Nigeria’s Federal Government is set to end the Niger Delta Presidential Amnesty Program by 2015, Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Matters, Hon. Kingsley Kuku said.
He said this at a departure ceremony for 186 ex-militants who were leaving for training the United Kingdom, Ireland and South Africa. Kuku further revealed that 16,683 ex-militants have so far received training or are receiving training since the start of the program.
The program, which was established by late President Umaru Yar’Adua as a means of rehabilitating and pacifying Niger Delta militants who renounced fighting, started in 2010 and was expected to run for five years.
“By 2015, this program would be winding up because it has a terminal date; we are pursuing this doggedly. From inception, the program was designed to run for five year which we believe should not be altered,” Kuku said.
The Niger Delta Special Adviser estimates that some 4,000 ex-militants are undergoing training in 2013, and adds that 6,000 more will receive training in 2014 and “less than 6,000″ in 2015.
“This is novel and we do not need to delay our work to remain in office. That is not our vision,” Kuku added.
The ex-militants get training in different fields. Of the 186 ex-militants turned eager students, 60 will undergo a 12-month emergency medical technician course in South Africa, while the other 126 are set to study varying courses in the UK and Ireland.
