...Increase Our Monthly Stipend ; As The People Who Paid the Ultimate Price Must Not Be Left Behind

Tare Deseimoh, speaking as a concerned voice for Niger Delta ex-agitators and on behalf of many aggrieved beneficiaries in the region, has called for the immediate sack of Dr. Dennis Otuaro as Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, PAP, saying the programme has dangerously drifted away from the people and purpose for which it was created.

According to Deseimoh, it is a deep pity and a sad reflection of our current reality that the Presidential Amnesty Programme has fallen into the hands of questionable characters.

He said people like Aaron Opudu, popularly known as “General Aroni,” are today lecturing Niger Deltans on patience, yet many people in the region remember allegations surrounding his past as a former armed bank robber. 

Deseimoh stressed that genuine freedom fighters in those early days put their lives on the line for the authentic cause of the Niger Delta, while opportunists who merely took advantage of the Amnesty offer have now emerged as key advisers to the PAP Administrator, Dr. Dennis Otuaro.

“How can anyone in their right mind advise Dr. Dennis Otuaro against increasing the monthly stipends of ex-agitators?” Deseimoh asked. “This bad advice is coming at a time when the President has increased the yearly budget of the programme by almost 100 percent.”

He described it as even more shocking that while some people are actively lobbying for further increases to the overall PAP budget, they allegedly refuse to pass those financial benefits down to the beneficiaries.

“You people, including Dr. Dennis Otuaro, are simply playing games with the people's resources,” he said.

Deseimoh made it clear that nobody in the Niger Delta is against educating young people or providing them with quality training. He said human capital development is welcome and necessary, but it must not be used as an excuse to abandon the very people who paid the ultimate price for the peace and stability that made the Amnesty Programme possible.

“When you turn your back on the original freedom fighters, you are essentially telling the Federal Government to abandon the very region that lays the golden eggs for the nation's economy,” he said.

The Niger Delta voice accused Otuaro of showing deep wickedness toward ex-agitators and said that if the PAP Administrator genuinely possessed empathy for the people, nobody would need to push or beg him to do what is right.

“It is heartbreaking that Otuaro, who claims to come directly from the creeks and understand the struggles of the riverine communities, is the very person ensuring that ex-agitators suffer even more under his administration,” Deseimoh said. “It has now become crystal clear to us that he is acting as an enemy to the ex-agitators.”

Deseimoh called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to open his eyes and carefully examine what is happening within the Presidential Amnesty Programme. He argued that the President should recognize that, in his view, Dennis Otuaro does not mean well for the administration or its political future.

He said Otuaro should understand that refusing to increase monthly stipends while allegedly failing to provide adequate vocational training and sustainable empowerment programmes could generate deep anger among beneficiaries and their families.

“Over 30,000 ex-agitators and their families will be bitterly angry at President Tinubu, which could lead them to withhold their support and votes in upcoming elections,” he warned.

Because of what he described as persistent failures within the programme, Deseimoh strongly called on President Tinubu to immediately sack Dr. Dennis Otuaro as Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.

“The President must replace him with a patriotic leader who genuinely understands the struggle and truly means well for the ex-agitators of the Niger Delta,” he said.

Deseimoh further rejected the argument that education alone justifies reducing or failing to improve the welfare support of ex-agitators. He described such a position as a total distortion of the programme’s core mandate.

While acknowledging that human capital development is essential, he argued that it was never designed to replace the basic livelihood support promised to those who laid down their arms for peace in the region.

“Denying these beneficiaries their fair share while keeping the expanded budget at the top is both unjust and unacceptable,” he said.

On General Aroni’s reported defense of Otuaro’s policies, Deseimoh said it only demonstrates what he described as the disconnect between the current leadership of the programme and the daily realities confronting ex-agitators.

“Telling beneficiaries that stipends do not matter in today's harsh economic climate, while simultaneously refusing to adjust those stipends to match inflation, is a direct insult to the intelligence of the Niger Delta people,” he said.

He stressed that the relative peace currently enjoyed across the Niger Delta waterways was not achieved by accident, but through sacrifice, dialogue and mutual trust between the government and the agitators.

According to him, any policy that pushes former agitators and their families into deeper financial hardship could threaten the delicate peace that has been built over the years.

“An administrator who truly cares about sustainable peace would prioritize both immediate welfare and long-term empowerment,” Deseimoh said.

He maintained that the Presidential Amnesty Programme requires urgent redemption before it completely strays from its original purpose.

“President Tinubu must act decisively now by sacking Dennis Otuaro out of the office and appointing a compassionate, visionary leader who will honor agreements, respect the rights of ex-agitators and bring true development to the Niger Delta,” Tare Deseimoh concluded.