The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Usani Usani on Monday, met with President Muhammadu Buhari behind closed doors.

The meeting, which held at the Presidential Villa, was meant to brief the President on the ongoing efforts to reposition the oil-rich region.

In an interview with State House correspondents after the meeting, the minister appealed to the Niger Delta Avengers that recently called off their ceasefire to be more patient with the government.

He said the government was also committed to the development of the region which the Avengers are also demanding.

Reference: The Niger Delta Avengers (NDA), on Friday said it was calling off a ceasefire agreement it had with the Federal Government to halt the bombing of oil and gas infrastructure in the Niger Delta region.

The group also vowed that unlike its operation in 2016 when it pledged not to shed any blood, including that of Nigerian soldiers, the impending fight would be “bloody and brutal”. 

What this means: All the “promises” of the Buhari-led administration has been all about talk, talk and talk again. And this threat from the militants highlights that.

Two years on, and less than two years to the next election, no completed project, yet the minister is asking the militants to be patient.

Though, the blame cannot exactly be put on the present government, considering the conflict first arose in the early 1990s over tensions between foreign oil corporations and a number of the Niger Delta’s minority ethnic groups who feel they are being exploited, particularly the Ogoni and the Ijaw.

Yet, there are limits to how patient one can be and, the militants had stopped their bombings banking on the promises of the government to repair the damage that has already been done.

Violence is never the best method to persuade the government to listen. In fact, violence creates tension and does more destruction. And so, it would be imperative for the government to start “acting” and stop “asking to be patient” – it really does not help.