… Threaten to stop ‘Oil Money’ over Gold Revenue
By Amos Odhe, Yenagoa
Former militant leaders in the Niger Delta region have described as “provocative,”recent statements made by Sheikh Ahmad Abubakar Gumi, against the the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister, Chief Barr Nyesom Wike.
They also warned Sheik Gumi “and his cohorts against actions that will provoke the people of the Niger Delta,” as they called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Hon. Dele Alake, “to take aggressive action of resource control with the revenues from gold and other mining activities from the North, (which should) be forcefully demanded to be domiciled in the national treasury.
The ex-militant leaders, under the auspices of the Movement for the Sustainable Development of the Niger Delta (MSDND), in a statement issued via electronic mail and signed by its national coordinator, Chief Ayibatekena Olodin, expressed the suspicion that Sheik Gumi, “like in the shameful days of Boko Haram killings, is allegedly representing groups of corrupt individuals who plunged FCT into an abysmal state.”
MSDND, in the statement, described Gumi utterance as disheartening, noting that some individuals still engage in hate speech and divisive rhetoric, seeking to use religion to sow seeds of discord among Nigerians.
They also described the statement as “a provocative reminder of the inequality, mass genocide and monumental fraud pertuated by Northerners under the failed administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.”
According to MSDND, “while the people of the Niger Delta region considered Gumi as a dissident in the Northern region, it must be pointed out that the FCT is not a Northern states-owned capital but a detribalised territory owned by all Nigerians.
“We have resolved to point out to Gumi and his likes that the massive fraud in the FCT including a garnishment order to the tune of $800 million against the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) was pertuated under a Nothern minister and a Northern President.
“Minister Wike is only taking very hard decisions to restore the economy of the FCT.
“It is a sad reminder that Gumi could not speak out when his alleged sponsors were kidnapping, maiming and killings Northerners under the guise of islamist fundermentalists. Where was he when former President Buhari used Nigeria’s infrastructures and souls of Nigerians to borrow Money? Suddenly, he has turned to an activist against FCT administration.
“We challenge Sheik Gumi and his cohorts to mention a state governor that has performed in their Northern states such as Nyesom Wike since advent of democratic rule. Wike is the pride of the Niger Delta region,” they said.
The ex-militant leaders however said that despite “the provocative stance of Gumi and his cohorts, the people of the region stand firm in support of our son, brother and leader, Nyesom Wike and call on the security agencies to immediately commence investigation of Gumi over his alleged ties to terrorists and their activities across the country.
“The MSDND strongly called on the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Hon. Dele Alake to ensure that the revenues from the mining of precious minerals such as gold are domiciled in the nation’s treasury, warning that failure of the Northern states to allow collective revenue into the nation’s purse will force the youths from the Niger Delta to truncate crude oil exploration and deny Northern states from the benefits.”
They argued that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dele Alake, should embark on an urgent review of mining policies and ensure revenue from mining activities are domicile in nation’s purse, adding “we stand ready to champion this cause to ensure that all revenue from our nation’s resources be brought into the national treasury.
“We are ready to cut off the Northern states from crude oil exploration revenue if the monies from mining activities are not domicle with the Federal Government.”
