The dark days of militancy in the Niger Delta may resume over alleged non-payment of ex-militants’ allowances by banks designated to do so by the Amnesty Office, reports Daily Independent.

The paper says it gathered from close sources at the weekend that the ex-militants, especially those from Rivers State are complaining bitterly about the shoddy manner the payment of their allowances were handled by the Amnesty Office and were contemplating returning to the creeks as a last resort.

According to the paper, “At present, there are more than 5,000 beneficiaries of the Amnesty Programme in Rivers State with the least ex-agitator said to be entitled to N65,000 monthly like their counterparts from other states of the Niger Delta.

“However, investigations have revealed that for almost two years, the designated banks for the Amnesty Programme in Rivers State have not paid the beneficiaries.

“One of the ex-agitators confided in this newspaper that efforts to unravel the cause of the non-payment was not yielding fruits as the Amnesty Office could not come up with any response despite several inquiries to ascertain why those of them from Rivers were not getting paid unlike their counterparts from other states.”

Daily Independent quotes a source who craved anonymity as saying: “The situation is causing great disquiet among some of our colleagues. While some made up their minds to speak out, others have resolved to go back to the creeks, if the matter is not resolved quickly.”

The paper quotes another source as attributing the recent rise in crime rate, insecurity and reactivation of militant camps to the disaffection among the beneficiaries of the programme caused by this development in the state.

“It is imperative to call on the concerned banks in the state and the National Assembly to intervene in the matter, to sustain the peace in the Niger Delta,” it quotes the source as saying.

•Photo shows some Niger Delta militants before the amnesty programme came into effect.

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