At least 317 former Niger
Delta militants have graduated from different institutions in the U.S. and UK
in 2017, the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Brig. Gen. Paul
Boroh (Rtd), has said.
Gen. Boroh, who is also
the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, disclosed this in New
York on Friday when he visited Tijjani Bande, Nigeria’s Ambassador/Special
Representative to the UN and the Deputy Ambassador, Samson Itegboje.
The presidential aide
said the Amnesty Programme was managing the 30,000 ex-agitators from the Niger
Delta region.
He said the programme,
which started in 2009, had sponsored the beneficiaries in various skill
acquisition, education and entrepreneurship trainings, among others.
According to him, the
programme has helped greatly to stabilize the Niger Delta region, adding that
the Federal Government is consolidating on the achievements to buoy the
economy.
“This year alone, we have
177 graduates of the amnesty programme from the U.S. and 140 from the UK.
“By the end of this
month, we would be going for the graduation in the UK; that of the U.S. has
been on.
“The programme is on
course; it helps greatly in stabilizing the situation in the Niger Delta
region. I have also been working with the UN.”
Gen. Boroh, who was
attending the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, said he
was invited “to come and disclose what we are doing in the country,
particularly in the Niger Delta on the SDGs issues”.
Mr. Bande, in his
remarks, lauded the Amnesty Programme for its importance and achievements for
the country from inception till date and commended Mr. Boroh for his
achievements so far.
The Nigerian envoy said
every well-meaning Nigerian was concerned about restiveness of youth wherever
located.
“Every Nigerian, whether
public official or private citizen, will like that you succeed in stabilizing
that restiveness.
“We are always aware of
your activities around the UN System here. The High-Level Forum is an important
event where you showcase what it is that you do.
“It’s also important to
learn from others as regards what they are doing; I’m sure several other
delegations will learn from your interactions with them.
“At the Mission, we are
always happy that officials come from Nigeria and deliver the best that we know
Nigeria can deliver.
“Nigeria is a very important and great country but we
all have a duty to work very hard every day to improve for the benefit of not
only our now but more importantly, the future generation of Nigerians,” Mr. Bande said. (NAN)
Source :- premium times
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