By Emma Amaize, Jimitota Onoyume, Samuel Oyadongha & Festus Ahon
WARRI— THE Federal Government, yesterday, invited ex-militants who stormed Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Wednesday, to protest that they were excluded from the Post-Amnesty Programme by the Presidential Committee on Amnesty to a meeting.

The details were not clear but a Presidency official told Vanguard: “The ex-militants who came to Abuja, last Wednesday, have been invited to a meeting in Abuja tomorrow (today). I think invitation letters should have been sent out to them.”

The official did not say if those expected at the meeting were leaders of the ex-militants alone or all of them that went to Abuja, but Vanguard gathered that government wanted to meet with all of them..

Chief of Staff to the President, Chief Mike Oghiadomhe who met with the ex-militants at the Eagles Square, Abuja, had assured them that the Federal Government would address their demands.

Some of the ex-militant leaders who spoke to Vanguard said they did not know the ex-militants that stormed Abuja, but an ex-militant leader, Gen. Aso Tombo said they came to Abuja to see President Goodluck Jonathan because their previous efforts to get the coordinator of the post-amnesty programme, Mr. Timi Alaibe to include them in the programme had not yielded result.

Alaibe who spoke to Vanguard on phone, yesterday afternoon, affirmed that the post-amnesty training at Obubra was on course.

He said the ex-militants that successfully underwent training in the first batch left camp yesterday adding that this week would be for post-mortem.

Asked about his impression of the non-violence training for the first batch, he said: “I am happy and satisfied with the quality of training that was given to them”.

It was gathered that the second batch of ex-militants would report to the Obubra training camp next week. Before then, the Presidential Committee is expected to correct the lapses observed in the training of the first batch.

However, a group of ex-generals of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, has called on ex-militants who were not ready to obey the rules in the Obubra training camp to quit the programme instead of fomenting crisis.

Spokesman of the group, Mark Anthony told Vanguard: “We are warning those individuals or group of persons who are not ready for the rehabilitation and training exercise to simply vacate the camp to allow those who are ready for the training to continue to tap something to better their lives and families.”

Some ex-militants commit crimes –Rivers police boss

Meantime, some repentant militants have been accused of involvement in violent crimes in Rivers State, by the state Police Commissioner, Mr Suleiman Abba.

The Police boss who spoke, weekend, in Port Harcourt said the police would soon release details on the involvement of these repentant militants in violent crimes in the state.

The Commissioner paraded an alleged serial killer, Sunebari Daboru (alias Golden) at the briefing, stressing that the suspect had killed several policemen and disappeared with their arms before he was arrested. He said the suspect confessed to killing more than 25 persons.

He said the state had been listed among seven others to be upgraded with police equipment in a pilot scheme, adding:  “We have it on record that some ex-militants have been involved in crimes, in particular violent crimes. I do not have the full records now, but after this we’ll give you. As I speak to you I know we have in our detention an ex-militant who was involved in kidnapping.

“We have a lot of strategies which we execute daily, 24 hours a day you’ll go round the town and you’ll see policemen at nipping points on patrols, both of feet and in vehicles.

“We have our marine boats patrolling some of the riverine areas, we even have policemen that are mounted on horses and dogs that are all used in crime prevention and like I told you we have strategized enough that within a few weeks our response capability will improve by more than half.

This is coming up courtesy of the federal and the state governments. I told you earlier, Port Harcourt is one of the seven pilot areas that Federal Government is equipping and we’ve started taking delivery of vehicles.”

Protesters hide in Bayelsa

Also, weekend, some ex-militants in the Niger Delta region vowed to embark on a more violent protest on the streets of Abuja and make the Federal Capital Territory uninhabitable if their requests were not met.

One of the leaders who spoke in Ughelli, Delta State, General Miebi Perede, said they would crumble all activities in the federal capital if their requests were treated with levity.

Perede who is the leader of the Niger Delta Freedom Fighters, Kolomotoruasa squad, Burutu Local Government Area, Delta State, said those who surrendered their arms after the deadline given to militants were being sidelined in the post amnesty deal.

Another ex-militant leader, General Richard Irorobeje, who also spoke with newsmen, said they had been suffering since they surrendered their arms.
Irorobeje, leader of the Oshegu killers squad, Camp 4, Afiesere, Ughelli North Local Government area, Delta State, said they had a large numbers of followers that could cause mayhem should the government fail to attend to them.

He enjoined Mr. Alaibe to take urgent step towards addresings the problems.
Vanguard also gathered that the ex-militants involved in last week’s protest march in Abuja returned to Yenagoa, weekend, and had gone into hiding for fear of being sanctioned.

The protesters had stormed the Federal Capital Territory demanding to be documented as repentant militants and be made to enjoy other benefits accruing to ex-militants under the amnesty programme.