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Ijaw youths warn EFCC against alleged plan to arrest Jonathan

By Julius Osahon, Yenagoa
11 April 2016   |   3:56 am
The Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) has warned against an alleged plot by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Goodluck-Jonathan

As the four-day burial programme for the late former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, ended yesterday with a thanksgiving service in Ammasoma, the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) cautioned against an alleged plot by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to arrest former President Goodluck Jonathan.

The umbrella body of Ijaw youths worldwide urged President Muhammadu Buhari and the anti-graft agency to shelve any such plan to persecute the former president, insisting that such a move would spell doom for the country and the government.

At a press conference to mark the end of the burial programme , the IYC President, Mr. Udengs Eradiri, said almost everybody that had close relationship with the former president had been arrested by the EFCC.

The IYC president particularly condemned the recent arrest and detention of Jonathan’s cousin, Mr. Robert Azibola , a contractor over an alleged $40million financial fraud.

Eradiri said Ijaw youths would not allow Azibola, Jonathan or any rising Ijaw leader to be persecuted by the EFCC the way the Federal Government dealt with the late Alamieyeseigha.

He said: “They have arrested almost all our people. Azibola was arrested by the EFCC and we are calling on the EFCC to stop persecuting him further and charge him to court if there are issues.
“They detained him for a long time forcing him to make statements to indict former President Jonathan. Azibola was a businessman, contractor and has the right like every Nigerian to get contracts. Why will the Niger Delta case be a different one?”

He added: “We noticed that the same way they persecuted Alamieyeseigha has continued. After Goodluck Jonathan, our people who contributed in that administration are being persecuted by this government.

“The recent one is the ploy to arrest Goodluck Jonathan which is unfolding everyday. This must stop. President Goodluck Jonathan is the most performing president that Nigeria has ever had. We are proud of him. Everyday there is a calculated attempt to whittle down the achievements of President Jonathan. We call on Nigerians to mount pressure on the government to focus on leading Nigeria aright rather than looking for ways to bring down the achievements of Jonathan.
“Buhari should please focus on governance rather than persecution of people who have added value. We are not happy about it and today we use Alamieyeseigha’s death as a point of contact. The world has seen that from Alamieyeseigha it has trickled down to all the Niger Delta people.”

On the alleged removal of 10 per cent community equity from the new Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), Eradiri said they would no longer beg for the inclusion of the equity.
He said they expected the country to have known that community ownership would ameliorate the years of crisis in the Niger Delta region.

“For us , we will not beg for it. We will not even lobby anybody. The oil is our oil and we will take it. If they like, they should put it if they don’t like they should leave it. We expect that this country should have commonsense by including community participation.

“On the issue of pipeline surveillance, this 10 per cent would have covered for pipeline surveillance. Once the people know that they have 10 per cent in this business, they will protect it”, he said.

48 Comments

  • Author’s gravatar

    Eradiri must have spoken under alcoholic influence, is anyone or region above the laws of the land, anybody found wanting must clear him or herself, currently the British prime minister is under attack for the investment he inherited from his father that features on Panama paper, he clearly defended himself by showing or published the tax he paid on the inherited share he sold 2010, one goat will get up to be threatened the cooperate existence of a country, nonsense

    • Author’s gravatar

      I hope you know you made no sense with your post. Who has been attacked more than Jonathan as president? What comparison has the British PM’s tax issues with the rumoured plan to arrest and disgrace Jonathan? SUch diversinary tacit by this govt should be condemned by Nigerians. It is high time this present govt focuses on delivering governance to Nigerians instead of the threatirics.

      • Author’s gravatar

        But your claims are mere assumption based on rumour, simple question is GEJ above the laws of the land, secondly questioning doesn’t mean sentencing him to jail, you people should allow the laws to work

    • Author’s gravatar

      You fada4Life must have been under the influence of ogogoro not to know that GEJ is being persecuted as part of a wider plot to disgrace the Ijaw Nation. We do not need your support or approval for our cause. You are one the leeches who do not provide any portion of the national cake that is being shared.

  • Author’s gravatar
    • Author’s gravatar

      I want Good Luck Jonathan to persecuted and jailed first, for all his atrocities with his N.D people.as he was in the office, then the person that brought him to power O.B.J insulted Nigerians by appointing someone who was not up to being a local Government Chairman, O.B.J made him president of a country like Nigerian, in fact at the right time this name O.B.J and whoever that bear the name will be persecuted and jailed for life.

      Why because, For Obasanjo giving Jonathan president of Nigerian. and selling part of Nigerian Bakassi Peninsular to Cameroon with his follow Yoruba’s then collected their percentage, Ie, Olusegun Obasanjo, Richard Akinjide, Prince Bola Ajibola and Gowan ex local president of Nigerian who lead Nigeria to a civil war. 1967 to 1970

  • Author’s gravatar

    Why hasn’t O.B.J been investigated, Is GEJ,s tenure in office the genesis of corruption in Nigeria?…Fight corruption BUT do not use the anti-graft agencies to intimidate perceived political opponents cos it seems that is what this administration is all about.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Please arrest him oooooo since we are tired of peace in the region besides they have militarised the whole ND. Please cause more problems for your government make it harder to even do business in the region.

  • Author’s gravatar

    End time youth of no future, i wonder what kind of future Nigeria will have if youth of today can reason like this.and this is the main reasons they can easily used as tools to cause problem.

  • Author’s gravatar

    When u see a govt that in for trouble withou a feeling for the masses you will know. this buhari/apc administration is not just confused, but foolish and trouble makers.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Gej should not be perceived as a saint or untouchable it won’t be in the best interests of our country’s democracy or rule of law, he obviously has a lot to answer for as there are evidences of mismanagement of public funds by his office when he was in power hence he should be picked up, questioned, tried and sentenced if found guilty to serve as precedence and a deterrent to others anyone who has the interest of the country at heart won’t even try to stop this from happening

    • Author’s gravatar

      IBB and OBJ should not be perceived as untouchable.

      They don’t care about being saints because they did not function.

    • Author’s gravatar

      Tessa I strongly agree with you but nobody eats amala from the middle we have to start from the closest to us it is the duty of the recent administration to probe past administrations starting with the immediate past

      • Author’s gravatar

        The idea of saying, Buhari should probe only the government he took over from, is only trying to shield others and give them a soft landing. It is just a sloppy argument. IBB, OBJ and co all stole monies belonging to this country and I am sure the FG has all the evidences. So, it should be, ‘all or nothing’.

    • Author’s gravatar

      The problem with this country is that majority of our youths have partial education and a tendency to put sentiments above reason… Lu Nideino Nickson I never said Buhari should probe only the government he took over from, I only acknowledged that he had to start from there you should read it again but carefully this time

    • Author’s gravatar

      I can see that problem with this country isn’t just leadership a lot of our people have soiled their hearts and minds with filth hence so many don’t want to see change but I can assure you the change would come

  • Author’s gravatar

    …Lolz… …there is always an equal but opposite reaction to everything … go and tell “#Buhari”
    CLICK HERE —-> https://goo.gl/StfyNa
    #made_in_calabar ▲ #NWK ?

  • Author’s gravatar

    IJAW YOUTHS OR A SHAMELESS MAFIA GANG OF TRIBALISTIC THUGS AND LOOTERS?????

    NO ONE WILL ESCAPE THE WRATH OF LAW REGARDING LOOTING OF THE NATIONAL TREASURY.

    JONATHAN, AMONG OTHERS, WAS THE CENTER OF FRAUD AND MOTHER OF ALL CORRUPTION IN NIGERIA WHO MUST BE INVESTIGATED, ARRESTED AND PUT IN PRISON, IF FOUND GUILTY. THERE IS NOTHING IJAW YOUTHS CAN DO ABOUT IT.

    YOU FACELESS AND SHAMELESS CORRUPT GANG OF TRIBALISTIC IJAW FOOLS, WAS IT NOT CORRUPT JONATHAN WHO ONCE SAID, “LOOTING IS NOT CORRUPTION”???? JONATHAN IS A DISGRACE TO YOU IJAWS, TO HIMSELF, HIS FAMILY AND THE ENTIRE NATION.

  • Author’s gravatar

    LAUGHING FACE OF A SHAMELESS CHIEF THIEF OF NIGERIA.

  • Author’s gravatar

    GOODLUCK JONATHAN HISTORY, POSTERITY AND THE CHILDREN YET UNBORN WILL NEVER EVER FORGIVE OR FORGET YOU, FOR FOUR VERY MASSIVE LOOTING AND STEALING OF OUR COMMON WEALTH. GOODLUCK JONATHAN HOW YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT BAFFLES EVERY REASONABLE AND SANE PERSON. BE REST ASSURED THAT YOU WILL PAY A VERY GREAT PRICE FOR YOUR VERY GRAVE SINS AGAINST NIGERIA AND HUMANITY

  • Author’s gravatar

    though we should never support the idea of “anyone being above the law”, it is precisely the same reason that Jonathan should only be touched when all other past leaders especially those in APC now have been all investigated first… Common Nigerian, we will simply be stupid and naive to believe that only Jonathan and friends are the corrupt in Nigeria.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Why is the Niger Delta always playing ‘the victim’ game and threatening to foment trouble when challenged ? Apparently they have no interest in one Nigeria if their son is not the president! Why should GEJ be spared if the FG has strong evidence against him?? I don’t get it!

    I’m not a fan of the Niger Delta to be honest.. I served in Bayelsa State and I saw how cruel they are to themselves let alone others esp their politicians and rulers! The `ordinary people` are very good and welcoming I must say. But what have their politicians done for them despite the huge `investments` and FG allocations? Go to Oloibiri, Tombia, Gbaratoru, Odi etc Nothing has changed!

    • Author’s gravatar

      Any one who have the privilege to travel through the creeks to the hinterlands in Bayelsa state would weep for that part of the country. The elites of that ‘nation’ are the problem of the people including the man Eradiri. Apart from palatial mansions built in PH, Abuja, Lagos and may be Warri, Yenagoa and Asaba by the individuals who had stolen their people’s commonwealth in millions, are there any other things to show? Dezani’s wealth is more than 2 years budget of Taraba state and yet she cannot point to any single investment that can employ 200 jobless Bayelsa youths. We only heard about her two brothers managing her wealth in UK. Bring another Jonathan from Ijaw to rule Nigeria for additional 10 years, there will be nothing to show for it because the people are so self-centered. If ‘Ijaw nation’ becomes a country today, the crisis that will emerge will be more than that of Sudan. ” They would have eyes but they would not see”

      • Author’s gravatar

        well said. I couldn’t agree more!

        • Author’s gravatar
          • Author’s gravatar

            Fair enough! I’d like to know what you disagree on though and why

          • Author’s gravatar

            Because @Omolola Olaniyi was only visitor to the creek. A visitor is not a native not matter how hard he or she tries. You cant’ cry more than the mourners, can you?

          • Author’s gravatar

            I struggle to understand your point? Are you saying deprivation is only in the creeks? The point here is with the amount of money pumped into Niger Delta, the place should be a lot better and should rival other ‘developed’ regions.

            Others ( regions) have “stolen” and developed their areas to a very good extent.. and generations still reap the dividends as we speak.

            To borrow your idiom, Niger Delta should not be a place of “mourning” if their own politicians and leaders had not massively short-changed and rip the people off their fair share! What has Asari done with all his money, Ibori, Diezani, Iginedion???

  • Author’s gravatar

    He is the most performing president Nigeria has ever had. Also there has never been any government without corruption.

    Neither is there any proof that there was more corruption during his government, just more propaganda but Nigeria and Nigerians hate hearing the truth.

    • Author’s gravatar

      I really have my doubts about President Jonathan being the most performing President? I will love to know the indices or yardstick used in arriving at this conclusion. Corruption is corruption whether larges scale or small scale and must be rejected in all ramifications. Obviously, he(gej) didn’t start corruption but the present govt has a moral duty, the Electoral mandate and constitutional obligation to fight corruption and recover looted funds through any means legal and necessary no matter the name or personality involved. It’s nothing personal. Common sense suggests that it has to start from immediate past government. That’s one of t reason they were elected in the first place. Its nothing personal.
      Also, there is no evidence to suggest that last administration was not the most corrupt in Nigeria. Under Abacha, corruption was individualized but under Jonathan it became institutionalized. More and more revelations are on its way. Just like Shagari, Jonathan may himself not have corrupt but his government was overtaken, hijacked and overrun by rampant corruption.

      • Author’s gravatar

        What are the indices you use in determining that they are not the most performing.

        Corruption is corruption and that is why some people should not be sacred cows. Nothing is commonsense. If one wants to fight corruption, do it wholly.

        With all due respect sir, be honest enough to admit that institutional corruption did not begin in the last 6 year. Very funny.

        There is no evidence to suggest that the last government was the most corrupt in Nigeria. Unless you worked with Abacha, you cannot know the degree of corruption that went on then. Was there not corruption in IBB’s time or in Abacha, or in OBJ or in Yar Adua’s time.

        Be bold enough to spread the love to everyone.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Any one who have the privilege to travel through the creeks to the hinterlands in Bayelsa state would weep for that part of the country. The elites of that ‘nation’ are the problem of the people including the man Eradiri. Apart from palatial mansions built in PH, Abuja, Lagos and may be Warri, Yenagoa and Asaba by the individuals who had stolen their people’s commonwealth in millions, are there any other things to show? Dezani’s wealth is more than 2 years budget of Taraba state and yet she cannot point to any single investment that can employ 200 jobless Bayelsa youths. We only heard about her two brothers managing her wealth in UK. Bring another Jonathan from Ijaw to rule Nigeria for additional 10 years, there will be nothing to show for it because the people are so self-centered. If ‘Ijaw nation’ becomes a country today, the crisis that will emerge will be more than that of Sudan. ” They would have eyes but they would not see”

    • Author’s gravatar

      Brother l agree with you 100% I find it incredible that these people are defending leaders that robbed them blind and failed to provide any development – madness

    • Author’s gravatar
    • Author’s gravatar

      And what has this unenlightened man done for anybody in Ijaw land that he is posting all this political jagons. Because Dezani did nothing for a Bayelsan doesn’t mean that others haven’t catered to see prosperity in the region. The biggest problem we have has Niger Deltas is the the problem of betrayers, People who can’t stand the face of bribery to betray their brothers. What happened to Ken Saro-wiwa and his followers, you kind sold them out for money and that has been the story of every single person whom has tried to stand for the peoples needs.

  • Author’s gravatar

    All we are saying… we want NIGERDELTA country.

  • Author’s gravatar

    It`s true that,people under GEJ like Dasuki and others in PDP most of
    them are now in APC abuse the financial due process,was Amaechi not
    corrupt? was OBJ a POPE?IBB,ABDULSALAM ABACHA saint?if Abacha is alive
    today nobody would dare point fingers at him,Nigeria knew those that
    gave $21Billion (N3.150TRILLION)Eighteen years ago,i.e up to four(4years
    Budget) then to Organization of Islamic Countries (OIC in1989) our oil
    and collective wealth,has any one talked about it? no ,because he is
    from the North, It is a pity that you use abusive word on former
    President GEJ,I too hates GEJ because he should n`t have accepted that
    VP or what ever slot he took up,because ,the Niger Delta people want
    self determination.seriously GEJ ,i would say pleased his hunters to his
    peril,to remain in power he chased Ibori to exile and jail him,are the
    Northern elites better than GEJ in office?but let me assure any one that
    cares to listen that,if and if GEJ is eventually killed,as they may be
    tabulating,it will be another Patrice Lumumba of Congo,the music will be
    play none stop,Ken Saro wiwa was killed for asking for freedom for the
    Ogonis,
    is the first Nigerian President to accept practically freedom of speech,that build 10 new power plants for power
    generation, 12 new universities and university for Police and Maritime Studies,
    125 special schools for almajiris, build several Federal polytechnics for training
    of manpower in technology fields, send over 300 first class graduates on
    scholarship to study in top 25 universities in the world,
    rehabilitation/construction of railways, now trains run from Lagos to Kano which
    was down for several years, construction of modern.standard guage rail from
    Abuja to Kaduna is on. working seriously on East-West Road, successfully
    implemented Amnesty for Niger Delta, release held funds to NDDC, successfully
    privatize power sector and invest massively in transmission sector, granted
    International Airport at Enugu to South East region, started second Niger
    bridge and bridge over River Benue, remodeled 22 Airports, improvement in
    Airports facilities, granted over 200 billions to universities across the
    Nation for provision of infrastructure, massive investment in Agriculture,
    automobile policy is on, massive rehabilitation/construction of major highways
    across the country like Benin-ore, Lagos-Ibadan, Abuja-lokoja road etc,
    launching of satellites for communication/weather forecasting, building several
    dams for water supply and irrigation, conducted fair election and handed over peacefully

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    The Son of God

    8 hours ago

    The Ijaws are the most abused, cheated and short-changed tribe in
    Nigeria yet they have the most foolish people. The IYC should blame no
    other persons but themselves for the failings of their leaders both in
    the lower and upper cadres. They should ask why their people are such
    thieves. Oil companies have paid various Ijaw communities compensations
    in Billions of Dollars yet the leaders keep the money for themselves and
    send their children abroad while their communities wallow in abject
    poverty. The militants made so much noise about freedom and oppression
    and how they wanted to be emancipated from the shackles of government
    oppression, yet when they were settled they became celebrities living
    ostentatiously and yet their people continue to wallow in abject
    poverty. They eventually got the ultimate opportunity and by a wand of
    Gods miracle their son an Ijaw man was elected president. Rather than
    use that opportunity to transform his community and Ijaw states, he
    embarked on a looting parade which led to a free for all looting
    extravaganza. Why are the Ijaws such pilferers? I know this is not
    peculiar to their tribe but one would have expected that considering the
    poverty in their land they would at least transform their communities
    and their people.

    The Ijaw community need to look inwards and
    check themselves as nobody is to blame but themselves. If they decide to
    arrest GEJ or any other Ijaw person found culpable then so be it. Tribe
    has nothing to do with it as everyone who has dipped his hand in our
    treasury without accounting for it should be held accountable. Buhari is
    going to China to borrow money that only 2 notable Ijaw thieves would
    easily return (Dieziani and GEJ). Time has come for us to wake and face
    reality as we as a people allow too many sentiments to block our
    reasoning.

  • Author’s gravatar

    A man slips and fall on a banana blame Jonathan. A man cant perform well in Bed blame Jonathan..a man missed is flight last night Blame Jonathan a Man was refused visa at the embassy,Blame Jonathan.A man got drunk last night and crash his car blame Jonathan.A man’s dstv subscription expired this morning pin it on Jonathan.

  • Author’s gravatar

    Leave gentle former President GEJ alone, tackle the challenges of Nigeria, don’t bring more troubles to your administration. a word is enough for the wise. God bless Nigeria

  • Author’s gravatar

    Anyone who watched the BBC documentary on Alamieyeseigha would cry for Nigeria how can anyone see him as a hero

  • Author’s gravatar

    I think Gej tenure was very flawed to say the least and obj was not perfect but definitely performed better – however even so I don’t think GEJ shd be probed for the simple fact that no fmr head of state has been probed including Buhari Himself IBB,Obj etc At this point Buhari needs get on with rebuilding the nation he’s got a lot of work to and shd not get distracted

  • Author’s gravatar