In a country where the only voice the government respects is violence, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta is warming up for more.
The rebel group, which said they are fighting for a better share of the oil revenue in their impoverished land, called an indefinite ceasefire October 2009.
It was in response to President Yar’Adua amnesty offer and a promise to develop the place, after five decades of oil exploration and squalor of the land.
The decision to call off the truce, MEND said yesterday, was after a careful consideration and extensive consultation.
“This ceasefire was ordered in the hope that the government of Nigeria would consider true dialogue founded on a sincere desire to bring justice to the people of the Niger Delta, and true peace to Nigeria,” MEND said.
As APF reported of MEND this morning, “It is sufficiently clear at this point in time that the government of Nigeria has no intentions of considering the demands made by this group for the control of the resources and land of the Niger Delta to be reverted to the rightful owners, the people of the Niger Delta”.
Accusing the federal government of ‘acting like a victor over a conquered people’, MEND warned that all companies related to the oil industry in the Niger Delta should prepare for an all-out onslaught against their installations and personnel.
Nothing, they claimed, will be spared.
With their most recent violence activities, which cut Nigerian oil production by more than half, the latest decision of MEND seems to be adding fuel to the already burning fire in Nigeria.
Since November 23 2009, Nigerian president has been away from the country on the account of his ill health.
The consequence of Yar’Adua’s long absence from Abuja has turned everything to news in the Nigerian media.
Tension is extremely high as to what might happen next to the country, or at least the democracy, which many Nigerians died to restore in May 29 1999.
To save the system from completely grinding, many eminent Nigerians are clamouring for President Yar’Adua to step down or allow his deputy, GoodLuck Jonathan to function in his absence.
As if the constitutional crisis is not enough, the northern part of the country is continuously alive with some politically motivated religious onslaughts.
Now that MEND are ready to point their guns at the ‘Nigerian oil industry’, one thing some expert believe has been promoting corruption and anything that has earned Nigeria a bad name, poor Nigerians can only pray that they see the end of this big drama.
Ewanfoh Obehi Peter
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