……Group accuses Amnesty Programme of marginalising Ondo oil communities, demands Otuaro’s removal, threatens peaceful protest in Abuja
The Afenifere Progressives, a pan-Yoruba organisation comprising young Afenifere members and advocates of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration and reform agenda, has raised concerns over what it described as growing tension in the Niger Delta, particularly among non-Ijaw-speaking oil-producing communities.
The group expressed displeasure over alleged marginalisation, discrimination and neglect of oil-producing communities in Ondo State under the administration of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).
Its concerns follow a Freedom of Information (FOI) suit reportedly instituted by a legal practitioner, Daisi Onetufo, Esq., against the Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dr Dennis Otuaro, and other respondents over the alleged failure to provide information requested on scholarship beneficiaries and other activities of the programme.
In a statement jointly signed by its Coordinator and Secretary, Omotehinse Michael and Comrade Modupe Adedayo, respectively, the Afenifere Progressives described the development as disturbing, insisting that Ondo State’s oil-producing communities must not be treated as second-class stakeholders in a programme established to address the grievances and developmental challenges of oil-producing communities.
The organisation disclosed plans to submit a formal petition to President Tinubu, prominent Afenifere leaders, including Baba Bisi Akande and Chief Pius Akinyelure, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi II, the National Assembly, the Office of the National Security Adviser and other relevant stakeholders.
According to the group, the petition will demand the immediate restructuring of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, a comprehensive review of its leadership, scholarship allocations, beneficiary records and representation of non-Ijaw-speaking communities, as well as the removal of its current administrator, Dr Dennis Otuaro.
The group warned that the alleged marginalisation could become a serious political liability for President Tinubu, particularly in Yoruba-speaking oil-producing communities in the Niger Delta, with potential consequences for his re-election prospects in the region.
It also disclosed plans to mobilise its members and other Yoruba residents in Abuja for a peaceful protest at the Presidential Amnesty Programme’s office until the Federal Government addresses the grievances, removes Otuaro and restructures the programme.
While reaffirming its support for President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, the organisation maintained that its loyalty to the President should not prevent it from speaking out against what it considers injustice towards Yoruba communities.
It called on Yoruba leaders, traditional rulers, political stakeholders and civil society organisations to intervene before the growing dissatisfaction escalates into a wider crisis of confidence and threatens the fragile peace in the Niger Delta.
The group further cautioned President Tinubu against allowing the actions or perceived failures of individuals managing the Amnesty Programme to undermine his administration’s political fortunes and relationship with oil-producing communities in the Yoruba-speaking parts of the Niger Delta.
It insisted that the President must act decisively, stressing that the Renewed Hope Agenda should guarantee fairness, inclusion and equal opportunities for all Nigerians, irrespective of their ethnic or linguistic backgrounds.
According to the organisation, urgent presidential intervention is necessary to prevent what it described as an avoidable administrative controversy from developing into a major political and security challenge.
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