“Stop The Politics Of Exclusion"___Comrade Abraye Fires Ex-Agitators Condemning Otuaro's Impacted Communities Policy, Says The Presidential Amnesty Programme Is For All Niger Deltans And Not Just The 30,000 Ex-Agitators -

By Ebiowei Gabriel

“The Amnesty Programme Must Not Become A Platform For Entitlement, Exclusion And Selfishness”

The Niger Delta Advocates For Peace, Development And Economic Justice (NDAPDEJ) has rejected, in the strongest possible terms, the divisive narrative seeking to classify some beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme as “original delegates” while branding others who are now gaining access to opportunities under the programme as “fake beneficiaries.”

According to the National Coordinator of NDAPDEJ, Comrade Freeborn Abraye, such language is not only unnecessarily divisive but also represents a dangerous attempt to turn a national intervention programme into the private preserve of a particular group.

“There is no superior Niger Deltan and there is no inferior Niger Deltan. There should be no politics of ‘original’ and ‘fake’ beneficiaries. We are all Niger Deltans, and every Niger Deltan deserves equal opportunity to participate in programmes designed to promote peace, development, education, skills acquisition and economic empowerment in the region,” Abraye declared.

He stressed that the fact that a person was among the approximately 30,000 beneficiaries initially captured when the Presidential Amnesty Programme commenced in 2009 does not, in itself, confer permanent ownership of the programme or make that person more Niger Deltan than others.

Equally, he argued, Niger Deltans accessing educational opportunities, vocational training, empowerment initiatives and other interventions under Dr. Dennis Brutu Otuaro-led administration should not be stigmatized simply because they were not part of those captured at the early stage of the programme.

THE AMNESTY PROGRAMME IS NOT A PRIVATE INHERITANCE

NDAPDEJ maintains that the Presidential Amnesty Programme should never be reduced to an entitlement system where one group believes it has acquired perpetual ownership over opportunities created with public resources.

The programme was established as a peace-building and development intervention in the Niger Delta. Its long-term relevance, therefore, must be measured by its ability to contribute to human capital development, economic empowerment, peace and stability across the region.

“Let us stop this dangerous entitlement mentality. Being among the initial beneficiaries does not give anybody the right to shut the door of the programme against the next generation of Niger Deltans,” Abraye said.

He added:

“The question we should be asking is not who came first. The question should rather be: How can the programme create more opportunities, train more young Niger Deltans, empower more families and contribute more effectively to sustainable development in the Niger Delta?”

NDAPDEJ COMMENDS OTUARO’S IMPACTED COMMUNITIES APPROACH

NDAPDEJ specifically commended Dr. Dennis Brutu Otuaro for pursuing what the organization describes as an “Impacted Communities Policy” (ICP) aimed at widening the reach of intervention opportunities to Niger Delta communities under the Presidential Amnesty Programme, PAP.

Abraye argued that bringing more Niger Deltans into the education, vocational training and empowerment programmes should be viewed as an expansion of opportunity rather than a threat to existing beneficiaries.

“If a young Niger Deltan who previously had no access to opportunity in the programme is given education, vocational training or economic empowerment, why should another Niger Deltan be angry? Why should we call that person fake?” he asked.

“The success of the Amnesty Programme should be measured by how many lives it can positively transform, not by how many people we can keep outside its doors.”

According to NDAPDEJ, policies that broaden participation in the programme can help ensure that the benefits of peace are translated into tangible opportunities for communities and younger generations in the Niger Delta.

ENOUGH OF THE POLITICS OF EXCLUSION

Comrade Abraye further warned against what he described as a “politics of exclusion, selfish entitlement and artificial superiority” within Niger Delta discourse.
He said Niger Deltans must resist attempts to create unnecessary divisions between communities and beneficiaries.

“Nobody has a monopoly over Niger Delta identity. Nobody has the constitutional or moral authority to declare another Niger Deltan fake simply because that person is now benefiting from an intervention programme that was birthed through the collective efforts of all”. He stated.

He challenged those criticizing the expansion of opportunities under Otuaro’s administration to explain why they would oppose educational reforms, vocational training and empowerment opportunities reaching additional Niger Delta youths.

“If the policy is transparent, lawful and properly administered, then expanding opportunity should be celebrated. We cannot demand development for ourselves while simultaneously trying to deny development opportunities to our brothers and sisters,” Abraye declared.

SUPPORT REFORMS THAT EXPAND OPPORTUNITY

NDAPDEJ therefore called on Niger Delta stakeholders, youth organizations, community leaders and beneficiaries to support initiatives capable of expanding the reach and developmental impact of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.

“We must move away from the politics of scarcity and embrace the politics of expansion. The answer to more Niger Deltans needing opportunities is not exclusion; it is creating more opportunities,” Abraye said.

He concluded:

“Dr. Dennis Brutu Otuaro should be encouraged to continue policies that expand education, skills acquisition and economic empowerment across the Niger Delta. The Amnesty Programme belongs to all Niger Deltans not to a private club of individuals. No beneficiary is more Niger Deltan than the other.”

Signed:

Comrade Freeborn Abraye
National Coordinator
Niger Delta Advocates For Peace, Development And Economic Justice (NDAPDEJ).