Group tackles Ijaw activist over comments on South-South Govs

A non-governmental organisation, Niger Delta Peace and Development Advocates (NDPDA), has challenged Coordinator of the Ijaw Monitoring Group (IMG), Comrade Joseph Evah, to name the South-South governor that is oppressing his people or render an apology for such a reckless comment.

The Ijaw activist had in an interview published by a national newspaper at the weekend, while reacting to the initial botched meeting between stakeholders and the federal government, said that governors of the region were “cowards” and that they were only good at oppressing their people while exonerating the federal government.

President of the NDPDA, Mr. Efe Mac-Daniel, said in a statement issued in Abuja, that Evah’s tirade against the governors was misplaced as they (governors) carried along the stakeholders while responding to the absence of the federal government delegation to the botched Port Harcourt meeting.

“It is even wrong for Evah to criticise the region’s governors for a meeting that eventually held. Our governors acted in good faith and in consonance with the mood of our people at the time. It was the strong message that they sent out, backed by the stakeholders, that prompted the federal government to quickly reschedule the meeting.

“It is therefore out of place and unacceptable for somebody like Mr. Evah to wrongly criticise leaders of the region for doing what is right. People that are not on ground in the Niger Delta cannot sit in the comfort of their homes in Lagos, Abuja and elsewhere and mislead others with comments that have no bearing with the reality on ground. Directing attacks at leaders or governors for the sole purpose of grandstanding amounts to sheer attention seeking. Evah needs to watch his comments and apologise for wrongly attacking the South-South governors,” Mac-Daniel stated.