Niger Delta Avengers states conditions for dialogue with FG

The Niger Delta Avengers on Monday said it was open to dialogue with the Federal Government, but said such talks would happen if the government met their conditions.

“We want the federal government to commit members states of the multinational oil Corporations to commit independent mediators to this proposed dialogue,” said the group’s spokesperson, Mudoch Agbinibo.


“We believed that it is only such environment that will engender genuine dialogue that will be aimed at setting up a framework for achieving the short, medium and long-term demands of the Niger delta to de-escalating this conflict and bring about a lasting peace.”

Agbinibo restated the group’s readiness to “attack the interest of oil corporation and international refineries operators that bring in vessels to the Niger delta territory to buy our oil that every successive government has refused to use and reapply the proceeds towards any development in the region since 1958.

“If they refuse be heed (sic) to our advice will result to sinking of two their mother vessel as an example to others. They should not undertake any repair of pipeline, oil and gas facilities that is damaged or attacked by our forces during this period of “Operation Red Economy” until and/or after the dialogue.”

He said the government should show ‘genuine attitude’ and provide a conducive atmosphere for the proposed talks.

Minister of state for petroleum resources,Emmanuel Kachikwu, said on June 6 that the Federal Government was keen on exploring the dialogue option in solving the renewed crisis in the region.

“We are making contacts with everybody who is involved, the ones that we can identify, through them, the ones that we can’t identify so that there is a lot more inclusiveness in this dialogue,” he said.

But NDA had declined to dialogue with the government, demanding that oil multinationals leave the region.

The group has emerged as the most prominent militant group in the Niger Delta region in 2016 with series of attacks launched on oil installations belonging to Shell, Chevron, ENI and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The strikes have cut Nigeria’s output to a 20-year low, crashing daily crude production to 1.4 million barrels per day from 2.2 million bpd.