The Federal Government will have effectively concluded the Presidential Amnesty Program by December 31, 2022.
It was reported that the government has already selected an audit company with the objective of conducting a comprehensive audit of the program from its start to the present. During a meeting in September, the new Interim Administrator of the PAP, Maj Gen Barry Ndiomu (rtd), made it plain to the staff that his goal is to complete the project in six months.
According to the findings, the two program offices in Abuja have had a scared and anxious environment since the meeting.
According to the presidential directive to close down the PAP, the Amnesty Office has halted awarding new scholarships to students from afflicted localities.
Furthermore, it was determined that the office’s activities had been drastically reduced, necessitating the immediate suspension of contracts for new training projects.
The Presidency has already set the new Amnesty office leadership targets for completing the program within the time frame provided.
The deadlines for the various actions necessary to complete the program were outlined in a memorandum titled “Winding Down the Presidential Amnesty Programme,” which was allegedly in the possession of PAP unit commanders.
The document’s terms of request were as follows: “a. Ensure the immediate stoppage of all contract award processes. By October 31, 2022, “b. Identify and profile beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme from conception.”
“c. Hire a respected auditing firm with roots in the Niger Delta to carry out and complete by November 30, 2022, an audit of all PAP-run programs to determine:
“I. Total number and types of programs carried out.
II. The overall budget for the program and each program component.
III. Total number of ejected agitators trained, with details on their programs.
IV. The quantity and kind of pending eligible beneficiaries.
Ex-agitators who are still enrolled in training programs.
VI. The total number of leaders and stipend recipients. Debt profile, item 7. d.
By December 31, 2022, propose a method for paying off any outstanding debts. By December 31, 2022, all movable and immovable property must be inventoried and listed. “f. Launch a comprehensive consultation/engagement of critical stakeholders and public education on the necessity of winding down the PAP between November 1 and November 30, 2022.”
It was also made known that the Presidency is uneasy about the fact that the Amnesty Office, which the Yar’Adua Administration established with 30,000 former agitators, continues to operate with that number despite the fact that billions of Naira have been spent on training and reintegration initiatives.
Therefore, the Presidency believes that the position, which was intended to cease in 2015, has turned into a drain on government resources and has ordered that it be abolished under the Buhari administration.
You may recall that the Pan Niger Delta Forum on Saturday urged President Muhammadu Buhari not to end the Presidential Amnesty Programme before the end of his term in office.
The main Niger Delta organization criticized the Buhari administration’s hasty decision to end the program with only a few months left as being ill-advised.
PANDEF cautioned that the Federal Government’s decision to end the Amnesty Programme because of a pipeline surveillance contract given to a private company is unreasonable and inappropriate.
PANDEF warned that any attempt to prematurely halt the program would be harmful to the current peace and stability of the Niger Delta in a declaration released at the conclusion of its extraordinary meeting in Abuja.
The group asserted that it would be counterproductive to bring in the Amnesty Programme, an interventionist organization that was specifically established to foster peace and stabi
