‘Buhari shouldn’t allow manipulators to politicise Amnesty programme’ – Ijaw Monitoring Group

The Coordinator of Ijaw Monitoring Group, Mr Joseph Evah, has urged the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), to ignore calls by some mischief makers to politicise the Presidential Amnesty Office.

Evah said in a statement on Thursday that such a move would undermine the character of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.

The foremost Ijaw activist said Buhari should realise that society keen on progress would give priority to available first-class brains with superlative record of performance and competence to occupy sensitive offices in the interest of society.

According to him, the President “retained the services of the Governor of Central Bank, Mr Godwin Emefiele, and backed Dr Akinwunmi Adesina for the leadership of the Africa Development Bank, and recently Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for the position of the Director-General of the World Trade Organisation even though they served under former President Goodluck Jonathan, in appreciation of the pertinence of engaging first-class brains for national development.”

Evah, a former National Publicity Secretary of the Ijaw National Congress, also called on the Interim Administrator of the PAP, Col. Milland Dikio (retd.), to make it a policy to go for first-class brains with proven capacity to do the job in the interest of the Niger Delta and Nigeria.

He contended that those who call for the engagement of only All Progressives Congress members do not mean well for the region and the country.

He said, “The Amnesty Office is not a party office; it is a Federal Government office where any competent Niger Delta person whose services are needed should work.

“I urge him (Buhari) to make the Ijaw nation proud by doing the right things in accordance with expectations no matter what happens. We are watching.”

Evah noted that the President was right to have appointed Dikio, “a disciplined retired military officer, reputed for his integrity and high level of competence and attention for details.”

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