President Goodluck Jonathan


By Onyebuchi Ezigbo

The Niger Delta Peace Foundation, has urged President Goodluck Jonathan to see the impeachment threat by the House of Representatives as an opportunity to refocus his administration's priorities towards the needs of the common people.

On the other hand, the organization gave kudos to the President for keeping to his pledge to bring oil subsidy suspects to book.

The National President of the organization, Chief Daniel Ebahor who spoke to journalists in Abuja yesterday on the move by the Lower chamber of the National Assembly to effect the impeachment of the President on the account of poor implementation of the 2012 budget, said the action may have been caused by negligence and apparent insensitivity to the plight of Nigerians.

"Our advice is that the executive should not see this move by House as a threat but an action anchored on the principle of checks and balances in governance under the democratic dispensation," he said.

He described as regrettable the explanation offered by the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister for the Economy, that Federal Government was only able to achieve 30% of the budget as at middle of the year.

Ebahor said the group is happy with the action of the House and urged the Senate to tow a similar line in order pressure the President to implement the budget in a transparent manner for the benefit of Nigerians.

He said what the government should do in response to the impeachment threat is to concentrate on the implementation of the budget in such a manner that it would impact on the well-being of the people.

According to Ebahor whose organization has played key roles in the peace-building process in the oil-rich region of the Niger Delta, President Jonathan needs to speed-up the implementation of the budget and to create employment for the growing jobless youths in the country.