BY SONI DANIEL, Regional Editor, North

ABUJA — The campaign for the re-election of President Goodluck Jonathan heightened, Wednesday, with his Special Adviser on Niger Delta, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, advancing several reasons to justify the need for Nigerians to re-elect the president for a second term in 2015.

Kuku told Vanguard, yesterday, in Abuja, that although Jonathan had not told them that he was interested in a second term, the people of the region were united in their quest for him to run for eight years as stipulated by the Nigerian Constitution.

The presidential aide stated that the call for all Nigerians to back Jonathan’s re-election was borne out of the fact that he needed more time to implement the major components of the amnesty programme granted Niger Delta militants by his predecessor.

Denying ever threatening violence if Jonathan was not returned in 2015, Kuku, said he only appealed to Nigerians to allow Jonathan to do two terms to complete the various programmes contained in the amnesty programme and develop the country.

“Unfortunately, what I said has been turned upside down. I did not threaten that there would be a resurgence of Niger Delta violence, if Jonathan was not returned for a second term. I did not say so and I want Nigerians to understand what I said and what I meant,” Kuku explained.

Kuku claimed that despite the agreement entered into between the late YarÁdua and Niger Delta militants, only the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration phase of the programme had been implemented with 30,000 ex-militants catered for, while the development of the region and welfare package for the militant leaders were yet to be executed.

Giving a historical perspective of how Yar’Ádua and the ex-agitators arrived at the fragile peace that had paved the way for increased oil production in the country, Kuku regretted that the peace could be derailed if the agreement reached with the Federal Government was not faithfully implemented.

Kuku said, “Nigeria’s peace is still fragile and we need to be very careful to avoid degeneration.”

Again, if the means of livelihood of the people of the Niger Delta are not assured in a regenerated environment, the hope of the people will be enmeshed in hopelessness.

“So far, the Niger Delta people have not seen the total implementation of the amnesty programme they entered into with the government, chief among them the development of the Niger Delta Coastal Road, the building of new towns, the provision of lifeline in the oil industry for ex-agitators and the remediation of the environment.

“It is in the light of strengthening and consolidating the peace in the Niger Delta and for oil production to improve for the economy to bounce back that I recently advocated in the United States of America that if Jonathan wants to run in 2015, Nigerians should support him to complete his eight years as enshrined in the law.

The presidential aide, who also lamented the mounting opposition to Jonathan’s Presidency, noted that most of the problems afflicting the polity were artificially created to weaken the administration and portray it as having failed to meet the yearnings and aspirations of the people.

“Jonathan remains Nigeria’s second ‘war time’ President and his tenure marks the greatest trying moment that Nigeria has faced clearly because the problems are created by people to stop him from succeeding as the President of Nigeria,” he stated.