The leadership of the pan-Ijaw youth group, Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) Worldwide, has raised fears over second wave of militancy in the Niger Delta region if the federal government fails to completely implement the full package of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).
The council said the country would not survive a fresh return to militancy by aggrieved youths in the region and wondered why the government chose to play politics with an important scheme like PAP.
Recall that the amnesty project was initiated in 2010 to take youths out of the creeks and integrate them into the society through a well-organised programme of empowerment and development of the region.
But, the IYC President, Deacon Timothy Peter Igbifa, in a statement said PAP’s cardinal objective of integration, empowerment and regional development had remained a mirage.
The IYC boss regretted that the amnesty scheme had not gone beyond its disarmament phase adding that the federal government had failed to advance the programme to the next phase because of the continuous free-flow of crude oil production.
He said the government was toying with fire by mismanaging the amnesty programme as it could lead to massive return of the youths to the creeks.