How The Niger Delta People Can Get Their Freedom.

 
"If I die, the freedom fighters of the Niger Delta will continue the fight from where I stopped, until the last of them drops dead. I have no regrets for choosing this path which I have laid for myself."

 Asari Mujahid Dokubo.

Are the Niger Delta Militants justified in Taking up arms against the Federal Government?

 Undoubtedly, they are justified in taking up arms at last against the evil Federal Government because they have exhausted all peaceful channels without any result. For 46 'good?' years, the people have taken to peaceful demonstrations; begging the government, appealing to foreign oil companies to stop polluting their land. They realised that they have reached a stone-wall.

 They have arrived at the sad but correct conclusion that Nigeria is being ruled since independence by heartless leaders; all from the north or/and with military background.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that the only language that these thugs formerly  in military uniforms, and now in  agbada understand is foce.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that if the lives and properties of these wicked people are not threatened in anyway, they will not lift a finger to make any redress.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that if they don't blow up oil installations and rigs, the evil Nigerian government will not take them seriously.

They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that if they don't start kidnapping senior government officials, their children and relatives, the Federal Government will not understand that they really mean business.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that the Federal Government does not understand the language of diplomacy.

  They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that the Nigerian Government does not understand language of persuasion.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that the Federal Government does not respect gentlemen and intellectuals. They vividly rememeber how Abacha - a military dictator from the north hanged Ken Saro Wiwa and other Ogoni activitists for their peaceful demonstration.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that they are dealing with arrogant, insensitive but empty-headed people.

  They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that the best way to deal with these black colonialists is to return fire for fire.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that they are dealing with political - military  civilians - who say one thing but do exactly the opposite.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that begging, negotiating, appealing or persuading will not yield any result.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that they have to determine their own destiny themselves, and not allow the barbaric descendants of Othman Dan Fodio do it for them.

 They have come to the sad but correct conclusion that all along, Nigeria is being ruled by terrorists in military uniforms, and the best way to deal with them is to return terror for terror.

 Ladies and gentlemen, honourable jurors, I will give you two examples to buttress my arguement.

 Israel forcefully took over Palestine's territory. Israelis believed that they were invinsible. They believed that they had the military might to suppress, oppress and humiliate the Palestinians. Actually, that was what they did to the Palestines for quiet a long time. Israel took to different military, pscychological, economical, religious and political measures to force the Palestinians into submission.

 Indeed, initially, the Palestinians were vulnerable. They did not have the means to buy tanks, helicopters, planes e.t.c. Even, if they had the means, they were no match for the formidabble Israeli military machine - sponsored by the U.S. Israel receives billions of dollars from American government as aids every year. This amount constitutes about 90%  of America's aid to foreign countries.

  All peaceful efforts to negotiate or appeal to Israel to return back to the Palestines the occupied territory were ignored by Israel. Palestine's petition against Israel in the U.N. were blocked by its political and economic godfather and sponsor. The Palestines realised that they had reached a stone-wall. Moreover, they realised that if they were really serious and determined to get back their land, they had to change their approach and tactics to the issue. Unfortunately for Israel, the Palestinians were not only determined to get back their land, but they were ready to pay any price for it.

  The Palestines came to the sad but correct conclusion that in order to survive, and get back their land, they had to take to terror too, like their terrorizers. They decided to  answer terror for terror. But, it was a different form of terror. Palestine Liberation Organization (P.L.O.) was formed.

 They devised a  simple, but very effective strategy. They started bombing Israelis, both soldiers and civilians with their suicide bombers. They were bombing Israeis in the buses, cafes, restaurants, at mass gatherings, everywhere. There was no more hiding place for the Israelis except in their houses. Israelis became frightened. They were frightened to go out. They now lived in fear because nobody was 100% sure of getting home alive. For the first time ever, the Israelis realised that they were not only vulnerable before the Palestinians - who had no tanks, rockets, atomic bombs e.t.c. but to their biggest surprise, they realised that they did not have an effective answer to this new method of waging war. What else can you do to somebody who is ready to bomb himself, but together with you?! There was panic everywhere, although, Israeli tried to put on a bold face.

 Instead of addressing the grievances of the Palestinians, the Israeli government decided to call them terrorists. Yaser Arafat, the head of the Palestine Liberation Organization was labelled terrorist no. 1 (that was before the advent of Osama Bin Laden) They said that they will not be blackmailed by terrorists. They said they will not be intimidated by terrorists. They said that they will not negotiate with terrorists. They said that their only answer for terrorists was to destroy them. Israel carried out their threats. It intensified its campaign of terror against the Palestinians, with the hope that they will surrender. In retaliation, Israel started  assasinating senior HAMAS and PLO leaders. Israel embarked on bombing of Palestinians' buildings, houses and mosques. Israel embarked on mass raids, arrests and assasinations of Palestinians. Thousands were accused of terrorizm, and thrown into jails without giving them  fair trials. Israel tried to make life unbearable for the Palestinians. All international appeals to Isreal to find a peaceful solution to the territorial problem were ignored.

  However, what the Israelis did not factor into their calculation was "the resolve and determination" of the Palestinians to get back their land  at any cost. The Palestinians stood their ground. They understood that if they understood that they had reached a point of no return in their campaign. They understood that if they really wanted their land back, they had to pay the dearest price for it. They understood that some of them had to lay down their lives for this noble course. Luckiy for Palestinia, it had an army of volunteers, who were not only ready to tie the bombs aroud their waists, but considered it a honour to lay down their lives for such a noble course. They understood that freedom is not given on platter of gold anywhere in the world. They refused to be intimidated by the Israelis! They were not going to back down! Instead, they intensified their suicide bombings!

  In a nutshell, after Israel had exhausted all its power, and realised that there was no softening in the Palestinians' resolve and determination, it came to the sad  but correct conclusion that there was no other option left than to negotiate with the Palestinians. They came to the sad but correct conclusion that Palestinians will never give them a rest of mind if they held on to their land. Israelis came to the sad but correct conclusion that Palestinians will never allow them to live in peace and harmony on the occupied territory. Israelis came to the sad but correct conclusion that the only way to stop Palestinians' suicide bombers was to give their land back to them! Eventually, Israel had withdrawn from a substantial part of the occupied territory. Presently intensive negotiations are going as regards to Israelis withdrawal from the remaining Palestinians'  territory.

 Ladies and gentlemen, honourable jurors, the second example to buttress my arguement is the apartheid regime in South Africa. The white supremacists forcefully took over the land of black South Africans - the bonafide owners. They equaly wrongfully believed that they had the  military might to suppress any mass protests or arms resistancefrom the black South Africans. Although, black South Africans madeup about 75% of the population, only about 10% of their land was accessible to them. They lived in crowded and dilapidated buildings, while the  white supemacists that consisted of just 10% of the population had to themselves about 85% of the land. They all lived like kings, queens, lords, princes  and princesses while black South Africans - the bonafide owners of the land wallowed in abject poverty. The white supremacists  lived the kind of lives that even their rich cousins  in the west envied them, because they could only dream of such a good life. What mattered then was neither  your skills, professionalism  nor education. The key to good life or "life of heaven on earth" was "the colour of your skin."  All the mineral resources of the country - diamonds, gold e.t.c.  served the white supremacists.

  When all appeals by the black South Africans to return back their land, and seceed control to them were ignored, black South Africans were forced to form African National Congress (A.N.C.), a military and political organization that eventually took up arms against the intruders on its land. The white supremacists tried to brake the will and resolve of the black South Africans. As is well known, uncountable number of black South Africans, including leaders of A.N.C.  were murdered.  Thousands of the citizens, including A.N.C. activitists were locked up in prisons. The white supremacist tried to enter a secret pact with Mandella to secure his release. However, Mandella turned down all offers that will give him hid freedom while the apartheid system would remain. He heroically declared that he preferred to die in prison than be released to live under an apartheid regime. He eventually   spent 27 years in prison for his belief and struggle!

 In the long run, after the white supremacists had exhausted all means to brake the will and resolve of the black South Africans, they came to the sad but correct conclusion that the black South Africans would never allow them to live in peace. They came to the sad but correct conclusion that the only way out of the political crisis was the dismantling of the apartheid system. Eventually, in order to save face, Mandela was brought in as part of the process. Today, as they say is now history.

 Ladies and gentlemen, honourable jurors,  the question I have for you goes thus. By completely refusing to negotiate with the Palestinians, was it not the Israel that forced Palestinians to take to suicide bombings? If the Palestinians had not taken to suicide bombings, would Israel ever negotiate with them, talkless of withdrawing from their land? Would the white supremacists had dismantled the apartheid   regime if the black South Africans had not taken up arms agaist them? Can you see the analogue between the Israel - Palestine territorial dispute, and the suppressed, oppressed, depressed Niger deltans  terrorised by the Federal Republic of Nigeria? The answers to these questions are obvious.

 The one billion dollar question. Will the Federal Government learn anything from the Israel - Palestine issue? Will the Federal Government borrow a leaf from Frederick De Klark - who dismantled the apartheid system, after seeing the hand writing on the wall. Can the evil Nigerian Government see the hand writing on the wall? There is the saying that history teaches.  Can this assertion be applied to the wicked Nigerian Government? Unfortunately, from all indications, it is very sad to admit that the answer to these questions is NO! From all indications, these criminals, parading themselves as our leaders for almost 46 years, who in actual fact, are either supposed to be in hell by now, or serving long term jail sentences have not got the message. They have not got the total resolve of the Niger delta to free themselves from their bondage. At the time of writing, a secret plot to murder Dokubo in detention was leaked to the press by his lawyer. Does this evil government headed by Obasanjo think that by murdering Dokubo, they have solved the Niger delta crisis. I can assure you that his  death will only be a catalyst in the struggle for freedom. Yoruba ni " Aja t'oba ma s'onu, ko ni gbo ife olode. We adjourn till further notice.

 TO BE CONTINUED ...

abm1900@mail.ru

Robot  # 1 | 22.04.2007 22:10

At the time of writing, a secret plot to murder Dokubo in detention was leaked to the press by hi...Read the full article.

Nonyellum  # 2 | 23.04.2007 02:36

Fire on, bro. OBJoke wants to add Dokubo to his list of murders, if that happens he can kiss peace goodbye. We'll hunt him down with his family. An eye for an eye, all's fair in war. I hope for his(OBJoke) sake, it's just rumors. Everything he owns, is by virtue of Niger Delta Oil. Again, for his sake, I hope this Dokubo thing is just rumors.

Abraxas  # 3 | 23.04.2007 04:19

Hi, Mr. Bode Eluyera! I believe you started off with the noble intention of providing workable solutions to the near-intractable challenges of how to motivate, energize, support, or/and sufficiently expand the awareness of the people of the Niger Delta region, in order to enable them realize their constitutional rights and non-negotiable fundamental freedoms. However, before you continue with subsequent installments on the subject mater currently under deliberation on this thread, let me, at least, acquaint you with the self-evident fact that it is a little bit over-simplistic to expect the Government of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as presently configured, under the regimental command and control of General Okikiolakan Olusegun Aremu Obasanjo (GCFR), to either learn anything from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, or to borrow a leaf from the collapse of the apartheid system in South Africa. You cannot grow hairs on eggs, or squeeze water from granite! There is simply is no hand writing on the wall for anyone to read! Why? Because we need to painstakingly compare apples with apples, and bananas with bananas: NOT apples with bananas! It is worse when we start comparing apples with agbalumo, or conference pears with udara, or bananas with cucumbers, or cocoyams with Irish potatoes! Have you ever heard of, or seen a Nigerian suicide bomber before? Does the so-called failed truck bomb episode at the INEC HQs in Abuja, (in which the "suicide bomber" REFUSED to die with the truck load of DIESEL, not petrol, set on "auto-pilot" by means of a concrete block strapped to the accelerator of a DRIVER-LESS warhead of a tanker!) give you a hint as to what I am taking about? Apples and bananas ....> Unfortunately, from all indications, for well over half a century now, Nigerian leaders have not been able to come to terms with, or even appreciate the immensity of the total resolve of the people of the Niger Delta to free themselves from the burden of internal colonization. That, precisely, is the problem, my pikin. Yoruba so pe " Aja t'oba ma s'onu, ko ni gbo ife olode". Muchas gracias. Don Juan-Carlos ABRAXAS (III)

Femi Longe  # 4 | 23.04.2007 08:21

Bros, for all your ranting about the work of MEND and the other Niger Delta "terrorists", as the Ibo man would say "Nna, na business". Not any attempt to split the Niger Delta from Nigeria. For all the kidnapping and killings, how many government officials have been attacked???NONE!!! Is it not only whiteys they keep attacking? Why? To make money from the ransom that is paid EVERYDAY by the oil companies. PURE AND SIMPLE!!! Was it the philipino sailors that forced Niger Delta to be a part of Nigeria??? :eek: :eek: :eek: s... And I must say it is a brilliant business model and me would like to be put in touch with key men so I can see how I can invest in MEND. Their stock must be going through the roof particularly if you subscribe during the initial share offering.:lol: :lol: :lol: Besides, for all the blowing up of oil installations, the global price of crude oil goes up, the oil companies get an awesome buffer from the difference in prices. Plus their connections in the Nigerian government still get their same share without any differences if not more. If you didn't realise, in 2006, Shell posted record profits.So did BP and dozen other oil companies. And Aunty Ngozi told us that for all the reduction of Nigeria's crude oil output by 25%, it did not affect the budget. Me even thinks Shell may be behind some of the kidnapping and bombing!!! IN CONCLUDING, for as long as the "punishment" has pleasurable consequences, there will always be people practicing sadism and masochism AND NIGER-DELTA WILL NOT BE GOING ANYWHERE!!!

overdryv  # 5 | 23.04.2007 09:52

The problem of the ND struggle is that most of the people have been too compromised by the corrupt nigerian system. As I write, there are several groups armed and financed by Aso Rock to counter organisations like MEND and Ijaw National Council. This is the main difference when one refers to the south African and Palestinian cases. Incidences of sabotage were minimal. In the both cases, the fighters were not thinking of their personal comfort but the present fighters in the ND are so much immersed in luxury that it is not uncommon to see them going around in SUVs. This is a far cry from genuine fighters like Adaka Boro who sacrificed his education to lead the struggle. The problem I have with Asari Dokubo is his romance with islam. How did an Ijaw man become a muslim? It is true he symbolizes the struggle in the ND but he can never make a good leader. The ruling cabal would never give up the ND on a platter of gold, after all, Nigeria continued forced existence is tied to this region. But things are gradually changing as we are fast approaching the stage of suicide bombings. People are now realizing that even if one doesnt die in the struggle, you may probably get wasted by the police. I have a friend who live behind the police station in Mile One area of Port Harcourt. He said every night police kill inmates in detention. One can clearly hear the last cry of detainees as they are being executed. The crimes being committed by the nigerian state against the good people of the ND have become too obvious. All the soldiers policing ND today are from other ethnic groups. This makes them an army of occupation. Defenceless people especially women and children are daily killed in the name of repraisal attack on 'militants'. In cases where a community is spared, you have wholesale rape of women by these gwodo gwodo soldiers. One thing that has manifested with the present turn of events is that the ND struggle has a reached a stage of no return. Obj has been able to hold the country because of his military background. It is hardly unthinkable that a president Yaradua would order operations like Odi or Zaki Biam. With Obj's departure, the last fear of military highhandedness would have gone with him and the stage would be fully set for self -determination groups like Massob, MEND and OPC to actualise their dreams.

Son of the Delta  # 6 | 23.04.2007 19:35

=Femi Longe;170641>Bros, for all your ranting about the work of MEND and the other Niger Delta "terrorists", as the Ibo man would say "Nna, na business". Not any attempt to split the Niger Delta from Nigeria. For all the kidnapping and killings, how many government officials have been attacked???NONE!!! Is it not only whiteys they keep attacking? Why? To make money from the ransom that is paid EVERYDAY by the oil companies. PURE AND SIMPLE!!! Was it the philipino sailors that forced Niger Delta to be a part of Nigeria??? :eek: :eek: :eek: s... And I must say it is a brilliant business model and me would like to be put in touch with key men so I can see how I can invest in MEND. Their stock must be going through the roof particularly if you subscribe during the initial share offering.:lol: :lol: :lol: Besides, for all the blowing up of oil installations, the global price of crude oil goes up, the oil companies get an awesome buffer from the difference in prices. Plus their connections in the Nigerian government still get their same share without any differences if not more. If you didn't realise, in 2006, Shell posted record profits.So did BP and dozen other oil companies. And Aunty Ngozi told us that for all the reduction of Nigeria's crude oil output by 25%, it did not affect the budget. Me even thinks Shell may be behind some of the kidnapping and bombing!!! IN CONCLUDING, for as long as the "punishment" has pleasurable consequences, there will always be people practicing sadism and masochism AND NIGER-DELTA WILL NOT BE GOING ANYWHERE!!! Am not in anyway surprised that you are turning the plight of the Niger Delta people to a joke. The sufferings of millions of people is not funny.Women and girls being raped by Nigerian soldiers is`nt funny in anyway.Killing poor old men in the Niger Delta for no reason is not funny.Gas flaring and it`s side effects on the Niger Delta population is not something that should amuse you. Anyone that never knew Nigeria is planning to do use and dump to the people of the region should know by now! There is one question I have been asking Femi Longe and other Nigerians but till today I have not gotten any response from them. If the people of the Niger Delta are being badly treated today that all of Nigeria`s money comes from their region is it tomorrow when they have got nothing to show for their oil wealth they will be properly treated? From all indication you want Nigeria to stand just for your selfish desires. What makes MEND or any other group terrorist? The Nigerian state is known to be a sponsor of terrorism, genocide and other evil vices. Kenule Saro-wiwa was a man of peace, he struggled against evil,injustice in a peaceable manner but the bloodthirsty, wicked Nigerian state snuffed life out of him. Today you pretend as if you dont know the history behind taking these so-called foreign hostages! The whole world knows that these people are being taken as human shields to protect the people of the Niger Delta from are vampire, bloodthirsty, bloodsucking nation called Nigeria.It was to stop a country were their soldiers and policemen are notorious for raping from causing damage to the Niger Delta communities. No matter what you call them they are more civil than that your dirty, devilish organization called Nigerian army which has only managed to churn out demonic , despotic men like Obasanjo , IBB and Abacha.

Femi Longe  # 7 | 24.04.2007 01:48

=Son of the Delta;170777>Am not in anyway surprised that you are turning the plight of the Niger Delta people to a joke. The sufferings of millions of people is not funny.Women and girls being raped by Nigerian soldiers is`nt funny in anyway.Killing poor old men in the Niger Delta for no reason is not funny.Gas flaring and it`s side effects on the Niger Delta population is not something that should amuse you. Anyone that never knew Nigeria is planning to do use and dump to the people of the region should know by now! There is one question I have been asking Femi Longe and other Nigerians but till today I have not gotten any response from them. If the people of the Niger Delta are being badly treated today that all of Nigeria`s money comes from their region is it tomorrow when they have got nothing to show for their oil wealth they will be properly treated? From all indication you want Nigeria to stand just for your selfish desires. What makes MEND or any other group terrorist? The Nigerian state is known to be a sponsor of terrorism, genocide and other evil vices. Kenule Saro-wiwa was a man of peace, he struggled against evil,injustice in a peaceable manner but the bloodthirsty, wicked Nigerian state snuffed life out of him. Today you pretend as if you dont know the history behind taking these so-called foreign hostages! The whole world knows that these people are being taken as human shields to protect the people of the Niger Delta from are vampire, bloodthirsty, bloodsucking nation called Nigeria.It was to stop a country were their soldiers and policemen are notorious for raping from causing damage to the Niger Delta communities. No matter what you call them they are more civil than that your dirty, devilish organization called Nigerian army which has only managed to churn out demonic , despotic men like Obasanjo , IBB and Abacha. Son Of The Delta, there are two issues here which I tried to point out. One is the legitimate fight of the Niger Delta people and Two is a business opportunity being exploited by fraudsters aka militants aka freedom fighters aka terrorists. The Niger Delta "militant" (hope that is a better word for you) are supposed to be like any other ethnic militia in Nigeria fighting for the emancipation of their people e.g. OPC, Bakassi Boys. However, unlike OPC and Bakassi Boys, they have turned what would have been a legitimate struggle into an opportunity to make a fast bucks. Where OPC and Bakassi gained a reputation for fighting crime, your militants rake in tens of thousands of dollars weekly from foreign organisations in ransom. Unless I see an audit of that money which proves that it was used to improve the lot of the communities in the Niger Delta, I will only conclude that it ended up in private hands, which makes it a crime. And as I pointed out, the spate of kidnappings are making the Niger Delta more attractive for oil companies because they are driving the price of crude oil up which favours not your people but their oppressors. And so perhaps a change of strategy is in order. I will never desecrate the memory of Ken Saro-Wiwa, a man who for me is an icon of all that is good Nigerians. The desecration of his memory is being done sufficiently by your militants. Ken did not preach separatism. He preached compensation and clean up of the environment. Ken did not pick up arms or use his fight for personal benefits. Knowing Nigeria, we can imagine what riches and favours he must have been promised to stop his fight and we know he didn't collect a dime till death. People who collect ransom for personal gains desecrate his memory. If the people of the Niger Delta are being badly treated today that all of Nigeria`s money comes from their region is it tomorrow when they have got nothing to show for their oil wealth they will be properly treated? You have gotten a response on this question countless times. Do not blame the rest of Nigeria for your subjugation. First start with your own leaders who connive with anyone that is raping you. Your governors that rank amongst Nigeria's most corrupt. Start with your community leaders who have a history of collecting peanuts from oil companies and sharing amongst themselves. Indeed, was it not your own people who were used to set up Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni 8 so they were killed.Is it not ur brother Goodluck that has teamed up with the evildoers to rape Nigeria at large for the next 8 years? Spare us the talk about "we" treating "you" badly. Afterall, if there were a Niger Delta state tomorrow, these people who are your elites today would be it's leaders and they will only be given room for concentrated looting and development will still not come. As a Nigerian who has not had the direct benefit of oil money, I curse our leaders who killed the cocoa and agricultural produce industry that was once the pride of Western Nigeria; that killed the cash crop industries that held up the north. All to pursue crude oil which is the bane of our nation. More than anyone, I would love to see them focus on development of these other sectors. Attimes, I curse the fact that Nigeria has crude oil because it has caused more harm than good. It has made us into a dysfunctional society dependent on one source for our wealth which is not sustainable not just for the Niger Delta but for the whole country. But is the solution carving off the Niger Delta as a new nation state. I SAY A BIG NO!!! for reasons I have shared with you, Son of The Delta, on numerous threads to no avail.

nero africanus  # 8 | 24.04.2007 04:00

at the end of the day , the truth of the matter is that the niger delta militants do not have a leader who is angry and bitter enough , if they did they will shut down nigeria , while the cause they fight for is noble , all they are concerned about is ransom money if they were really interested in fighting the problems they will shut down the oil flow . that will shut down nigeria the nigeria state is a vampire state i think they will achieve better results if they kidnapped nigerian govt officials

Son of the Delta  # 9 | 24.04.2007 05:06

=Femi Longe;170815> Son Of The Delta, there are two issues here which I tried to point out. One is the legitimate fight of the Niger Delta people and Two is a business opportunity being exploited by fraudsters aka militants aka freedom fighters aka terrorists. The Niger Delta "militant" (hope that is a better word for you) are supposed to be like any other ethnic militia in Nigeria fighting for the emancipation of their people e.g. OPC, Bakassi Boys. However, unlike OPC and Bakassi Boys, they have turned what would have been a legitimate struggle into an opportunity to make a fast bucks. Where OPC and Bakassi gained a reputation for fighting crime, your militants rake in tens of thousands of dollars weekly from foreign organisations in ransom. Unless I see an audit of that money which proves that it was used to improve the lot of the communities in the Niger Delta, I will only conclude that it ended up in private hands, which makes it a crime. And as I pointed out, the spate of kidnappings are making the Niger Delta more attractive for oil companies because they are driving the price of crude oil up which favours not your people but their oppressors. And so perhaps a change of strategy is in order. I will never desecrate the memory of Ken Saro-Wiwa, a man who for me is an icon of all that is good Nigerians. The desecration of his memory is being done sufficiently by your militants. Ken did not preach separatism. He preached compensation and clean up of the environment. Ken did not pick up arms or use his fight for personal benefits. Knowing Nigeria, we can imagine what riches and favours he must have been promised to stop his fight and we know he didn't collect a dime till death. People who collect ransom for personal gains desecrate his memory. You have gotten a response on this question countless times. Do not blame the rest of Nigeria for your subjugation. First start with your own leaders who connive with anyone that is raping you. Your governors that rank amongst Nigeria's most corrupt. Start with your community leaders who have a history of collecting peanuts from oil companies and sharing amongst themselves. Indeed, was it not your own people who were used to set up Ken Saro-Wiwa and the Ogoni 8 so they were killed.Is it not ur brother Goodluck that has teamed up with the evildoers to rape Nigeria at large for the next 8 years? Spare us the talk about "we" treating "you" badly. Afterall, if there were a Niger Delta state tomorrow, these people who are your elites today would be it's leaders and they will only be given room for concentrated looting and development will still not come. As a Nigerian who has not had the direct benefit of oil money, I curse our leaders who killed the cocoa and agricultural produce industry that was once the pride of Western Nigeria; that killed the cash crop industries that held up the north. All to pursue crude oil which is the bane of our nation. More than anyone, I would love to see them focus on development of these other sectors. Attimes, I curse the fact that Nigeria has crude oil because it has caused more harm than good. It has made us into a dysfunctional society dependent on one source for our wealth which is not sustainable not just for the Niger Delta but for the whole country. But is the solution carving off the Niger Delta as a new nation state. I SAY A BIG NO!!! for reasons I have shared with you, Son of The Delta, on numerous threads to no avail. The Niger Delta militants are not an ethnic militia neither are they a group of religious militias. The Niger Delta fighters are a group of ideologically motivated people forced into their situation by the Nigerian state that has indiscriminately killed and bombed Niger Deltans, and it does not matter whether they are Ijaws, Urohbos, Ikas, Benin, Ibibio, or Ogonis etc. The fate of the Niger Deltan have always been one of untold hardship, suffering, and life in sub-human conditions due to the denegration of their lands and communities through the activities of the Nigerian state and it is an insult to the blessed memory of people like Ken Saro-wiwa and the Ogoni 9, Isaac Boro, and the numerous Niger Deltans that died protesting peaceably against the Nigerian State, and those that were killed by Nigerian security operatives in their sleep at Odi, Okerenkoko, Obakiri etc. By calling the people that have taken up the mantle of the struggle from Saro-wiwa and Boro criminals you have desecrated Saro-wiwa and Cos blessed memories. Nigeria has taught the Niger Deltans that unless violence is matched with counter violence the Niger Deltans would be returned to conditions worse than the ones the ex-slaves experienced in the New world. Kidnapping only reduces the violence against the Niger Delta because without the human shields in the Niger Delta, Niger Delta communities would continually be bombed. It took the kidnapping of Oil workers to stop the air raids on the Delta Ijaw communities and till today there have been no repeat of these air raids thanks to the kidnapping of Oil workers. I hope that you know that till today the amoured tanks that disposed Alamieyeseigha are still stationed in Bayelsa, and the JTF is still operating in some parts of Delta. If there had been signs of violence or of a likely standoff against the Nigerian state that would not have been the case. Asari was only arrested when he decided to give peace a chance and to lay his arms down and negotiate with the Nigerian State. Should he have continued to fight the Nigerian state the rest would have been history. Besides, when a thief gets into your farm land and steals from you why is it wrong for you to detain the thief? Besides, the Niger Delta liberators are not struggling for the same purpose like the OPC and Bakassi. Our experience and goals are different so there is no relationship. Have you asked Obasanjo who is reaping where he did not sow for an audit that you want to ask Niger Deltans for audits? but if you insist get into the Creeks, you may find one of them to show you audits i.e if you have hostage value. On the Niger Delta leaders we have asked for the oppourtunity to choose our leaders a fundamental human right the Nigerian State has denied us of. The last election was the crowning of the disenfranchisement of the Niger Deltans. In the past we voted but other results were announced. In the last elections we were not allowed to vote in at least 70% of the Niger Delta in a few parts that election was held, guns were pointed at people and they were made to thumb print for the PDP. In the case of Jonathan even if he stood in front of an armoured tank he was shot or rolled down by the tanks the situation would have still been the same. When Obasanjo kidnapped Jonathan and some law makers to Abuja where were you? When the Bayelsa house of Assembly Complex was sieged by the military assigned by Obasanjo and the MOPOL with their guns pointed at the lawmakers forced the impeachment of Alamieyeseigha do you call that democracy? Besides, since Obasanjo has been doing the raping for some decades now he has been receiving traditional doctorate degrees from you people and why is it Jonathan's boy boy work (that he is not sure of getting self) that is pinching you? Is he going to rape or he is going to distract passersby from seeing the actual rapists doing their job? The Niger Delta is not asking for butler jobs in Aso Rock, or spare tire job in Abuja, what they are asking for is their right to exist as functional human beings with right over their lives, properties, and land, and I do not think that is too big a thing for Nigeria to offer to a region that have fed and clothed her for over 50years now. You do not need to curse the fact that Nigeria 'has crude Oil' All you need to do is to ask the Pharaoh of Nigeria to allow those that think it is a blessing to take away the thing you consider a curse but they see as a blessing. We have tried Nigeria and it has failed woefully why don't we try the Hong Kong - Bejing- Singapore- Macau axis, rather than destroying the collective destinies of different nations.

Abraxas  # 10 | 24.04.2007 06:57

Hi, Mr. Femi Longe! As you claim to be aware, the struggle in the Niger Delta region is legitimate. Right? Thank you. According to you, the OPC and Bakassi guys have earned a reputation for fighting crime in the South West and South East respectively, unlike the so-called "militants" of the South-South (i.e. Niger Delta region). Right? (Hi-hi-hi! What arrant nonsense!) By your thinking, the so-called militants of the creeks and swamps of the Niger Delta region rake in tens of thousands of dollars weekly from foreign organizations’ in ransom. Right? (Ho-ho-ho! Long-a-t’roat!) According to your logic, unless you see an audited account of such ransom money, satisfactorily proving that it was used to improve the lot of the communities in the Niger Delta, like the OPC and Bakassi Boys do in their communities, you will only conclude that such monies ended up in private hands, which makes it a crime. Right? (Ha–ha-ha-ha! Pipe dreaming!) Now, tell me, Mr. Wise Guy: If the struggle of the evidently short-changed people of the Niger Delta region is legitimate, why then are you trying so hard and wistfully to dictate HOW they relieve themselves of YOU, and your accepted perceived nuisance value to them? Is it by following your paternalistic advice, seeing that YOU could be part of their problem? Remember, YOU are one of the identified oppressors. How can they ever do anything right in your eyes? Why not allow a neutral third party to judge them, (not YOU)? I wonder what OPC and Bakassi would do if their territory had abundant inventories of, say, uranium, or bitumen, or gold, or platinum, or even petroleum and natural gas like the Niger Delta region, and they had a LEGITIMATE STRUGGLE at hand, how they would address their dilemma with a deaf, insensitive, voracious and greedy central government, its indigenous crony network across the country, and its multinational joint venture co-looters of the their resources, scavenging relentlessly on their ONLY assets as human beings: Would they live in peace and harmony with the expatriate MINERS, while terrorizing their fellow country men, unlike the people of the Niger Delta, who live in connivance with their fellow countrymen, while terrorizing EXPATRIATE OIL WORKERS for valuable foreign exchange? Or are you upset and envious that the so-called "militants" of the Niger Delta are richer than their fellow "militants" elsewhere in Nigeria? For you, any gun-wielding Nigerian, that is not a member of the Nigerian armed forces, found in the Niger Delta region, is a MILITANT. Great! For you, even armed robbers in the South-South qualify to be called "militants". Fantastic! And I believe, you are still waiting to receive an audited account of the monies extorted from over-paid expatriates taken as hostages. Good for you! At this juncture, let me build up a typical reality map for you, and ask you a simple question afterwards: (1) You are unemployed, and you have made up your mind to resort to crime. (2) In the town where you want to go and do crime, most of the people there are very, very poor. But some indigenes and ALL the expatriates are stinking rich! "Expats Only" 3-room apartments in Port Harcourt, Onne oil & gas free zone, and Bonny are within the range US$80,000 ~ US$100,000 per annum (IN NIGERIA!)? Please note very well: US$80,000~US$100,000 per annum, NOT N80,000~N100,000 per annum (IN NIGERIA)!> (3) The stinking rich Nigerians have lethal fire power at their disposal, to protect them. The filthy rich expatriate oil industry buccaneers only have very poorly paid, half-baked, security-ignorant, and untrained MOPOL escorts, decoys, and similar other unserious protection arrangements, that have made many a Commissioner of Police and O/c MOPOL in Bayelsa, Rivers, and Delta States, smile regularly to the bank! (4) Moreover some of the very persons that constitute the so-called "security" of the expatriate oil workers, are also fellow illegal bunkerers in the Nigerian Police, navy, SSS, and army. Now, tell me, Mr. Wise Guy: Given the choice between: (a) Raiding Government House Port Harcourt, or Yenegoa, or Asaba, for booty, in your capacity as an armed robber (i.e. “militant”) of the Niger Delta, and (b) Arranging with a Nigerian security operative (MOPOL, SSS, navy, army) to abduct or stage-manage the abduction process of a stinking rich oyibo man, for a minor consultancy fee, Which one would YOU want an intelligent Niger Delta "militant" to choose? To go and liberate the Government House? My friend, try to be a little bit more reasonable. Armed robbers in the Niger Delta region are not that dumb, you know! I seriously think that you are deliberately trivializing a very serious matter. You do not require the genius of a brain surgeon to know the difference between M.E.N.D. and any other common criminals that the Nigerian security system has become so incompetent to contain any more in the South-South of Nigeria, just like criminal activities elsewhere in the Federation have gone out of the control of the Nigerian security operative, be Kano, Ibadan, Abeokuta, Ado Ekiti, Awka, or Ogba Estate in Lagos. Hostage-taking is a reflection of the gross ineptitude that resides in the Nigerian law enforcement setup, given that most hostages were actually abducted while UNDER official government-provided security cover! Finally, my good friend, so-called Femi, let me assure you that, although your identity is absofukcinglutely immaterial and irrelevant to me, however, your naïve resort to benign ethnic identity swapping does not fool every Villager, and it is indeed, rather amusingly ineffective. But, don’t you worry. My observation is trivial, and is of no consequence. Muchas gracias, mi amigo. Don Juan-Carlos ABRAXAS (III)

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