NGE to FG: Dialogue with Niger Delta Avengers Over Threats to Attack Oil Facilities

Ugo Aliogo

The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has urged the federal government to dialogue with the Niger Delta Avengers over recent threats to attack oil facilities in the Niger Delta region.

A communiqué jointly signed by the President and the SecretaryGeneral of NGE, Funke Egbemode, and Victoria Ibanga, the Guild called on the federal government not to resort to the use of force in resolving the issue, stressing that as stakeholders in the task of nation-building, it is worried by the recent show of military force in the quest to neutralise the threat of the militants.

It also urged the government to dialogue with all stakeholders, including the aggrieved militants to resolve the problems in the region, insisting that the only path to peace is dialogue.

It further stated that the renewed hostilities in the region would reduce the nation’s daily oil output, which would, in turn, deny the country the benefits of the current marginal increase in the price of crude, stating that anything that is capable of returning the nation to economic recession should be avoided.

The statement reads in parts: “We seize this opportunity to appeal to traditional rulers in the region to use their offices and goodwill to call the Avengers and any other militant groups in the region to order.

“As royal fathers and leaders of thought, we urge them to play a leading role in the resolution of any breakdown in communication between the Federal Government, oil majors and the militants. We cannot afford another bout of force majeure by oil majors on account of insecurity in the region.”

The Guild also noted the increasing crime rate in the country, especially kidnappings and communal clashes and calls on security agencies to rise to the occasion, urging the federal government to deploy the relevant security agencies to check the pervasiveness of these crimes.