By Amos Odhe
The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dr Dennis Otuaro, has applauded the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua for proclaiming amnesty for former agitators of the Niger Delta region and for also establishing the progamme to cater for their rehabilitation.
He spoke at the 2nd President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Leadership Conference and Awards with theme “Electoral Management Institution: Midwife of True Democracy, Development, and Prosperity,” which was organised by the Global Initiative for Leadership Success in Abuja at the wekend.
Otuaro, who received a corporate service award in recognition of his efficient administration of the PAP at the event, noted that Yar’Adua also created the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs before inaugurating the PAP as part of his response to the civic demands of the region.
Describing him as ‘a selfless leader and a patriot,’ Otuaru said Yar’Adua, who governed the country from May 29, 2007, to May 5, 2010, was deeply concerned about the need for guaranteed sustainable peace, stability, and development in the region.
Represented by his Special Assistant on Data and ICT, Monabe Mitee, the PAP Administrator, while paying tribute to the former Katsina State governor’s memories, extolled his exceptional leadership as well as his high ethical and moral values in public service.
“President Yar’Adua was a listening leader, and this was evident in his response to the civic demands of the Niger Delta people.
“He not only proclaimed amnesty for the region’s freedom fighters at the time, but he also established the Presidential Amnesty Programme which I am heading today by the benevolence of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, and as a precursor to the programme he also created the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs,” Otuaro said.
He further said that Yar’Adua operated an efficient administration in Katsina State as a governor and left indelible development footprints with profound impacts on education and infrastructure across the state.
He said Yar’Adua had a deep understanding of the burden of leadership and brought it to bear in the governance of the country when he was elected president in 2007, ‘showing an unwavering commitment, zeal, and dedication to fix and transform Nigeria’ through his seven-point agenda.
Otuaro noted that the insight and reasons that informed the organiser’s initiative were noble, as they had provided a platform to celebrate and immortalize Yar’Adua’s legacies.
The PAP Administrator added, “He also ran a government of national unity to demonstrate his faith in a nation united by common aspirations for the attainment of national development, peace, security, progress, and shared prosperity and greatness.
“I believe that President Yar’Adua would have contributed much more of his quota to the country’s development process if his tenure had not been cut short by his protracted illness and eventual demise in office. He would be remembered for his selfless service. He was, indeed, a patriot!,” Otuaro added.
