Avengers list conditions for dialogue with Federal Government
Tue Jun 14, 2016 07:48:am National
2.2K By Buchi Obichie
The Niger Delta Avengers have accepted the Federal Government's offer of dialogue.
The militants, however, gave conditions for the peace talks.
In a statement published on its website and signed by the spokesperson, Mudoch Agbinibo, the group said the Federal Government must suspend the purchase of crude oil from the Niger Delta region.
They said what was needed was a conducive atmosphere for dialogue, and asked President Buhari not to turn the proposed peace talks to a political jamboree.
The militants also asked the Federal Government to involve member states of the multinational oil corporations to commit independent mediators to the proposed dialogue.
It said the peace talk would set up a framework for achieving the short, medium and long-term demands of the Niger Delta to bring about a lasting peace, and that hostilities would be renewed if the Government breached any of the stated conditions.
The statement partly read, "If need be, we may review our earlier stance of not taking lives. We are going to redirect and reactivate all our activities if the government, oil companies and their services firms don't heed to these modest warnings of not carrying out any repair works and suspend the buying of crude oil from our region as we await the right atmosphere that would engender genuine dialogue.
"The NDA high command is restating our commitment to attack the interest of oil corporations and international refineries operators that bring in vessels to the Niger Delta territory to buy our oil that every successive government has refused to use and reapply the proceeds towards any development in the region since 1958.
"If they refuse to heed our advice, it would result to the sinking of two of their mother vessels as examples to others. They should not undertake any repair of the pipeline, oil and gas facilities that is damaged or attacked by our forces during this period of "Operation Red Economy" until and after the dialogue."
The militants, however, gave conditions for the peace talks.
In a statement published on its website and signed by the spokesperson, Mudoch Agbinibo, the group said the Federal Government must suspend the purchase of crude oil from the Niger Delta region.
They said what was needed was a conducive atmosphere for dialogue, and asked President Buhari not to turn the proposed peace talks to a political jamboree.
The militants also asked the Federal Government to involve member states of the multinational oil corporations to commit independent mediators to the proposed dialogue.
It said the peace talk would set up a framework for achieving the short, medium and long-term demands of the Niger Delta to bring about a lasting peace, and that hostilities would be renewed if the Government breached any of the stated conditions.
The statement partly read, "If need be, we may review our earlier stance of not taking lives. We are going to redirect and reactivate all our activities if the government, oil companies and their services firms don't heed to these modest warnings of not carrying out any repair works and suspend the buying of crude oil from our region as we await the right atmosphere that would engender genuine dialogue.
"The NDA high command is restating our commitment to attack the interest of oil corporations and international refineries operators that bring in vessels to the Niger Delta territory to buy our oil that every successive government has refused to use and reapply the proceeds towards any development in the region since 1958.
"If they refuse to heed our advice, it would result to the sinking of two of their mother vessels as examples to others. They should not undertake any repair of the pipeline, oil and gas facilities that is damaged or attacked by our forces during this period of "Operation Red Economy" until and after the dialogue."
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