The Niger Delta Rights Assembly (NDRA) has described as ill-informed and an affront on national security a report by Premium Times which classified as ‘unlawful’ the payment of funds into the accounts of ex-agitators’ camp leaders by the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).

The report which named several Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) as committing the ‘crime’ of paying public money into private accounts as did the suspended Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Dr Betta Edu, listed PAP as one of the agencies which flouted Section 713 of Nigeria’s Financial Regulations 2009  which states that “Personal money shall in no circumstances be paid into a government bank account, nor shall any public money be paid into a private account.”

However, the NDRA while acknowledging that accountability especially in public expenditure should be the hallmark of any government, said in the case of PAP and its payments, it amounts to encroachment into the arena of national security.

The group said the report was capable of rupturing the hard earned peace in the Niger Delta as it could trigger fresh agitation among the youths in the region.

The NDRA which comprises mainly youths drawn from across the Niger Delta said in a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday, February 8, 2024 and signed by its President, Chief Israel Bokromo, that it was illogical and a show of ignorance to equate the case of Betta Edu with payment of the various camps of agitators through their leaders who are all duly recognized and registered with the Programme.

The statement reads inter alia: “We are appalled by the lack of knowledge of the administrative guidelines that govern the management of funds at the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).

“PAP is strictly a strategic quasi-security Programme which dealings with the ex-agitators in the Niger Delta region is largely all-carrot and zero stick approach. The delineation of the registered ex-agitators into camps was one of the masterstrokes that birthed peace in the region.

He explained that every camp has a leader and each leader has been given the responsibility of managing members of his camp which is duly registered and therefore a recognized entity.

“This is a special model which has continued to deliver peace in the once volatile region. The result of such peace is increased output in oil production and an atmosphere to encourage the ease of doing business. This model has worked because it was not an imposition but a carefully thought out strategy arrived at after consultations with various stakeholders in the region and beyond.

“This model has also insulated the management of the funds from the bottlenecks of bureaucracy. With this model, PAP has succeeded in ceding power and giving a sense of belonging to the ex-agitators, particularly their leaders. We must preserve this model otherwise we heat up the region again and the consequences will be dire for the country,” the statement warned.
The group lauded retired Major-General Barry Ndiomu, the Interim Administrator for the various innovations he has brought to bear in the administration of the Programme, stressing that under him the culture of probity, accountability and transparency was instituted which has not only cleaned up the Programme’s ledger of any form of corruption but also guaranteed that what was meant for the ex-agitators gets to them and timely too.