President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has been brought under pressure to sack Maj. Gen Barry Tariye Ndiomu, Rtd, as Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme over allegation of ‘‘gross incompetence, cluelessness and visionless leadership.’’
A press release signed by Comrade Ebiowei Alaowei, National President, Presidential Amnesty Programme Beneficiaries Forum on Monday, alleged that ‘‘Maj-Gen. Barry Tariye Ndiomu, Rtd, has completely bastardised the Presidential Amnesty Programme with his clueless leadership style and has neglected the real beneficiaries of the programme.’’
Alaowei noted that ‘‘He has instead incorporated into the programme people who were never part of the programme. The original beneficiaries of the programme that are officially captured are abandoned for others that are not part of the programme.’’
He also accused Mr Ndiomu of making the Presidential Amnesty Programme a platform for empowering his family members and friends, leaving out the genuine beneficiaries of the programme to suffer.
‘‘He didn’t make any contribution or sacrifice leading to the establishment of the programme and therefore, doesn’t care about the success or otherwise of the programme. His primary interest is to amass as much wealth as he can for himself, his relatives and friends,’’ he claimed.
According to him, ‘‘His new stock-in-trade is to hire and mobilize some gullible traditional rulers and youths with the scarce resources of the office to drum support for him to be retained in office by President Tinubu. We hereby state boldly that anyone drumming support for Mr Ndiomu to continue in office is an enemy of the Niger Delta region.
‘‘There is currently renewed security tension building up in the Niger Delta due to the refusal of Mr Ndiomu to pay the monthly stipends of some of the genuine beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme without any cogent reasons.
‘‘Mr Ndiomu has derailed the programme from its original plans and objectives because he doesn’t know or understand the foundational philosophy behind the establishment of the programme.
‘‘He doesn’t also know the critical and pivotal role the programme plays in the sustenance of peace and security in the Niger Delta region. Therefore, Mr Ndiomu should be immediately sacked to save the Presidential Amnesty Programme from further abuse and derailment,’’ he alleged.
‘‘Mr President, Sir, don’t allow anyone to trivialize the relevance and the importance of the Presidential Amnesty Programme for the sustenance of peace in the Niger Delta region, where you need the bulk of resources to run your administration. Any attempt to trivialize or stop the programme will lead to serious negative consequences that will negatively affect your administration. You should therefore, give priority attention to issues concerning the programme.
‘‘Mr President, Sir, what you need to do urgently to reposition the programme for the successful actualization of its original mandate is to appoint a competent critical stakeholder who knows and understands the original mandate of the programme .You should not listen to any traditional ruler or group of people advocating for the retention of Ndiomu as Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme,’’ Alaowei maintained.
The National President described Ndiomu as incompetent and cannot effectively pilot the affairs of the office successfully, noting ‘‘Instead of convening meetings with the direct beneficiaries and critical stakeholders of the programme to cross-breed ideas for better and more efficient discharge of his duties, as was done by his predecessors, he is busy going about mobilizing some irrelevant and gullible traditional rulers, who have no influence even in their domains, to advocate for his retention.’’
He recalled that ‘‘The Presidential Amnesty Programme was created to rehabilitate, train, empower and re-integrate us, the ex-agitators, into the society. We are the people that sacrificed for the establishment of the programme.
‘‘We are the genuine beneficiaries of the programme, who were even made outcasts in our communities during the Niger Delta struggle by some of these same selfish and gullible traditional rulers, who are for selfish reasons, now calling for the retention of Maj. Gen. Barry Tariye Ndiomu, Rtd. as Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.’’
He claimed that Ndiomu as APC member supported PDP candidate, stating, ‘‘Furthermore, Mr Ndiomu as an appointee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) government didn’t support the All Progressives Congress (APC) in any way in the 2023 general elections but instead he openly supported the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), especially in Bayelsa, his home state.
‘‘He openly supported the PDP candidates and even used the resources of his office to finance his younger sister, Mrs Ebizi Ndiomu-Brown to win a seat in the Bayelsa State House of Assembly. He bluntly refused to render any form of help to any APC candidate. He sabotaged the interest of the All Progressives Congress in his LGA, ward and polling unit for the PDP.
‘‘Such a person will never sincerely work for the success of the ruling party and the vision of Mr President because his true allegiance and loyalty is to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP),’’ Alaowei added.
