Obasanjo warns militants
2004-10-01 11:15
Abuja - Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo on Friday warned that his government will not tolerate any "undue militancy" in the oil-rich Niger Delta or any action that would compromise the majority interest, in a speech to mark 44 years of independence from Britain.
"Government is taking appropriate steps to stem the tide of undue militancy and we are confident that reason and the law will prevail," he said in a broadcast.
"Government will not tolerate in any way or form any act that would mortgage or compromise the interest of the majority."
But he confirmed that his government was holding talks with rebel leaders from the Niger Delta and assured that a "rapprochement" was taking place.
'Rascally elements'
"We are talking to those I describe as rascally elements from the Niger Delta in an effort to open lines of dialogue and peace as they feel aggrieved by their state authorities," he said, referring to rebel leader Mujahid Dokubo Asari.
Asari began talks on Wednesday with officials in Obasanjo's government ahead of an October 1 deadline set by his group for oil multinationals and foreigners to pull out of Niger Delta.
A statement issued late on Monday by Asari advised oil majors to leave the Delta, which pumps the bulk of Nigeria's output of 2.3 million barrels per day, and warned that his Niger Delta People's Volunteer Force (NDPVF) would declare "all-out war" against the government Friday if the demands were not met.
The group, which says it is fighting for self-determination and a bigger share of Nigeria's oil wealth for the Niger Delta's Ijaw people, is demanding a sovereign national conference on the country's problems.
"I appeal to those elected officials of the region whose efforts have not measured up to expectations, to endeavour to be seen to be more alive to their responsibilities and the plight of the people they are elected to govern," he said.
Some officials told AFP that Obasanjo was particularly unhappy with some state governors in the volatile region who do not judiciously use money allocated to their states by the federal government to provide social facilities for their people.
Africa's biggest oil producer
Obasanjo appealed to residents in the region to be patient.
"I want to appeal to all Nigerians that rascality and vandalism, which are rapidly becoming the hallmark of the Niger Delta, have implications for the production, distribution and pricing of crude oil, for our global economic rating, for investor confidence in our economy," he said.
Crude oil exports account for 95% of Nigeria's foreign exchange income and about 65 percent of budgetary revenues.
The west African country is Africa's largest and OPEC's sixth biggest oil exporter. Unrest in the Niger Delta, coupled with Asari's warning for multinationals to pull out of the southern oil hub, on Tuesday forced world oil prices through the $50 per barrel barrier.