Ex-militants give Jonathan ultimatum over unpaid allowances

Some former Niger Delta militants have issued a one month ultimatum to President Goodluck Jonathan to pay their allowances.

The militants have warned that failure to pay their outstanding allowances may lead to a renewed unrest in the region.

The ex-fighters spoke in Ughelli, Delta State, after a meeting with the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Kingsley Kuku on Monday.

While asking that funds be released to members of the various camps, they said the ongoing entrepreneurship training was yet to be of benefit to some members.

The leaders, Owonama Edward and Charles Akatakpo, also explained that some former fighters were sent for training by the amnesty office, without duly notifying the leaders of the camps.

They informed newsmen that they have observed irregularities in the payment procedure as some members had not been paid for a while now.

“We have been experiencing a situation where some of the boys will receive their salaries in a particular month and have their names omitted the next month. We are insisting that the pending allowances should be paid,” they said.

Lamenting the treatment by those in charge of payment, the leaders protested that “we, the leaders are being treated like nuisance by the amnesty office, why? They should work towards the implementation of the leaders’ entrepreneurship training.”

#headline #hot