Reuben Wilson, president, Leadership, Peace and Cultural Development Initiative (LPCD) and former Niger Delta militant in this interview with TheNiche, speaks on the ongoing national conference, the 2015 general elections, the Niger Delta struggle. Excerpts…
Jonathan and the national conference
Reuben WilsonFrankly speaking, I must say that President Goodluck Jonathan deserves all the accolades for his thoughtfulness in convoking this assembly of eminent Nigerians, former governors, former parliamentarians, former ministers, the high and mighty, the crop of Nigerians that we all know are critical stakeholders in the Nigeria project, to brainstorm on the way forward for this country.
Nigerians should applaud him for the foresight. He should be commended for not micro-managing the delegates. In his inaugural address, he made it very clear that the delegates have the right to discuss anything and everything about this country, except, of course, the issue of Nigeria’s continued unity and brotherhood. As you must have been aware, Jonathan was very specific in giving direction to the confab. You and I would agree that he has no hidden agenda, like his predecessors who organised similar confabs. He is not just transparent; he is seen to be transparent, in all intents and purposes, as far as this and other issues are concerned. This confab is not just a step in the right direction; it is a commendable step by courageous and patriotic Nigerians who want the good of their fatherland.
Take on 2015
Like every other election, there will be Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials on duty. There will be campaigns and people will be sensitised to go and vote. There will be monitors from within and outside the country. But the election will be very peaceful, much more peaceful than we have ever seen in the past. It will not be like previous elections where people will be begged to go and vote. It will be one election where the winner will know his fate even before the election itself. If you are an athlete, you surely will know, especially from the array of opponents before you, that the race will be a walk-over, even before the whistle is blown. That is what will happen in 2015.
Of course, we have seen clearly now that there are two major political parties that are going to contest the 2015 election. Now, from the people the APC is parading, have you seen anybody who will be able to beat Goodluck Jonathan’s record? You are a journalist and I want to believe you know the people already. Let me not call names. But you can be sure that the North will vote massively for this man because he has done what even their sons could not do for them in all their years in power. Take the almajiri education scheme, for example. Forget what the elite are doing. The masses who will go to vote know the truth. I can assure you that many people will be so disappointed because the common man on the streets knows the truth, and when the time comes, they will gladly give their votes to Jonathan.
Maybe I should shock you: the 2015 election will be one of the most peaceful elections in this country. What is going on now should be expected, but I can tell you that when the chips are down, Nigerians know that they have on their hands the opportunity to decide their future. This election will be a walk-over. This is one aspect of the 2015 election that will shock many people. Mark my words; write it down today, that I, ex-Gen. Reuben Wilson, a former Niger Delta freedom-fighter, tells you that Jonathan will return to office in 2015 and he will do so in style.
Bugaje’s statement
I would not want to give too much attention to Usman Bugaje’s ranting. Bugaje had been in the National Assembly before. If he says that there is no oil-producing state in Nigeria, then he is simply saying that there is no former House of Representatives member called Bugaje; or, he is saying there is no former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) member called Bugaje who became disgruntled. If you believe any of these, then you can believe what he said. I would not want to say more than that. For him to say that oil in the Niger Delta belongs to the North, I recommend that he should see his doctors fast; maybe he is having malaria. You know malaria can make you dream.
The Niger Delta struggle on sabbatical
I do not know what you mean by the struggle hibernating. But what I know is that those of us who fought for the redemption and development of the Niger Delta accepted the amnesty offer and dropped our guns. Today, as far as we are concerned, the amnesty is working. Development has come and we can only expect the best. That is why we keep praying for and working for Mr. President to remain in office and continue with the good works. What are you fighting for again when the country has been turned to a huge construction site? We are seeing development. People say Rome was not built in a day. And I wonder why, in the case of Nigeria, people think that the evils of the past can be corrected in a twinkle of an eye. If I may ask, if it takes 10 hours for your son to pack sand from outside into your sitting room, how long will it take you to clean up the place? One hour? Answer me in your mind. That is the way it is!
Security challenges posed by Boko Haram in the country
The thing is that Nigeria belongs to everybody. We understand that the people who are causing the havoc are doing so because of President Jonathan, and you would recall that when he was presenting himself for election, a lot of comments were made by certain people. Some of them were bold enough to say that if Jonathan took over, they would make Nigeria ungovernable. Boko Haram does not seem to know what they are doing.
We were told that their grouse is that they did not want western education. But tell me, when did you hear that Boko Haram has burnt a school? They are bombing churches and other public facilities. That is to show you that they are not sincere. Why can’t they come out to say this is what we are fighting for? They are merely acting a script and they want to make sure that Jonathan does not concentrate. We will not follow them. All we are saying is that they should allow Jonathan to concentrate, so that we can all enjoy this fresh air. Before he contested the election, he promised Nigerians a regime of fresh air and that is exactly what he is pursuing. He wants the good of our children. That is the truth; nothing but the truth. Boko Haram will stop as soon as Jonathan is sworn in as president for another term. All that is happening now is because their sponsors think they can intimidate the man. They even think that by causing this havoc, the president will say let me leave; I will not contest again. That is what they are looking for. But the man will contest and will still win. People will vote for him based on his performance, which is there for everybody to see.
Boko Haram crisis versus Niger-Delta crisis
There is absolute no basis for comparison. We took to arms then to fight for our rights because we were being oppressed by those who exploit our oil and leave our communities underdeveloped. After dialogue and agreements with the government to turn around the situation in our region, we gladly surrendered our arms.
For Boko Haram, you and I don’t even know what they are fighting for; they go into hiding and in mask to hide their identity because they fight for no just cause. As Niger Delta agitators, our faces and camps were known to the government. We even invited them severally for dialogue; so we had nothing to hide.
Boko Haram is just politically-motivated and they go about bombing churches, killing innocent citizens, even their own brothers, and assassinating top government officials.
This can never be compared with the struggle in the Niger Delta. They are clearly trying to fulfil the promise of the prominent politician to make the country ungovernable, if someone from the minority is elected president.
Ex-militants’ efforts to get Jonathan back to power in 2015
We are strongly behind the president. All other presidents had been allowed to serve their two tenures. Then, why is it now an issue with President Jonathan? Some people have decided to fight him tooth and nail, and even using some of our brothers in the Niger Delta region to fight him. We are calling on all to stop and support our dear president. We, the ex-war lords, have vowed total support and will soon start our state to state peaceful campaign for Mr. President.
Restoration of moral and ethical values in the society
All I will say is that whether you are a scholar or not, whoever you may be, wherever you find yourself and in whatever capacity, do what is right and preach the gospel of peace. That is what our leaders should do. If you sponsor people to kill, who will you lead when you get to the throne; and if you get into that position and then people begin to distract and paint a bad picture of you, how will you feel? What we would not want people do to us, let us not do to others. It is a golden rule.
Amnesty to the Niger Delta militants and Jonathan’s delivery of good governance
You cannot talk about the amnesty programme without talking about the chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Committee, Kingsley Kuku. Of course, he is giving Mr. President the needed encouragement to see the amnesty programme through. Yes, there are promises that the federal government made to us when we accepted the amnesty. We were promised a lifeline; accommodation, security, pipelines surveillance jobs and all that. Yes, those promises are yet to be kept. But Kuku and Mr. President are working towards making these to happen. We can only expect that these things will happen soon. Kuku is Godsend to the youths in Niger Delta. It was not a mistake appointing him as Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Chairman of Presidential Amnesty Programme; it was the handiwork of God. God knew that this is the right person that can pilot this office and really he is doing very, very well.
In fact, Kuku is performing. It is because of him that sometimes we, the leaders, sit down to say if not for Kuku, we would have done this; but because of him, everybody has been patient, waiting for when God will answer the prayers of the leaders because the leaders have been sidelined. All the promises are still there. But we know that one day our brother, Mr. President, will look into it. We believe that one day Kuku will talk with president and he will listen and do what we were promised before accepting amnesty.