N'DELTA CRISES: IYC URGES DIRECT DIALOGUE WITH PMB, SAYS IT WILL TAKE DISCIPLINARY MEASURES AGAINST ERRING MEMBERS SOON.

YENAGOA: On June 24, 2016, the Ijaw Youth Congress (IYC) on Friday called for a direct dialogue with President Muhammadu Buhari over the renewed hostilities by the Niger Delta militants on oil infrastructure.

Mr Udengs Eradiri, the IYC President, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Yenagoa that politicians currently handling the talks were self serving and could not be trusted for a meaningful resolution of issues in contention.

Eradiri said direct intervention of the President would send strong signals of seriousness of the Federal Government at addressing the issues of the Niger Delta region once and for all.

He appealed to Buhari to take the bull by the horns by personally heading the team of negotiators like some of his predecessors did for amicable resolution of the brewing crises.

Eradiri told NAN that he would not participate in any negotiation not led by the President directly as the outcome would not make any lasting impact.

According to him, the issues in contention are not just about the Niger Delta people alone, but that of recurring leadership failures in the country.

``There is nothing on ground yet to suggest things have changed for the better.

``I don’t trust the dialogue process that has been initiated, there has been a plethora of negotiations in the past, all government needs to do now is to take a holistic approach to the problems of the Niger Delta.
``The issues on the table are not just about the Niger Delta people or the Ijaws, it is about past leadership failures in Nigeria.

``That is why I have been praying for the President to be hale and hearty; the President should stand up, take the lead in solving the problems, there are success stories of his predecessors taking such steps.

``The groundnut pyramids in the North disappeared when the government was not ready to cure the epidemics in vogue then; cocoa disappeared from the South West when they could not face it.

``Tomato is disappearing from the Middle-Belt because leadership has yet to address the issues.
``The problem has been the failure of leadership at certain levels,’’ Eradiri said.

Eradiri also advocated implementation of the National Conference report as a very good starting point in restructuring the nation politically.

However, he said that those fanning the embers of disunity within the IYC were being sponsored by external forces.

Eradiri said the IYC would soon activate its disciplinary measures to deal with erring members.