The Niger Delta Youth Coalition for Peace and Progress (NDYCPP) has expressed dismay at the “frequent frivolous attacks“ on the Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Maj.-Gen. Barry Ndiomu (Rtd.)
Jude Tiedor-Olayinka, President of NDYCPP, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday, July 31, 2023 in Yenagoa that the attacks lacked merit and were baseless. The youth leader, who described the attacks on Ndiomu as a ‘wild goose chase’, noted that the act by people from the Niger Delta region was condemnable given Ndiomu’s unblemished record and integrity.
He said that NDYCPP, a group of youth leaders who ascribed to non-violence, abhorred self-destructive activities of some of their brothers who were always in the habit of writing frivolous petitions.
“They take pleasure in organising needless protest marches against their own brothers in sensitive pubic offices in the country.
“We call on all well-meaning leaders of repute from the region to roundly caution against the senseless wild-goose-chase of our misguided and narrow minded brothers.
“They are unknowingly cutting off their noses to spite their own faces.
“The Niger Delta has been shortchanged and exploited by successive governments over the years, so when any of us is in position of public trust, we should support for him/her to succeed.
“Instead of taking this patriotic route, often times our people are fond of wanting to pull down their kith and kin in these important public offices for whatever reason propelling them,” Tiedor-Olayinka said.
He observed that Ndiomu, who is barely a year old in office, had been seen to be doing very well by introducing far-reaching reforms that had brought about transparency and accountability to the office.
“The disgruntled pockets of complaints we are hearing are coming from mostly those who were involved in the underhand dealings at the office before now.
“They shortchange amnesty beneficiaries of their monthly stipends of ₦65,000 by unlawfully deducting money from their accounts ranging from ₦20,000 to ₦30,000.
“Maj.-Gen. Ndiomu, a thorough and cerebral military officer with sound legal training, is repositioning the Amnesty Office for effective service delivery,” he said.
Tiedor-Olayinka listed the co-operative cluster scheme supervised by an eminent jurist of the Supreme Court, Justice F.F. Tabai (Rtd.), as a major boost to beneficiaries of PAP.
He urged Ndiomu to give listening ear to genuine complaints by stakeholders for the smooth running of the organisation as all hands must be on deck to build a peaceful Niger Delta.