Leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Voluntary Force, Alhaji Mujahid Asari Dokubo has said that the Australian negotiator, Stephen Davis is playing pepper soup politics with the Boko Haram sponsor issue.
Dokubo accused Davis, for whom he admits he has a high level of respect, of dancing to Obasanjo’s tune.
He made these disclosures in an interview with SUN.
Excerpts:
What is your view on the continued insurgency in the North?
My position is widely known by everybody. My position is that this is a military exercise and a war rehearsal. The main war is not to capture Bama Gwoza or Mubi, it is to capture Niger Delta oil communities, it is to capture Yenagoa, Bonny, Kalabari, Nembe , Escravos, Okrika. People are being deceived like a lot of people in Abuja that the war would end in the North. They wanted to wish it away rather than handle it with the seriousness it deserves, they did not do that and we are where we are. People should be prepared. We cannot wait for the military and Police to protect us. We should resort to self help, we should start preparing.
Is it that the Federal Government has allowed the war to be prolong to what we have now
You see the government at all times want to balance the situation so that it won’t be accused of high-handedness. That is why we are where we are. Instead of handling it with seriousness and gravity which the insurgency is they want to wish it away but it is not possible. From the beginning some of us told them it is not possible to wish it away. I wrote a memo to the President in 2011 before his inauguration and I clearly stated that the war is more serious than it is. But I was called an alarmist and it was dismissed. I published it on my Face book page so that it would be on record. I said it would spiral out of control and this is what is happening now.
90 percent of Northern military personnel are sympathetic to the Boko Haram and that is why we have what is happening. They are sabotaging the war. There is no longer esprit de corps in the Army. What they want to achieve is to frighten people that would vote for Goodluck Jonathan in the North not to come out to vote. They believe that there are so much registered voters in the North- East and North- West so if people are scare they would be able to come back to power. But it won’t work. Would they tie our hands? We would be able to resist them.
What is your take on the revelation by the Australian negotiator, Stephen Davis on those sponsoring Boko Haram
I know Stephen Davis very well. I know him to his family. I think he is economical with the truth. As somebody I know I was disappointed. I was the first person Stephen Davis negotiated with. I am totally disappointed in the politics he is playing.
He negotiated with you how
He negotiated with me when I was in the creek on behalf of the European Embassies in Nigeria. He negotiated with me to cease fire and come out to meet with the then President Olusegun Obasanjo. He negotiated with me without paying anything. We only agreed because we thought Obasanjo would be sincere but it did not happen.
How can he say opposition is sponsoring Boko Haram and then the first name he would mention is Azubuike Ihejirika. When did Ihejirika start to sponsor Boko Haram, was it when it was formed in 2002 when he was never Chief of Army Staff of when their leader Mohammed Yusuf was extra-judicially murdered in 2009 or when did he start sponsoring if not that someone is playing politics.
When you bring pepper soup joint talk to national issues, it is sad. He has diminished himself as an International negotiator. I hold him in very high regard but I am disappointed.
He said former governor Ali Modu Sheriff is sponsoring Boko Haram and I ask when? What it when they accused him of allegedly murdering Yusuf’s father-in law who was his former Commissioner. Lest we forget one of the demands of Boko Haram in 2009 was that Sheriff should be put on trial, so when did he start the sponsorship.
Now all of a sudden, Sheriff who was a chieftain of the All Progressive Congress (APC) was not a sponsor of Boko Haram until he defected to the PDP.
Now APC are not shouting. So when they are hobnobbing with him he was not a Boko Haram sponsor until now. APC is evil and they are hiding the truth from people. As far as I am concern, my friend Stephen Davis has totally reduced himself. All his comments are pepper soup joint talk. He did not name other members of the opposition but mentioned Ihejirika.
The same Ihejirika, El Rufai and others said should be taken to International Court for War Crimes, now he said he is a sponsor of Boko Haram.
Davis is Obasanjo’s friend. Obasanjo brought him to Nigeria and he is playing Obasanjo‘s script. He is playing Obasanjo’s agenda. Whoever introduced him to the government should have done a background check on him
But the Federal Government has denied engaging him…
Yes they did but when it was belated. Just like I just read that the Bring Back Goodluck Jonathan signpost should be removed. Why is the government pretending that some girls are missing No girls are missing. They should not play politics with this thing. Nobody is missing. It is a scam.
You still want to believe this your argument that girls are not missing?
There is nothing like I still want to believe. There was no time girls were kidnapped.
But the International community, government agencies believe girls are missing
Which International community? The international community that went to Iraq and said there were weapons of mass destruction, till today they have not seen any. The International community that went to Libya to kill Ghadaffi and today have totally destroyed Libya. Which International community are you talking about the international community with vested interests? They came since with google map and co, so why have they not located the girls. It is a disgrace. Why have America soldiers not rescued the girls?
What is your view over the brewing controversy over the creation of additional polling units by INEC
President Jonathan should stand up and call Jega to order. From the voters registration it was found out that millions of Northern votes were dubious. More votes were lost in the North so it was believed that the North would lose more polling units but out of over 30,000 new polling units 22,000 was given to North while a paltry 8,000 was given to the South. It is an insult. This is a ploy to rig the election.
The President should not think that his interest outweighs the interest of every other person. Naturally the North is not as populated as the South. We have been calling that non partisan people should come and carry out a census. Let United Nations come and carry out a census. Where in the world is the arid north more populated than the South, economic indices does not even support that.
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