Niger Delta Avengers Splits into Two

By Sylvester Idowu in Warri

There is crack in the ranks of Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), the militant group claiming responsibilities for the spate of bombings of oil facilities in the Niger Delta region.

This came to the fore as a splinter group renounced its membership of the dreaded and destructive NDA and embraced dialogue, promising to expose other members of the group and their sponsors.

THISDAY gathered that the splinter group was angry with the hardline posture of the major commanders of the militant body towards having talks with the federal government in finding a lasting solutions to the problems of the region.

One Cynthia Whyte had said in a statement that some members of the NDA had renounced violence in agitation for the underdevelopment of the region and were denouncing their membership of the militant group.

Also, the NDA apparently confirmed the split in a statement issued last Saturday night, maintaining that its household was still intact.

According to the statement signed by its spokesman, Mudoch Agbinibo, the militant group said the purported split is the imaginations of government agents and agencies with “delusional disorder.

“The thinking to lure the public to another lie of spirit in the NDA is only the ways of a government agents and agencies with delusional disorder. This is result of a government and security agencies that are only becoming childish everyday for engaging drug addicts, bank robbers, sea pirates, falling political angels and charlatans to undo the Niger Delta people our genuine desire to self determination and resource control,” it said.

NDA said further: “The public and all sane minds should know that the entire household of the NDA remain intact, we are in good spirit with highest morals and even more dedicated toget the ultimate targets.

“We are not like the present Nigerian government, military and security agencies that have thrown intelligence to the dustbin and are being pushed around by dirty moral and egos of political thugs, criminals and illegal crude oil bunkerers like (names withheld) and their main collaborator Mr. Lawal Daura, the Director General of the Department of State Services DSS).

“It is quite unfortunate that Whyte and Jomo Gbomo of defunct Joint Revolutionary Council and MEND respectively are the spokesperson of the Nigerian intelligentsia community because of some political interest and a government that have abdicated powers to clansmen and tribal lords.

The fact checks about Whyte AKA George Karley and his sponsors should be laid bare before the public now that the Nigerian security and intelligent community has turned the Niger Delta genuine struggle to a tool of political patronage and money making machine for miscreants and conflict merchants,” it added.

The group noted that the name Whyte was the negotiation organ for (names withheld) for settlements in kidnappings, bank robberies, illegal crude oil bunkering and dirty jobs for government adding “Like sending of Sele Ebikabowei to South Africa to testify against Henry Okah, back at home against Charles Okah and Edmund Ebiwari after collecting huge bribes.

“Conclusively, it is the house of the Nigeria security and intelligentsia community that is having splits and giving room to miscreants to be speaking for them as President Muhammadu Buhari abdicate governance to his kinsmen and tribal lords.

“We warned the world and Nigerians earlier, especially the Mr. Odein Ajumogobias, the Judith Asunis and Majesty King Alfred Diette Spiffs to think before they leap with characters using a compromised platform called MEND that is sold and bought up by special interests of the Nigerian security agencies that are working for this APC government of lies and deceits,” it added.

Meanwhile, the President of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), Udengs Eradiri, has said he had no business with the NDA as insinuated by the splinter group.

He said in a statement he personally signed: “My attention has been drawn to a statement purportedly issued by a splinter group of the NDA in which several Niger Deltans were mentioned as sponsors and operatives of the NDA including my humble self as the spokesman of the NDA, Mudoch Aginibo.

“I would have ordinarily ignored the said statement as it is laughable and nonsensical on the face of it. However, for the purpose of records, I wish to state that I have no business whatsoever with the NDA.

“I am the President of IYC, the largest youth organisation in the Niger Delta region and not spokesman of the NDA,” he asserted.

Udengs noted that since the splinter group of the NDA said they had broken away and repented from their old ways, they should come out in the open and identify themselves openly instead of still using pseudo names such as Cynthia Whyte to issue statements.

He maintained that any discerning mind would know that the said statement purportedly naming sponsors of Avengers was issued by the promoters of the Aaron 11 MEND negotiation with the federal government.

“Their grouse against me is because I said in my recent interviews that MEND Aaron 11 team does have the mandate of the Ijaw and other Niger Delta people to negotiate with the federal government. They are desperate because of the lack of credibility in what they are doing,” he said.

Related Articles