The Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, has assured Nigerians that the security challenges in the Niger Delta will soon be resolved.
Kachikwu gave the assurance in Abuja on Friday in a statement signed by the ministry’s Director of Press and Public Relations, Mr Idang Alibi.
The minister, according to the statement, observed that three attacks had taken place in the last two weeks, including Wednesday’s Forcados bombing, in spite of efforts being made to promote peace in the region.
Kachikwu said he was saddened that in spite of months of intensive personal and collective efforts to engage all stakeholders in the region and the recent successful meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, these attacks had continued.
“I condemn these wanton attacks and reiterate that the path to providing lasting solutions to the Niger Delta challenges remains dialogue,’’ the statement quoted the minister as saying.
He appealed to all stakeholders in the region to embrace peace and dialogue and shun acts that further create difficulties for the country as well as impoverish and worsen the ecological problems of the region.
The minister urged the militants to stop all acts of aggression and give the ongoing dialogue a chance to birth peace in the region.
He said though distraught, all ministers from the region would continue to work under the president’s mandate to get a complete stakeholder buy-in to the solution programme of the administration.