The Ijaw Youths Network (IYN) has said that those who blocked the National Assembly on Wednesday to protest against the Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme are street urchins assembled by desperate and corrupt persons from the region.
The IYN urged President Bola Tinubu to ignore a call by a faceless group, the Niger Delta Liberators and Ex-Agitators Forum (NDLEF), involved in the vanguard of peddling outright falsehood against the Amnesty boss.
The group commended the President for his sustained support for the PAP and its leadership and, indeed, the Niger Delta.
The group said that those behind the sponsored protest are enraged by his refusal to open the coffers of the Amnesty Office to rogues who are used to swindling previous leaders of the programme through blackmail.
It made the call while reacting to Wednesday’s protest by the NDLEF at the National Assembly, seeking Otuaro’s suspension.
The IYN said that its observation of the people wielding placards in the so-called protest shows that they are jobless, underaged youths from outside the region.
The IYN condemned the demonstration and described it as a “staged and orchestrated” attempt to blackmail and distract the administrator from his ongoing reforms at the PAP.
In a statement on Wednesday issued by the President and Secretary of IYN, Frank Ebikabo and Federal Ebiaridor, the group advised the President to look carefully, and he would see the falsehood in the NDLEF’s allegations. They stressed that they are willing tools in the hands of their sponsors, who are carrying out their selfish agenda.
“We strongly condemn the protest in its entirety. Those behind this mischief and criminal enterprise have registered fake camps to steal funds belonging to the government, and they are not happy that Otuaro’s reforms at the PAP have prevented them from achieving their criminal intentions.
“We call on His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, to disregard the Niger Delta Liberators and Ex-Agitators Forum. If the President checks their activities correctly, he would see how hollow their allegations sound.
“Otuaro will not succumb to cheap blackmail. Their lies fly in the face of cogent reforms being carried out by Otuaro. Nigerians are wise enough to see through the nefarious antics of these serial blackmailers whose lies are visible to the discerning mind.
“To convince the public about their sponsored protest on Wednesday, the NDLEF hired young urchins, bought them new shirts and trousers and slippers to make them appear neat during the protest”, the IYN said.
The group insisted that Otuaro remained committed to transparency, accountability, and the empowerment of Niger Delta youths in the administration of the Programme.
Dismissing the allegations of nepotism and financial mismanagement against the PAP leadership, the group stated that “all contracts awarded followed due process in line with procurement laws.”
The group added: “This protest is nothing more than an act of desperation by those who wish to derail the progress made in the Amnesty Programme. Otuaro will not succumb to cheap blackmail.
“We urge Niger Deltans to disregard the allegations. The administrator’s primary focus remains the fulfilment of the PAP’s mandate.
“We reaffirm our support for Otuaro’s leadership, and no amount of propaganda would derail his transformative agenda for the Amnesty Programme.
“We also call on stakeholders and beneficiaries of the PAP to remain steadfast because the programme, under Otuaro’s leadership, will continue to work towards sustainable peace and development in the Niger Delta.”
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