General Boroh makes case for repentant militants in Niger Delta

The special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Niger Delta Affairs and coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Brigadier-General Paul Boroh (rtd) has stepped up his resolve to finding a lasting solution to the restiveness in the Niger Delta region.

A statement made available to NAIJ.com by Wabiye Idoniboyeobu, the programme's media consultant, said the former Army officer is focusing on the training, engagement and reintegration of ‎the 30,000 ex-agitators describing this as one major strategy the amnesty office is using to secure peace and stability in the region.

Recently, Boroh and a small delegation paid a courtesy call on the director-general of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Dr Dakuku Peterside, in Lagos to further talk about the Niger Delta and how the agency could partner with the programme.
‎General Boroh reportedly called for collaborative efforts in the resettlement and reintegration of the ex-agitators in the Niger Delta region, noting that it would foster the growth and development of the economy.

He also stressed that the Amnesty Office had trained ‎1,325 ex-agitators in various Maritime courses, and pleaded that NIMASA as a brother agency, to take up the responsibility of engaging these skilled youths as a means of resolving the unrest in the region.

“Both our agencies have a similar responsibility of ensuring stability in the Niger Delta, especially in the water ways, where most of these boys reside.
"We have invested a lot in training these boys, and ask that NIMASA come to our aid by engaging the few, skilled in Maritime related fields," he said.

Reacting, Peterside commended Boroh for his apolitical approach to handling the activities of the Amnesty Office.
He acknowledged the need for synergy among the two agencies and said that the agency would set up a special desk to look at the young men and women in the amnesty programme.

According to Peterside, the special desk would be set up with a view to creating opportunities for them to apply the skills they acquired in the maritime industry.

Source:NAIJ.COM