The military on Monday trooped to Boro Town, Kaiama, in
Kolokuma-Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa State over threats by
militants to declare the Niger Delta Republic.
The militant group, Adaka Boro Avengers, had earlier said it would
declare the republic and open its headquarters in Kaiama, the country
home of late Ijaw freedom fighter, Major Isaac Adaka Boro.
The intimidating presence of the military, it was learnt, forced the
militant group to cancel the planned declaration slated for August 1.
The late Boro, before the civil war in 1966, formed the Ijaw
Volunteer Force, an armed militant group with members consisting mainly
of his fellow Ijaw ethnic group.
They declared the Niger Delta Republic on February 23, 1966 and
gallantly battled the federal forces for 12 days before they were
finally routed by the superior firepower of the Federal Government.
Boro and his compatriots were jailed for treason but he was later
released and made to fight for the Federal Government against Biafra
during the civil war where he died in mysterious circumstances defending
Nigeria’s unity.
Kaiama is also famous for the 1988 “Ijaw Youth Council Declaration”
where youths drawn from over five hundred communities and 40 clans met
to deliberate on the best way to ensure the continuous survival of the
indigenous peoples of the Ijaw ethnic nationality of the Niger Delta
within the Nigerian state.
Residents of Kaima confirmed the movement of troops to the community
and said it started on Saturday, July 30 with a stop-and-search
operation on vehicles moving along a section of the East-West Road.
The people of the community reportedly went about their normal
business unmolested, though they were said to be panic-stricken by the
presence of fierce-looking soldiers and other security forces.
A resident of Kaiama, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said there
was no major incident apart from the ubiquitous presence of security
operatives.
The resident, who is from the family of the late Boro, said the
military presence was to forestall any breakdown of law and order and
also to make sure that nobody took advantage of the situation.
Spokesman for Operation Delta Safe, Lt. Col. Olaolu Daudu, could not
be reached for reaction as his mobile phone indicated it was switched
off.
However, the Minister of Defence, Gen. Mansur Dan-Ali, had on
Friday, said the military was ready to do anything to make sure Nigeria
remains one.
Ijaw leaders had before the planned declaration on Monday by the ABA,
sent a strong message to the militants not to declare an Independent
Niger Delta Republic, saying that the militants were on their own.
The warning was part of a communiqué after a consultative meeting of
Ijaw leaders hosted by its national leader, Chief Edwin Clark, noted
that what the people of the Niger Delta wanted was true federalism.
Meanwhile, the ABA in statement said it had cancelled its declaration
of a Niger Delta Republic, saying the decision was not based on selfish
interest.
The group had applauded former President Goodluck Jonathan for his move to stop the declaration slated for Monday, August 1.
The group in a statement through ‘General’ Edmos Ayayeibo, who is its
spokesperson, had ordered the Yoruba and Hausa out of the Niger Delta
region.
It also called on Niger Delta people to return for the declaration.
The statement reads, “We received calls from prominent leaders like
Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, Mrs. Ankio Briggs, Chief E. K. Clark and
especially King Alfred Diete Spiff calling on the freedom fighters to
abort their mission to declare Niger Delta Republic.
“We adhere to the voice of our people, because our struggle is for
the Niger Delta people and not for selfish reason. But this is not the
end. More is yet to come.
“Our mission to cripple the economy of the Nigerian nation will not
stop until the Nigerian government is ready to sit on a roundtable to
dialogue and to restructure the Nigeria.”
Source:Thepunchng
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