By Valentine Amanze
Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last Bayelsa State Governorship Election, Chief Timipre Sylva, has condemned Monday’s killing of three soldiers in Nembe by suspected militants.
Sylva, through his media adviser, Mr. Doifie Buokoribo, stated that those behind the act were enemies of the people. He advised residents of Nembe and its environs to be vigilant, and work closely with security agencies to isolate and frustrate the efforts of persons who want to make the area an oasis of evil and backwardness.
His words: “The killing of the soldiers is a grievous crime that cannot be excused on any ground. It is a legal and cultural abomination, which goes against everything the people of Nembe and neighbouring communities believe in. Those who committed this sacrilege are only out to set up our communities for destruction. They should be fished out and made to face the law.
“We must work with the security agencies to isolate and frustrate the machinations of those who would want to make our communities a fertile ground for violence and underdevelopment.
“As I have always said, the solution to the problems in the Niger Delta does not lie in violence; it lies in constructive engagement and dialogue. We have come a long way on the path of peaceful solution to our problems. And President Muhammadu Buhari has shown unprecedented commitment to the peaceful resolution of all problems in the Niger Delta and development of the region. We cannot at this point begin to roll back the frontiers of peace and development. We cannot afford to return to violence as a means of agitation.”
