By Emem Idio, Yenagoa

Elders and youths in the Niger Delta under various groups have showered encomiums on the foremost Niger Delta ex-agitator, Chief Ebikabowei Victor-Ben, also known as “General Boyloaf” as he marks his birthday.

They noted that the contributions of ‘General Boyloaf’ in the region from the time of former President Olusegun Obasanjo to late President Umaru Musa Yar’adua and beyond led to the end of militancy in the oil-rich region and gave rise to the establishment and reactivation of more viral intervention agencies including the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, the Presidential Amnesty Programme, PAP, and the Ministry of the Niger Delta Affairs.

Speaking at the residence of the ex-agitator in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State capital, High Chief James Terebo-Julius, while wishing him well, on behalf of other groups conferred on him the title of “Man of Peace and Nation Building.”

Terebo-Julius recalled that while former ex-militant leaders were reluctant to embrace the peace offer by late President Yardua, Boyloaf took a bold step to embrace the Amnesty deal which convinced others to embrace the peace that is currently being enjoyed today.

He said: “General Boyloaf contributions led to the astonishing increase in crude oil production from mere 900 thousand barrels per day eventually to over 2.4 million barrels per day. His efforts and navigational skills also led to the drastic reduction in crude oil theft and illegal bunkering across the waterways of the region, leading to thousands of his followers to call him “The Master and Commander of the Atlantic Ocean including the Gulf of Guinea.”

Terebo-James while calling on other leaders in the region to emulate him, described the former co-founder and leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) as a phenomenon whose struggle has given thousands of Niger Delta youths the opportunity to be trained in universities and vocational institutions in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other parts of the world.

The elders and youths who also used the opportunity to condemn the killings of soldiers in Okuama Community in Delta state, commiserated with the federal government, emphasizing that peace remains indispensable in the quest to make the Niger Delta the safest place to live and do business.