The Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) on Monday appealed to the militant group, Niger Delta Avengers, to cease hostilities and destruction of oil facilities in the Niger Delta region.

Mr Udengs Eradiri, President of IYC, made the appeal during a press conference at Ijaw House in Yenagoa to commemorate the 2016 Isaac Boro Day.

Eradiri noted that the neglect and development issues raised by Isaac Boro in his days of struggle were yet to be addressed, saying that the destruction was counterproductive and destroys the environment as well.

He said that even though there was merit in the grievances expressed by the new militant group, they should not resort to violence.

His words: “We appeal to the Niger Delta Avengers to stop the destruction of oil facilities, they should look for other ways of expressing their grievances and not resort to violence.

“The issues they are raising are valid and the government has taken some steps that are not in the interest of the region by slashing the budget for the amnesty programme, NDDC, Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs amongst others.

“The Federal Government should engage the stakeholders of the Niger Dlta region to find lasting peace, as the military option has worsened the situation in the past, we have to try other methods of peace building.”

Eradiri called on the Federal Government to review the oil blocs bid allocation process and make it open for Nigerians from various parts of the country to participate.

He noted that with the anticipated bid rounds for the oil blocks in 2017, the country was expected to right the wrongs of the past and spread out the lease for the blocks to a wider segment of the country.

On the illegal refineries, the IYC President called on the government to immediately legalise the artisanal refineries to further boost the local refining capacity and reduce the pressure on foreign exchange due to total dependence on imported fuel.

He said that more than 70 percent of diesel used in the country was sourced from the local refineries adding that legalising them would yield revenue to the government as the crude will be sold to them through the formal channels.

According to him, legalising the artisanal refineries would ensure that environmentally sustainable standards are set and enforced while the operators would be made to pay tax to the government.

•Photo shows IYC President Udengs Eradiri.

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