The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Brig. Gen. Paul Boroh, has urged the elders and leaders of the Niger Delta to accept the peace opportunities proposed by President Muhammadu Buhari.
Boroh said that the visit of the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osibanjo, to the Niger Delta offered serious opportunities for peace and development in the oil rich region.
Boroh’s made the statement in a press statement issued to journalist by the Media and Communication Consultant of Presidential Amnesty Programme, Mr. Owei Lakemfa, on Wednesday.
Boroh also urged the people of the area to take advantage of the government’s acceptance of the 16-point demand by the Pan Niger Delta Elders Forum to the President in November 2016, as a working document for the resolution of the crisis in the region.
Boroh, who is also the Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, also urged the people of the area to utilise the decision of the Federal Government to recognise the environmental challenges of the region and to treat the area as a special economic zone.
The Amnesty boss also disclosed that the President has also approved the take off of the Nigeria Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Delta State.
Boroh who commended Buhari for the gesture said that the President also directed that everything should be done to ensure that the NMU commence operations in the next academic year.
He called on the National Assembly to pass the Nigeria Maritime University Bill to ensure that the scheduled date for the take off of the university was met.
The Amnesty boss also urged the oil companies to invest in the environment, human resource and infrastructural development as part of the effort to develop confidence in the Niger Delta.
He called for better understanding and tolerance on the part of the inhabitants of the area in order to put up a uniited front in the pursuit of the desired peace and development in the area.