Avengers want Buhari to emulate UK on referendum

The Niger Delta Avengers, NDA has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to hold a referendum on the future of Nigeria.

Similarly, the Ijaw Youth Congress, IYC, on Saturday, tasked President Buhari to take the bull by the horn and lead the way for the proposed dialogue with militants.

This is coming after the President appealed to militant groups in the oil rich Niger Delta to stop bombing of oil installations in the country and also a fallout from Friday’s UK referendum where the people voted to leave the European Union, EU.

The Avengers stated on its twitter handle @NDAvengers: “President Buhari should call for a referendum”

The group also stated that “Nigerian President Buhari should call for a referendum to enable every Nigerian to vote if they want to stay as Nigerians or not. Just like what David Cameron of Great Britain did”.

The Avengers went on to illustrate with a map of what a broken Nigeria will look like, with five independent regions thus: Biafra Republic, Oduduwa Republic, Arewa Republic, Niger Middle Belt and United Niger Delta.

It would be recalled that the Avengers had said that its main motive is the creation of the Sovereign State of Niger Delta.

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Meanwhile, the IYC, in a statement issued by its spokesperson, Eric Omare, said “What is required is not just an appeal but for him (Buhari) to led the dialogue with the Niger Delta people towards finding a lasting solution to the recurring militancy in the region.

“President Buhari must come to the negotiation table with stakeholders in the Niger Delta as was done by his predecessors rather than through his subordinates.

“The IYC is also of the view that the perceived multiplicity of militant groups in the region as stated by President Buhari is not an obstacle to engagement with stakeholders. The sort of engagement the IYC expects from the Federal Government is a holistic dialogue with stakeholders in the region.

“And strongly with a view to finding a lasting solution to the root causes of militancy and other agitations, rather than engaging with a view to giving palliatives to present agitators without addressing the issues responsible for the recurring agitations as was done in the past.

“The IYC would only support a dialogue that is geared towards addressing the fundamental issues responsible for militancy in the Niger Delta. “Therefore, we call on President Buhari to put his appeal to action by starting the process of genuine and serious engagement with the Niger Delta people with a view to addressing the Niger Delta agitation for resource control once and for all.”

 

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