In this concluding part, the “generalissimo” announces intention to find solution to the Boko Haram menace. 

Excerpts.

By EMMA AMAIZE, Regional Editor, South-South

WHAT challenges are you facing in the execution of this contract?

The challenges we are facing are not much, I know that in a contract like this, you will definitely face challenges, but I am prepared for them and know that after some time, we will overcome them.

 Three years after you accepted amnesty, can you say the government is keeping to its side of the bargain in terms of development of the Niger-Delta?

Not really. For people to develop the Niger-Delta, it will take some time, and that is the more reason we are even appealing to our governors because there are things the states are supposed to handle. Like you don’t expect somebody from the presidency or Abuja to come and do roads in Warri. They have their own functions and the states have theirs too.

We are appealing to all of them to try on their own to do what they are supposed to do. Even President Goodluck Jonathan cannot develop the whole of the Niger-Delta if he happens to rule for eight years because for you to construct a bridge from here (Warri) to Forcados, it may take up to six or eight years, so if you want to do it, before you will put the paper works together, it will take another one to two years. It is a gradual process, that is why we are still mounting pressure on the Federal Government to see that they start something now.

Can you say that militancy has achieved anything for  people of  the Niger-Delta?

You know, some people call us militants, but we feel that we are freedom fighters, fighting for our rights. People may say that we have not achieved anything, but as a leader in my  capacity, I know that things are changing gradually and that is the more reason that I have continued to appeal to my fellow brothers, leaders and followers that we should still give government some time. Whatever we have today, let us still manage it well.

 Apart from providing security for pipelines and chasing oil thieves, what other activities are you involved in now?

I am not involved in anything. My agreement with the President then was first of all, to provide an alternative means of survival for those who are not highly educated.

You know, it is not everybody that went to school, I didn’t go to school, so not everybody can go abroad to train or go to  university.  Once you find a way to take care of the people, you will solve the problem, and of course, it is the duty of government to take care of its people. Once they have jobs to do, then you can control your people. At least, you can call somebody and ask him, you are receiving N100, 000 or N60, 000, why are you still doing something that is not in line with the law. But if you don’t provide anything for them to survive on, they will always capitalize on that to do evil. This is the more reason I am bent on stopping these illegal activities.

Talking about putting a stop to illegal activities, some oil thieves in your domain were after you some time ago for daring to obstruct their activities.  I heard they either pulled a gun at you or wanted to attack you. What really transpired?

When you are fighting crime, you come across a lot of things, it is one of those things. When we started this struggle, the government was using our people against us, but at the end everybody now stepped aside.

 Now, can you tell me what life is like for you outside the creek?

There is not much difference, it is just that you can travel on your own, maybe to Abuja, Lagos and other places you want and come back with ease unlike before.

Acceptance of amnesty

Before we even started the struggle, I had a small house in Warri like in Okerenkoko, so that if I come to Warri, I wouldn’t even want to spend more than one week, before returning home. That was how I lived. Even now, since I accepted amnesty, I have never spent up to a month here in Warri. I would travel to Abuja, maybe spend two, three weeks or a month, come back to Warri, spend about two to three days, then I move back.

What is your social life like? Where can one find you relaxing? Are you a club person?

No, I am not used to clubs. Where I am used to is where old men and women are playing drums, doing things that have to do with tradition. This is where you will find me. I am not used to this township life.

 At Oporoza, when the JTF stormed your base, I was there few days after. I saw shrines, charms and a lot of fetish objects. What have all these to do with Christianity since you describe yourself as one?

Before Europeans came to meet us in Nigeria and Africa, people knew about God. Everybody had his or her own way of worshipping his or her gods in their different tribes. It was maybe another civilized way of enslaving our people: somebody would come to your house and say this thing is not good, remove this one and take mine. I was declared wanted by the Nigerian government, which was headed by a Muslim and later supported by a Christian.  I am giving you an example, somebody like Rimtip, a former JTF commander, he is a man of God, if I were to be relying on Muslims fully… because even Mohammed told me that no matter how I hide, by the time they slaughter up to 10 rams, they would get me and I told him that I am more than that.

The  Almighty God knows that I am fighting for my rights. We don’t even have any shrine there, what you saw there was Egbesu temple and maybe, Amasikeumor, where the masquerade that our people use to celebrate every year comes out from.

I believe very strongly that the connection between our people and God before the coming of Jesus Christ was Egbesu and that is the more reason that if there is any problem today, the highest Christian in Ijaw land will move to the shrine of Egbesu. So, Egbesu is not something that somebody just invents, it is more than what human beings can conceive.

I am surprised that you are holding on to Christianity and Egbesu deity at the same time, but Christianity does not permit that. You don’t worship God and Mammon at the same time. Any other god outside the God of Israel, who commanded Dagon, the god of the Philistines to fall flat on its face, in absolute worship and obedience to Him, in the presence of  His ark, is an inferior god?

(Long laughter), No, I don’t believe in this your story. The way that story is, in the same Bible, Micah 4:5, said every nation will walk in the name of God. Then, the people of Israel will walk in the name of the Lord, their God. Ordinarily, we feel that we are the owners of even the Bible. We, the Ijaw people feel that we came from Israel, the Igbo people may say that they came from another place, the Hausa feel that they came from another place.

Egbesu and the true God

If you are talking about your own god, which one are you referring to. The one that I am talking about is the true God, that is our belief. If anybody  comes here to say that we are idol worshippers, they are the idol worshippers because everybody has his function. Angel Michael has his  function, in some areas in the Bible, he is referred to as God, you understand, that is the way life is.  Egbesu is the link between us and the Almighty God.  I can tell you that Jesus Christ is happy with Egbesu and that is the more reason why I can go to church, I can do anything.

Any way, we are not in a religious class, let me leave that, but Jesus Christ, certainly, would not be happy with a god that you call Egbesu because besides Jehovah, there is no other God and His mission was to reconcile man to this God through Him, not through any other intermediary.

That is not true my brother. If you come to the shrine of Egbesu, we have the seven Bibles, both New Testament and Old Testament, and so any area that you come from, we will confront you, we are the owners of the Bible.

You said you left the country for about two weeks when the hunt was on, which country did you flee to because we thought then that you would not have been able to get out of the country, except hibernate in the swamp?

I will not go into that (laughs)

Can you tell me the most bizarre thing that has ever happened to you in life?

Hmm, I think it was only that day that I was taken away from Camp 5

It was painful and amazing to you the way it happened?

And I know that it happened because it was the will of God.

The soldiers came, both land and air and everybody had to run away?

Yes, something happened, that is the more reason why people were crying here and there that Tompolo has finished killing our people. But they did not say what they did to our people.

What will you say is the turning point in your life?

What marked the turning point in my life, I will go back to when we started this struggle. Before, we cannot speak our own dialect (Ijaw) in Warri, but we started this struggle, people started to say, Ijaw, Ijaw people. Now, almost everybody in Warri is trying to speak one Ijaw language or the other. They wear the traditional Ijaw cap – that is the turning point for me.

 What is the most difficult decision you have ever taken in life?

The most difficult decision was my going to accept amnesty. It was not my intention, but I felt that if I failed to do that at that point in time, my people would continue to suffer. That was my most difficult decision.

The government appears not to have a concrete answer to the menace of Boko Haram. Do you have any suggestion on how it can handle this?

Yes, I think maybe, by next week, we will start work on that. What I believe in is to dialogue with them. And like what E.K Clark said, in every local government, in every state, if the people are sincere, we can engage these people in this process. Now that they cannot do it properly, we can help them.

I wanted to come in earlier, but you know, everybody is looking at me and thinking that if I go to any place, I will start another trouble again. So now that the thing is almost getting out of hand, I can move into Muslims area because they know that I don’t have bad intention for anybody. You cannot accept somebody in the physical only, spiritually, you can access somebody also.

I want to be involved in finding a lasting solution by engaging them and discussing with them. I want to hear from the real Boko Haram leaders directly, what is the problem and by the time I hear from them, I will proffer my solution.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo intervened sometime ago and after he left, somebody was murdered. Are you not worried about the danger of your mission?

In the process of trying to solve any problem, a lot of things would still happen, but that will not stop you from taking the right step. I prefer to take a tour of the area to meet with the people involved and I know very well that I have been into situations like this, but not like the one they are doing. Going to churches to kill people who are not fighting with you, even the God of Muslims do not support that, but you need to take your time to talk to these people.

I would have to explain to them that the way and manner they are going about this thing… even if they have grievances against the government, there are ways to express their grievances.

You led the offensive on Atlas Cove even when the JTF was searching everywhere for you and you are the brain behind the fear-provoking MEND. Where did you acquire this heart of steel from?

That is what we are saying, if God knows that people are oppressed, he will always bring out somebody to save his people and that is why I strongly believe that all I am doing today,it is through the God of our people. And that is why if you see me ordinarily, just like you have put it now, you know I cannot hurt a fly, but for the direct calling from God.