ebikekeme Ere spoke on the productive way of using software applications, saying that he was able to develop software that could determine the quantity and the inflow of oil in the pipelines.

    “I can say that very soon, even the schools will lose its relevance because we can now get the education needed via internet without the brick schools.

    “ICT has made it possible to have things simplified to ease our stress, so we need youths in this direction,’’ he said.

    Biriyai Dambosan said there was the need to have social inclusion through an inclusive constitution that would be for all and not the one foisted by the military.

    “Our constitution did not show any social inclusion at all because we have no part in it. The first phrase that says `We the people of Nigeria’ is a farce because we did not contribute to it.

    “If we must make any impact in the development of Nigeria, we need a constitutional framework that will be socially inclusive.

    “We have had many imbalances in the government and that is why we are calling for restructuring which some are shying away from,’’ he said.

  • FG to recruit 10,000 youths from Niger Delta – Boroh

    ABout 10,000 youths from oil-bearing communities in Niger Delta will be engaged by the Federal Government as surveillance and security officers at oil pipelines in the region.

    Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Chairman, Presidential Amnesty Programme Brig. Gen. Paul Boroh announced this at a news conference in Abuja, yesterday.

    He said:  “The Presidential Amnesty Programme is responsible for interacting with nine state governments, including Ondo State, and we  aware of what is happening there. They (kidnappers)  are also part of those that will benefit from the Federal Government inclusive principle in ensuring that youths of the region are adequately accommodated in the areas of inclusiveness.

    “Inclusiveness means what do we do in ensuring that youths from the oil-bearing communities are engaged adequately in the oil business. It could be pipeline surveillance, it could be part of the modular refinery initiative. These things will engage youths. Most youths have taken it beyond the normal approach because they are not adequately employed.

    “This, the Federal Government is aware of, and is responsible for ensuring that they achieve in the principle of inclusiveness in the strategic Niger Delta programme. The Strategic Work Plan for the Niger Delta region is an inclusive work plan that will involve youths, particularly those from oil-bearing communities.

    “I have got names of persons from almost all the states; we will collate them and when I meet with our ministerial group, we will look at it holistically to see how we can get them but nothing less than 10,000 youths are going to be engaged from oil producing states because it has to do with surveillance of pipelines. All of them are going to be included.”

    Dismissing fears of a possible hijack of the planned engagement of 10,000 youths by some forces, Gen. Boroh explained that the exercise would involve the leadership of the communities, who forwarded names to his office.

    Speaking  on the Nigeria Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Delta State, Gen. Boroh denied insinuations the Federal Government had  dropped the idea of establishing the institution.

    Gen. Boroh presented three delegates of the Amnesty Programme, who made First Class in Belarus.

    He gave the names of the delegates as Dan Obi Vincent from Rivers, Okorie Chukwuemeka from Imo State and Vincent Isoboye from Rivers State.

  • Buhari committed to peaceful, developed Niger Delta, says Boroh

    Buhari committed to peaceful, developed Niger Delta, says Boroh

    The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh, says President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is committed to a peaceful and developed Niger Delta region.

    Boroh, who is the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in New York on Wednesday that this commitment has encouraged investors movement into the region.

    “The impact of the Presidential Amnesty Programme in the Niger Delta region has been very satisfactory and encouraging because the ex-agitators have imbibed that culture of ensuring peace.

    “This is to allow for growth in the region and they are happy about it because a lot of valuable entrepreneurship programmes are ongoing in the entire Niger-Delta region.

    “Their (ex-agitators) morale is high and they are happy.

    “Each time I go to discuss with the ex-agitators and the youth, they pledge their loyalty and support to the present administration.

    “This is so that the administration can continue the good things it is doing because of the commitment of Mr President in ensuring peace, stability and development in the region.

    “The Niger Delta today is stable, peaceful and expecting investors moving there and help in adding value to the region,” Gen. Boroh said.

    According to him, well over 5,000 ex-agitators have benefitted within the past two years in critical areas of aviation, maritime, oil and gas and agriculture.

    The amnesty coordinator said agriculture was now the main focus of the programme in line with the government’s economic diversification strategy.

    “This is to ensure that the ex-agitators imbibe the details of the new agricultural policy so that they can be professional farmers at the end of the day.

    “This will create massive job opportunities, ensure that there’s food security in the region and the country at large and again, enhance our financial position.

    “Niger Delta is stable and investors are moving in to continue their business,” Gen. Boroh said.

    The presidential aide also explained that the programme has a terminal phase but that the ex-agitators would be empowered before the final phase.

    “The programme has a timeline to phase out. It has to do with ensuring that the ex-agitators that are in the programme are adequately trained and empowered so that they can leave and this is ongoing.”

  • Niger Delta communities already reaping from Osinbajo’s visit, says Boroh

    Niger Delta communities already reaping from Osinbajo’s visit, says Boroh

    The visits of Acting President Yemi Osinbajo to the Niger Delta have started yielding positive results in the creeks with the commencement of Federal Government-assisted quick impact projects.

    Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) Brig. Gen. Paul Boroh, who disclosed this during an interaction with reporters yesterday in Abuja, said some oil-bearing communities, such as Gelegele and Gbaramatu Kingdom in Edo and Delta states are direct beneficiaries of the projects.

    Gen. Boroh, who explained that the Amnesty office would be sending about 200 ex-agitators to the Coach Samson Siasia’s owned SIA One Sports Academy as part of its agenda to engender peace in the region through sporting activities, said the projects include the drilling of boreholes and construction of mini water works.

    He said: “We are looking at critical quick impact projects to be established in the creeks of the Niger Delta as one of the fallouts of the visit of the acting president to the Niger Delta. Boreholes are being established in Gelegele community in Edo state. We have also received estimates for the establishment of mini water works in Gbaramatu Kingdom.”

    Noting that peace building efforts must be all inclusive, he said the government would do everything within its power to regain the confidence of the people with the assurance that it meant well for people living in areas where the resources were domiciled.

    Gen. Boroh said the collaboration with SIA One Academy would cover different sporting activities, including football, swimming, boxing, weightlifting and track events.

    He explained that at least 200 youths from the region would benefit from the sports programme which began three weeks ago in Uyo, Akwa Ibom state.

    “We are using the academy as a mechanism for youth development and growth. That is why I must tell you that this is not just about football alone. It covers several other sport and we would engage the youth in the region to embrace sports and reap abundantly from it with the kind of quality training they would receive from the academy.”

    The PAP Coordinator further said government’s partnership with Innoson Motors would boost industrialisation of the region, as the company was poised to establish branches in the area including an academy.

    He said beneficiaries of the training programme for ex-agitators would form the bulk of manpower for the proposed automobile industry, promising to assist in the purchase of the hi-tech computers for the over 200 ex-agitators currently undergoing training at Innoson Motors.

    Siasia said 66 of the over 200 candidates screened by the academy would soon report to the camp, adding that sports remains the biggest unifying factor in the world.

    “In the next couple of months, we would be telling our success stories from this collaboration with the Amnesty Office,” he said.

  • Boroh: security agencies must work together

    Boroh: security agencies must work together

    The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh (retd.), has called for unity and mutual respect among security agencies in discharging their duties.

    He was reacting to a face-off between the police and the Navy in Calabar, Cross River State apital.

    Boroh, who is in Calabar ahead of today’s state visit of Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, met with the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral James Oladapo Oluwole.

    The presidential aide said tension was bound to arise among officers of the law, but advised them to exercise restraint, decorum and avoid a breakdown of law and order.

    He called for continued cooperation and synergy am ong security agencies, saying they need to maintain the highest level of discipline.

    Boroh spoke with the Naval command on its expectations during the visit of the Acting President as well as efforts by the PAP to promote peace and stability in the Niger Delta region.

    The PAP coordinator said Osinbajo’s visit would emphasise the engagement of former agitators in skills development and veritable vocations.

    He said the Federal Government planned to engage youths in oil business as well as assets supervision and surveillance.

    According to him, arrangements are ongoing to ensure that some youths are engaged in the planned modular refineries to be licensed by the Federal Government. Oluwole assured Boroh that the clash between the Navy and the police was under control without civilian casualty.

    Boroh also met with Governor Ben Ayade at one of the project sites slated for inauguration by the Acting President.

  • Boroh : security agencies must work together 

    The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme Brig- Gen. Paul Boroh (Rtd)  has called for unity and mutual respect among security agencies in the country.

    He was reacting to the face off between officers of the Nigeria Police and the Naval command in Calabar, Cross River State.

    Gen Boroh, who is in Calabar ahead of a state visit by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo today, met with the Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral James Oladapo Oluwole.

    He added that tension was bound to arise sometimes amongst officers of the law but they must exercise restraint, decorum and manage any situation likely to lead to break down of law and order.

    He called for continued cooperation and synergy between security agencies   and tasked them to maintain the highest level  of discipline.

    He intimated the Naval command of some expectations during the visit of the Acting President as well as current efforts by the Presidential Amnesty Programme to promote peace and stability in the Niger Delta.

    He said the Acting President’s visit would among others emphasize the engagement of ex-agitators in skills development and veritable vocations.

    Gen. Boroh also spoke of government’s plan to engage some of the youth in the oil business as well as assets supervision and surveillance.

    He also explained that arrangement are ongoing to ensure that some of the youth are engage in the planned modular refineries to be licenced by the Federal government.

    The Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Naval Command, Rear Admiral James Oladapo Oluwole gave an assurance that the situation involving the Navy and Police has been put under control with no civilian casualty.    He confirmed that  normalcy had been restored but that investigations are on going  to determine what triggered the regrettable incident.

    The presidential aide later met with Governor Ben Ayade at one of the project sites slated for commissioning by the Acting President.

     

  • Dickson’s bag of honours for Boroh

    The late Major Isaac Adaka Boroh resurrected again this year. Boroh is remembered May 16th of every year. The celebration, which took place on Tuesday, was a memorable event especially for the family members of the dead hero.

    Esther, the first daughter of Boroh, the wife of the late hero and others, who gathered at the Ijaw House, Yenagoa, to mark the momentous day, gave Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson a standing ovation.

    The governor reinstated the monthly allowances his administration has been paying to the Boroh’s family and other Ijaw compatriots. Dickson started paying the allowances in his first tenure as a governor, but suspended them following the economic recession that hit the early months of his second tenure. But the governor has brought the grooves back.

    Dickson has also given priority to Kolokuma-Opokuma, the local government area of the late hero, in his projects.

    He took a road to Boroh’s Town, created in the council in honour of the late Ijaw hero, after many years of neglect. The governor sited one of his most enduring legacies in education, the Ijaw Academy, in Kaiama, the community of the late Boroh. It is an academic institution with boarding facilities designed to offer free education to Ijaw pupils. Dickson also built the Youth Development Centre in the council.

    In fact, the Paramount Ruler of Kolokuma-Opokuma, King Mosi Agara, named the governor, the Adaka 2nd for stepping into Boroh’s shoes. The traditional ruler  said Dickson was the first leader, who went through a rigorous process, to bring back the remains of Boroh from Ikoyi Cemetery to the Heroes Park, a special place he dedicated in Yenagoa for burials of distinguished late Ijaw leaders.

    The traditional ruler eulogised the governor for naming the Bayelsa College of Education in Sagabma Local Government Area  after Adaka Boroh.

    Also, Esther, the daughter of the late hero, poured encomiums on the governor for bringing back in action Boroh’s memories. She said the governor saw the need to build a road to Boroh’s town, skill acquisition centre in Kaiama and the NYSC permanent orientation camp.

    She appealed to the youths to desist from vandalism of oil installations and destruction of the environment, saying such actions defeated the true essence of Boroh. Instead, he said youths should help the governor develop and move the stage forward.

    The people, who gathered for the celebration were also thrilled for the adjustments and other pronouncements the governor made in the spirits of Boroh. Henceforth, the celebrations will be held in schools. Teachers trained on Ijaw Language by his government are hereby given immediate employment. Ijaw anthem to be launched soon and the first Ijaw International Conference to be held outside Nigeria.

    Dickson said: “Beginning this year, the government of Bayelsa State as part of our policy of taking Bayelsa and Ijaw nation to the world, will be sponsoring the first ever World Ijaw International Conference outside the shores of Nigeria to sensitise the world about the Ijaw condition”.

    The governor seized the opportunity to speak hard truth to the Ijaw.

    He said: “For those of you who think that you have a Bayelsa that exist only to fill your pockets, think again. For those of you, who think that this state only exist to satisfy the greed and avarice of the elites and few people, think again.

    “For those of you who are civil servants who think that this state exist to fill your pockets without you doing your duties by going to work, where 43,000 or 45,000 of you in the state in a population of close to three million will think that everything we receive in this state should be channeled towards you even without doing your work, think again.

    “For those of you who connive and perpetrate fraud on our state at every level, think again. Isaac Boro and persons who fought beside him believe in the wellbeing and welfare of their people not themselves. They stood trial, were convicted and sentenced to death and later granted pardon. They later came to fight for our liberation and they died.

    “As we speak, we have a thousand young Boroh’s being incubated. We took them from their parents. They are there fed by the state, clothed by the state and accommodated by the state with books and other materials provided by the state. By Friday this week (today) another set of five boarding schools are starting in Bayelsa. That is the way to carry out the dreams of Boroh”.

    The governor, his Deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd) and other dignitaries laid wreaths in honour of Boroh.

    In their goodwill messages, the Amayanabo of Twon Brass, Alfred Diete-Spiff and the chairman of the Bayelsa Elders Forum, Chief Francis Doukpola said Boro lived and died for what he believed in.

  • Amnesty : Double payment to beneficiaries against government rules, says Boroh

    Amnesty : Double payment to beneficiaries against government rules, says Boroh

    The Coordinator, Presidential Amnesty Programme, Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh, has said the old culture of double payment to beneficiaries in training is against the Federal Government’s rules and has been discontinued.

    Gen. Boroh, in a statement by Media and Communication Consultant Mr Owei Lakemfa, in Abuja, said hitherto, some beneficiaries who collected stipends, were also paid In-Training-Allowances while on the programme’s scholarship.

    He said: “What I met was a situation where an amnesty beneficiary, who is on monthly stipend, a sustenance allowance, was also being paid monthly In-Training-Allowance (ITA) which is also a sustenance allowance.

    “This amounted to double payment. It is against the financial regulations of the nation and international best practice.

    “But in changing the system, we had to carry out thorough biometric verification  to match the stipend beneficiary and the scholarship beneficiary receiving ITA.

    “While there are matches we have made and subsequently stopped the double payment, there are those we have not been able to match due to the fact that they used their ‘bush names’ in registering for the amnesty while using their real names in registering in the tertiary institutions.

    “For this category of beneficiaries, the necessary match will be made when we complete the biometric verification, and their double payment will be stopped.”

    Gen. Boroh, who is also the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, disclosed that the programme was in its final stage of integration and that stipend payment would be stopped for beneficiaries who had been trained and empowered.

    “We regard all beneficiaries who have benefited from the Amnesty Programme scholarship and have studied and graduated from various local and foreign universities, as people who have been trained and empowered.

    “To earn a degree is empowerment. However, the Presidential Amnesty Programme will continue to assist beneficiaries in their efforts to secure gainful employment,” he said.

    The presidential aide emphasised that the programme had a time line which would run out and that the process of weaning the two categories of beneficiaries from the stipend regime was part of the Amnesty Office’s  Strategic Exit Programmes (STEPS).

    He assured beneficiaries, who had outstanding training and empowerment or Type Training in Maritime or Aviation, that they would be completed in the on-going process of sustainably integrating all the beneficiaries.

  • Niger Delta: Boroh, ex-militant leader restate need for peace

    Niger Delta: Boroh, ex-militant leader restate need for peace

    The Presidential Adviser on Niger Delta Affairs and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Gen. Paul Boroh (retd), has said only sustained peace will bring expected development in the Niger Delta region.

    Boroh spoke at the weekend when he visited a former militant leader and Chairman of Bayelsa State Waterways Security Task Force (BSWSTF), Africanus Ukparasia, (aka ‘General’ Africa), in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital.

    He said: “The only way development can come to the Niger Delta region is for the enabling environment to be created first.”

    The presidential aide noted that Africa and other ex-militant leaders, by virtue of their positions, were given key roles to play to sustain the peace in the region.

    He thanked Africa for securing the waterways and oil facilities in Bayelsa with his task force.

    Boroh said the Federal Government had acknowledged the efforts of his outfit.

    The PAP coordinator urged ex-agitators to continue their cooperating with the Amnesty Office, saying he was working hard to ensure the progress of the programme.

    Africa begged the Federal Government to prioritise the development of the Niger Delta region and the welfare of the people to stop any crisis in the region.

    He advised Boroh to ensure timely payment of stipends to ex-militants to reduce tension and crises in the region.

    The ex-militant leader urged the government to address the issues in the Niger Delta early in 2017 to hasten revival of the economy and reduce the hardship in the land.

    Africa, a former commander of the Movement for Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND), is known for working against his kinsman and former President Goodluck Jonathan to support President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015.

    He was one of the few voices that rose against the nefarious activities of the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), while he opposed the bombing of oil and gas pipelines.