A former leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, Chief Government Ekpemupolo a.k.a. Tompolo, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh as the new head of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.
He said tha the action of the President only portrayed him as a listening leader with a desire to contribute to the development of the Niger Delta.
He also hailed the President for the choice of a retired military officer, rather than the politicians who had been scheming to get the job.
He urged the new Amnesty coordinator to ensure that critical stakeholders were consulted in the running of the programme and to avoid political jobbers.
He said, “It could be recalled that I called a meeting of ex-agitators, leaders and other stakeholders in the Niger Delta last week as a result of the pressure on me to intervene in the seemingly troubled Amnesty Programme due to the non-payment of the stipends and allowances to beneficiaries for months now.
“And so, it gives me joy for the President to appoint a high-ranking retired military gentleman to coordinate the programme, rather than have any of the political jobbers, who had advertised themselves in very negative forms in order to be appointed.”
Also, frontline ex-militant leaders from the nine states of the Niger Delta have commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the appointment of Boroh (retd.) as the substantive Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Implementation Committee.
According to the ex-militant leaders, the appointment will undoubtedly resolve the concerns raised by the people of the region over the hitches in the Amnesty programme and payment of outstanding allowances and scholarship fees. They said the choice was apt.
The former agitators, under the aegis of the Leadership, Peace and Cultural Development Initiative, led by Pastor Reuben Wilson, said on Wednesday that the choice of Boroh was commendable.
Wilson said though the appointment was delayed, he said nevertheless, it would calm frayed nerves among beneficiaries of the programme.
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