Niger Delta Avengers agree to suspend their ongoing military campaign for 30 days

MILITANT group the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) has agreed to a 30-day truce with the federal government to give President Muhammadu Buhari time to come up with a comprehensive plan for the oil-rich region.

 

Over recent weeks, the NDA has stepped up militancy in the Niger Delta, blowing up pipelines and oil installations, cutting Nigeria's output to 1.4m barrels a day from 2.2m barrels. In response to an impending crisis and full blown insurgency, the government has made overtures to the militants, asking them to sit down and negotiate a deal.

 

After giving the government several conditions, the militants have finally agreed to enter into talks and yesterday, the NDA agreed to suspend its campaign for 30 days.  This ceasefire was said to have been agreed upon last week by a federal government team led by the minister of state for petroleum Dr Ibe Kachikwu and representatives of the militant groups, community leaders and the state governments.

 

Last week, Dr Kachikwu had led a government delegation to different camps in Bayelsa and Delta States, including visiting the temporary site of the Maritime University at Okerenkoko, in the  Gbaramatu Kingdom in Warri South Local Government Area of Delta State. Dr Kachikwu was said to have pleaded for some time to allow the Buhari administration to come up with a comprehensive Niger Delta plan that would address most of their demands.

 

Apparently, the militant groups accepted his plea, adding that since the agreement was reached there had been no attacks on oil and gas installations in the oil-rich region. During the meeting, they demanded greater control of the hydrocarbon resources in their communities, improved funding for the amnesty programme, the clean-up of oil producing communities that had been devastated by oil exploration activities and the funding for the Maritime University.

 

A spokesman for the militants said: “You would have noticed that there have been no bombings of oil assets in recent days, which is the fall out of the 30 days of quiet reached with the minister and his team. This will give the president time to come up with a comprehensive plan for the Niger Delta.”

 

Prior to the agreement temporarily ending the attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta, the federal government had ordered the military to withdraw its troops, fighter jets and battleships that had been deployed in the region to flush out the militants. This approach was adopted after the military option failed to stem the attacks.