NIGERIA: PRESS REPORTS ON CHAIRMAN'S PLANS FOR

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 LAGOS 000375 C O R R E C T E D COPY - CORRECTED CAPTION SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA STATE PASS NSC FOR BOBBY PITTMAN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL EPET NI SUBJECT: NIGERIA: PRESS REPORTS ON CHAIRMAN'S PLANS FOR NIGER DELTA TECHNICAL COMMITTEE REF: A. ABUJA 1854 ¶B. LAGOS 367 ¶C. LAGOS 366 ¶D. LAGOS 365 ¶E. LAGOS 357 LAGOS 00000375 001.2 OF 002 ¶1. (U) Summary: In press reports, Ledum Mittee, newly elected Chairman of the Technical Committee on the Niger Delta described his vision of how the Committee would function in the September 14 editions of Vanguard and The Guardian. According to the press articles, in addition to reviewing past reports on the Niger Delta and making recommendations, the Committee will do outreach to the people of the Niger Delta, including the various ethnic groups, for their views and draw up an action plan outlining the responsibilities of the federal, state and local governments, civil society and oil companies. Mittee, who said he sees the government as committed to the process, called for a "cessation of hostilities" to allow the Committee to do its work without distraction. End Summary. ¶2. (U) According to press reports in the Sunday September 14 Vanguard and the Guardian newspapers, Ledum Mittee, newly elected Chairman of the Technical Committee on the Niger Delta, in Sunday, set out his plans for how the work of the committee will proceed. The Committee's charge is to review all past reports on the Niger Delta and from them make recommendations for what must be done to solve the problems of the Niger Delta. Mittee said that the Committee recognizes that there may be gaps between the reports and the reality on the ground today. In addition, the Committee wants the people of the Niger Delta to have input into and feel that they own the outcome of the process. As a result, the Committee will reach out to the people of the Niger Delta for their views. Inclusion of the views of the communities will distinguish the Committee's work product from earlier reports, often written from a single perspective or with a single focus, such as the Willinks, Ogomudia and other reports, he said. Mittee called for a "cessation of hostilities" to allow the Committee to do its work without distraction. Committee to Outline Stakeholder Responsibilities -------------- -------------- ¶3. (U) Based on the reports and input, the Committee will draw up an action plan, outlining what Nigeria's federal, state and local governments, civil society and oil companies should do to address the issues in the Niger Delta. Mittee said that he had already talked with spokespersons for militant groups and anticipated that they too would have input into the report. During the week of September 14, the Committee will request memoranda from each of the ethnic groups in the Niger Delta. After that the Committee will sit down to work, he said. If the Committee takes a month to finish its work, that will be fine, Mittee said. However, Mittee said, "It is important to give peace a chance and to give us cooperation by ceasing all hostilities for the duration" of the Committee's work. "Any spate of kidnappings, oil pipeline vandalization will pose a challenge to us. We will not be able to do a good job if we are distracted." ¶4. (U) One of the issues Mittee said falls squarely within the responsibility of the Federal Government is that of bunkering. The "players" in bunkering, who own the large ships that ply international waters, are not Niger Delta people, he said. The oil cartel that is behind the bunkering is not made up of Niger Delta people, nor is the arms cartel. "The fish rots from the head", the newspaper quotes him as saying. However, in the absence of action by the Federal Government, the states are currently using their resources to manage what are essentially federal responsibilities, he said. ¶5. (U) The Committee will focus on the things it believes would bring about the desired peace and development in the Niger Delta, Mittee said in the article. One cannot talk of peace without justice. How do the people in the Niger Delta LAGOS 00000375 002 OF 002 get justice? How do they get the benefits that citizens of this country are due whether or not they are producing oil? How do they get a fair share of the resources and development of the country, he asked rhetorically. The task of the Committee is not to solve the problems; rather, it will identify problems and solutions for all stakeholders to address. Mittee said he expects that the recommendations will give the local communities a role to play in solving the problems. Committee Given Autonomy to Elect Chair, Secretary -------------- -------------- ¶6. (U) That the government backed down from the idea of a summit is salutary, Mittee told the newspapers. "That they had the humility" to accept the decision of the Niger Delta people who did not want a summit is encouraging, he said. When first appointed to the committee, he initially was skeptical. However, the Federal Government told him and his fellow Commissioners "We do not want to interfere with what you are doing." No constraints were placed on the committee as it elected its own chairman and secretary, Mittee was quoted as saying. ¶7. (U) Asked what assurances he had that the report of the Technical Committee would not, like other reports, be ignored and never implemented, Mittee said he had spoken with the Vice President who had given him assurances. The government has promised, through its seven point agenda, to deal with the Niger Delta in a holistic manner. If the government, with the Niger Delta as a key point in its agenda, calls all the stakeholders together and asks them what the government should do, but then ignores their recommendations, "you turn everyone into militants," Mittee told the newspaper. "I believe they are quite committed to the process," he said. ¶8. (U) Mittee told the journalists that the Technical Committee would turn in a performance that would show everyone that they did their best. "If at any time we feel that the process is being compromised, we will be the first to tell you that," Mittee said. Will Militants Trade Bunkering for Real Jobs? -------------- ¶9. (U) Mittee was asked what types of jobs he believes the "boys" in the creeks, used to easy money from oil bunkering and kidnapping, will be willing to accept. The question assumes that the boys in the creeks make lots of money, he told the newspaper. But even if they did, money is only useful for the pleasures that it buys. The militants cannot go to Abuja, cannot fly out of the country to enjoy what money they have, he said; they have to hide. There are crimes such as oil bunkering and kidnapping being committed, Mittee acknowledged, but these crimes must be distinguished from, and not distract from genuine community demands. There are certain things, such as electricity, water and roads, that the community should not even have to ask for, he said. ¶10. (SBU) Comment: Mittee, an associate of the late Ken Saro-Wiwa and a long-time leader of the non-violent Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP),is well-respected among individuals and groups in the Niger Delta. His personal credibility, as well as his apparent commitment to an inclusive process that allows individuals, ethnicities and even militants to have input into the process, bodes well for a successful outcome of the Committee's work. As Mittee points out, however, completion of the Committee's work, and the ultimate success of its recommendations, depends on maintaining peace in the region. See septel on current security issues in Rivers State and conversation with Mittee. End Comment. BLAIR