*Over offensive remarks on Bayelsa gov

BY EMMA AMAIZE

WARRI – THE Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, yesterday, suspended indefinitely, a senior staff of the Presidential Amnesty Programme’s Demobilisation Camp in Obubra, Mr. Ekpein Appah, for his alleged outburst against Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva.

In a statement by the Head, Media and Communications of the Presidential Amnesty Office, Mr. Henry Ugbolue, Kuku said he “found the comments that the governor, who is a critical stakeholder of the amnesty programme was shielding former militant leader, John Togo, at Government House, Yenagoa, distasteful.

“In the publication, Mr. Appah further challenged the Governor of Bayelsa State to produce the dissident, whom he claimed had taken up residence in the Bayelsa State Government House.

Indeed, given that the publication clearly identified Appah as “Obubra Camp Administrator,” Mr Kuku views the entire publication as a calculated attempt to bring the Amnesty Programme to disrepute and pitch the Amnesty Office against one of the programmes’ critical stakeholders, the Governor of Bayelsa State,” the statement added.

According to Ugbolue, “it must, however, be clarified that Mr. Appah is not the administrator of the Amnesty Programme’s Demobilisation Camp in Obubra but just one of the several camp managers.

“He neither sought nor received the permission of the Special Adviser or the camp commandant to grant the offensive interview to any newspaper.

He acted and spoke for himself and not for the Amnesty Office.

“Owing to this fundamental breach of the rules of his engagement as one of the Programme’s Camp Managers, Mr. Appah has since been placed on indefinite suspension by Hon. Kingsley Kuku”, he stated.