Soldiers disperse Ex-Niger Delta militants protesting
nonpayment of stipends arrears
A detachment of troops of the joint military force deployed
to the Niger Delta, Operation Delta Safe on Tuesday morning dispersed hundreds
of ex-militants who had blocked the East-West road.
The ex-militants under the tree phases of the amnesty scheme
blocked the Mbiama axis of the East-West road to motorists at about 6.30 am.
Respite however came to the trapped motorists when armed
troops of the joint task force arrived in two patrol vans to remove the
blockade and open the road to the public at around 7.30 am.
The soldiers fired several warning shots into the air which
compelled the protesters to scamper to several directions to safety.
Mr Elliot Seimiebo, an ex-militant who is on the phase 1 of
the amnesty scheme said on Tuesday morning that the soldiers had used the
firearms to disperse the peaceful protest aimed at drawing the attention to the
neglect of their welfare.
“We had renounced violence and remain peaceful in all our
approaches, our intention was to draw attention to the nonpayment of our
stipends for four months.
“We were not armed but the soldiers turned their weapons on
us and there was confusion as people ran for their lives, one of the protesters
was hit by stray bullet and got injured on his leg,” Seimiebo said.
When Contacted, Lt.-Cdr. Thomas Otuji, Spokesman of
Operation Delta Safe said that the claims that protesters were shot was untrue.
“Our troops were sent to the scene to ensure free flow of
traffic and they went there to clear the blockade on the East-West road and
there is no such report at my disposal as we speak,the ex-militants were
professionally dispersed ” Otuji said by phone.
Also Mr Piriye Kirayamo, Liason Officerat the Amnesty Office
in Yenagoa sais that the office was aware of the liability to the militants but
assured that efforts were underway to clear the backlog of stipends.
“We have been in discussions with the ex-agitators and have
been appealing to them to remain calm, the office is doing everything to ensure
that their stipends are paid,” Kiyaramo said
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