YOUTH MILITANCY AND AMNESTY IN THE NIGER DELTA (A CASE STUDY OF WARRI METROPOLIS)
ABSTRACT
This study examined youth militancy and amnesty in the Niger Delta, a case study of Warri Metropolis. The study was base on primary and secondary data and analysis. The study reveals among things that youth militancy in the Niger Delta is as a result of the neglect of the people by the government. They produce almost 90% of the nation’s economy but the people there are not remembered.
It was argued that with oil becoming dominant, derivation was reduced from 50% to zero% which the Niger Delta people seen as being grossly unfair and an insult to the sensibilities of the people of Niger Delta. This injustice led to an uprising by the Ijaw’s led by a former student leader Isaac Alaka Boro.
The revolt according to political analysts was put down in twelve days. It was also been argued that the Nigeria civil war that raged from 1967 to 1970 had the fight for the control of the Niger Delta oil wealth as part of its causes
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKROUND OF THE STUDY
Strategically located along the gulf of Guinea and a top enormous high quality oil reserves, the three Nigerian states of Delta, Bayelsa and Rivers and some others- commonly referred to as the Niger Delta have been plagued with armed groups and insurgents for decades. Although its tremendous resource wealth should make the Delta one of Western Africa’s most prosperous regions, decades of neglect by the Nigeria government widespread corruption, and the environmental damage caused by the MNCS, operating in the region has alienated and marginalized the local population and allowed armed groups to proliferate. Compensation paid out by the MNCS for appropriated and polluted land has led to inter-communal and inter-ethnic violence, most notably between the Ijaws and the Itsekiris in the Warri area of Delta State.
Since the discovery of oil in Delta this type of ethnic conflict has been driven primarily by the desire to control resources along disputed community borders.
Weather these armed groups are genuinely highing for social justice for their communities or are interested merely in profit, most sustain themselves through criminal activity such as piracy, kidnapping, and oil theft or “Bunkering”. While it is hard to estimate how much oil is actually stolen, there are indications that it might be as high as 5-10% of Nigeria’s total national production.
In an effort to combat oil bunkering, the Nigerian government began to increase its military presences in the Delta in 2003: this culminated in the deployment of a Joint Task Force (JTF) in 2008. However, these actions triggered serious unintended consequences, as some military personnel took the opportunity to participate in the illicit trade. In addition, reports of extortion, rape, and the general intimidation of the populace by the security forces drove even more alienated youths into the armed groups.
