Amnesty: Osama Bin Laden dismisses weapons surrender by cultists as laughable

Amnesty: Osama Bin Laden dismisses weapons surrender by cultists as laughable

Monday, April 3, 2017 3:04 pm


Niger Delta militants

Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt

An ex-Niger Delta militant leader declared wanted by the Military for alleged sundry offences, Sunday Ndigbara, aka Osama Bin Laden, has dismissed the paucity of weapons surrendered by cultists and kidnappers in Bori, Khana local government area of Ogoniland to the state amnesty committee on Friday as laughable.

The ex-militant leader who spoke on phone from his hideout said that the fresh amnesty window offered to cultists and criminal gangs terrorising Ogoniland by Governor Nyesom Wike, though a welcome development, the amnesty exercise is doomed to fail because the quality and quantity of arms submitted in public by criminal gangs are a far cry from the actual weapons they use to carry out criminalities in Ogoniland.

He advised security operatives to ensure that those granted amnesty submit all their weapons for a lasting peace in the area.

According to Ndigbara “The guns I saw that were submitted are nonsense.That is not the guns they use to terrorize Ogoniland.And I asked that if the state government needs me to say something I don’t play pranks.Let them be sincere.They have done a lot of things to Ogoniland people and the have given Ogoni people sleepless nights.

“If security agents are ready to do the right so that total peace is Ogoniland they should contact me and I will help them to know the truth”.

The ex-militant leader said he was ready to work with security agencies in the state to ensure a lasting peace on the condition that he is no more declared wanted by the security agencies, especially the military.

He denied being a cultist and challenged his accusers to mention the cult gang he belongs.He said that before he is invited to be part of state amnesty exercise it should be cleared that it was politicians who instigated the federal government to declare him wanted.

He also insisted that no lasting peace will come to Ogoniland due to the insincerity in the quality and quantity of guns being submitted when he knows the calibre of weapons in Ogoniland.

Ndigbara pointed that for sincere surrendering of arms, all those involved in bearing of illegal arms and their ‘godfathers’ must take oaths and if he is regarded as a ‘godfather’ he must take oath before the submission of arms.

Chairman of the Rivers State Amnesty Programme Committee, Mr Ken Chinda, who was not satisfied with the quality and quantity of arms submitted on Friday warned that those still bearing arms will have themselves to blame as security agencies will go after them.

Speaking in Bori, headquarters of Khana Local Government Area of the state, Mr Chinda said that the essence of the programme was to stop the unnecessary carnage in the state.

He cautioned those that had publicly renounced cultism not to go back to crime, as those caught committing crime would not be protected from prosecution by the amnesty offered them.

The amnesty committee boss said that the government would not hesitate to go after any cultists that fail to key into the amnesty programme.

Eight AK 47 riffles, 445 rounds of ammunition, two G3 riffles were among weapons surrendered by the repentant brigands.

The first phase of amnesty in the area collapsed due to insincerity criminal gangs to embrace the offer.


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