NIGER DELTA GOSSIP ON THE MOVERS & SHAKERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000094 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AF/W, INR/AA, DS/IP/AF, DS/ICI/PII, DS/DSS/OSAC OSLO FOR HELENA SCHRADER DOE FOR GPERSON, CAROLYN GAY TREASURY FOR ASEVERENS, SRENENDER, DFIELDS COMMERCE FOR KBURRESS STATE PASS USTR FOR ASST USTR FLISER STATE PASS TRANSPORTATION FOR MARAD STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN AND MSTUCKART STATE PASS TDA FOR NCABOT STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER STATE PASS USAID FOR GWEYNAND AND SLAWAETZ E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/05/2018 TAGS: PGOV PREL ASEC NI SUBJECT: NIGER DELTA GOSSIP ON THE MOVERS & SHAKERS REF: LAGOS 13 Classified By: Consul General Donna Blair for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D) ¶1. (C) Summary: Dr. Godknows Igali says Henry Okah is being held in a secure facility in the north; Tom Polo is taking the position that, although Okah is a rival, he should not be harmed. Vice President Goodluck Jonathan and Delta Governor Uduaghan are finding it difficult to disarm youths in Bayelsa and Delta states, respectively; Governor Amaechi of Rivers State refuses to "buy peace" with the militants. Delta Governor Uduaghan has "shackled" the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC) by creating a separate development office under his purview. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) This is a roundup of recent comments related to Niger Delta leaders. These comments are being reported separate from the conversations for relevancy and classification purposes. -------------- Whereabouts of Henry Okah -------------- ¶3. (C) Poloff spoke with Dr. Godknows Igali, former Secretary to the State Government of Bayelsa State (strictly protect) on February 21. Dr. Igali, who has been nominated for an Ambassadorial appointment, said he has not seen Okah, and has not asked to see him. However, he heard Okah is "stable." Asked if that meant Okah was hurt, Dr. Igali said he did not know; he had heard a story that he was hurt, but it had not been confirmed. Okah is being held in a secure facility in the north, he said, but his return has created a lot of tension. Igali reported he has been drawn into the resolution of the problem, as have the elders and the Governors. If the Okah problem is not solved, Igali posited, the Niger Delta problem will not be solved. ¶4. (C) Of the "best-armed militants" (Dr. Igali's term),Tom Polo is taking the position that, although Okah is a rival, he should not be harmed. The Bayelsa youth, also well armed, want to make release of Okah a condition precedent to any solution in the Niger Delta. Igali's position is that Okah is accused of serious crimes and those should be dealt with in a court of law. It is likely that the solution will be found somewhere "between law and politics," Igali said. (Comment: Dr. Igali has been a consistent source of accurate information about militant activities and hostage takings in the Niger Delta. End Comment.) ¶5. (C) Security sources told Lagos Regional Security Officer that Niger Delta militants such as Victor Ebikabowei may not want Henry Okah to return to the Niger Delta because many of them are profiting from the status quo; Ebikabowei reportedly enjoys Bayelsa State patronage. However, the security sources warned, Okah's non-release could spur further Niger Delta unrest. -------------- -------------- Jonathan Finds Disarming Bayelsa Militants Difficult -------------- -------------- ¶6. (C) Disarming militants has been difficult in Bayelsa State because they sign peace agreements but "go the other way," according to Nadari Banigo (strictly protect),Senior Special Assistant to Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva. Banigo told Poloffs on February 12 the kidnapping of the Deputy Governor's father for 10 days during December 2007 was an embarrassment to the state because it occurred shortly after the Bayelsa peace agreement was signed (Ref A) between LAGOS 00000094 002 OF 003 the state government and the militants. The group responsible for this attack had reportedly splintered from the group which signed the agreement. While Vice President Goodluck Jonathan is trying to resolve these problems in Bayelsa, his home state, militants have threatened to "exhume his father's grave" because he is now considered an outsider, Banigo said. -------------- Uduaghan Also Unable to Disarm Militants -------------- ¶7. (C) On January 28, Godwin Akpobire, Head of the Delta State Integrated Development Project, (strictly protect) confided to Poloff in a conversation outside DESOPADEC Chairman Okirika's earshot that despite the state's efforts, Akpobire has had problems disarming young men. He said the militants suffered a "failure of hope" and need tailored training to rekindle that hope. Akpobire plans to publicize success stories in an effort to show youth how they can improve their lives by abandoning militancy. -------------- Rivers: Amaechi Opposes "Buying" Peace -------------- ¶8. (C) Nadari Banigo, Senior Special Assistant to Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva, also told Poloffs People's Democratic Party (PDP) Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers state has improved state security because he is "strictly opposed to any form of settlement with the boys." (Comment: Banigo's comments suggest Amaechi is unwilling to "buy peace" with the militants. End comment) Amaechi will reportedly try to disband militants through interventions by community elders, and if that doesn't work, will use arms to subdue them. (Note: Presumably this would imply the use of the military Joint Task Force. End note) -------------- Delta Governor "Shackles" DESOPADEC -------------- ¶9. (C) Poloffs met Francis Sheen (a well-connected Bayelsan business man) and American citizen Mike Williams of TransAtlantic, an integrated housing development company (Septel) on February 8. These contacts discussed failed business dealings with Bayelsa and Delta State governments, and shared insight into traditional rulers. Delta State's proposed development projects (through the Delta State Integrated Development Project) are the "same gubernatorial mumbo jumbo" that has been espoused over the past few years, Williams said. ¶10. (C) Williams said TransAtlantic remains in touch with Chairman Okirika of the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC). Williams suggested Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan (PDP) tried to "shackle" Okirika (who was appointed to DESOPADEC by former Delta Governor James Ibori (PDP) to appease the Ijaws) by appointing Godwin Akpobire (an Itsekiri) Head of the Delta State Integrated Development Project to carry out the state's extensive development plan, suggesting Akpobire would receive more funding than Okirika and it would be spent in non-Ijaw territories. Sheen and Williams thought Akpobire's development efforts might detract from DESOPADEC's, and they doubted Governor Uduaghan would release 50 percent of his income to DESOPADEC. If this proves to be true, Sheen warned this could ignite the region's underrepresented Ijaw. (Comment: Akpobire is a well-educated individual who appears committed to the development project; however, it remains to be seen whether he has the will or the financial support LAGOS 00000094 003 OF 003 needed to succeed. While he and Okirika appear to be coordinating their development efforts, there appears to be tension between the two. End Comment.) -------------- -------------- LGA Offers Bribe to Get EFCC to Drop Governor's Case -------------- -------------- ¶11. (C) In a February 13 conversation, Ebruke Esike (strictly protect),the Executive Director of Global Peace Development in Delta State, told Poloff a local government area offered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) a naira 50 million (USD 430,000) bribe to drop its case against Governor Uduaghan. -------------- NDDC to Train Niger Delta Youths in Malaysia -------------- ¶12. (C) Timi Alaibe, Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC),wants to send 1,600 Niger Delta youth to Malaysia for seafaring training, according to Allen Onyema, National Chairman of the Foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN). These youth, many of whom have participated in militant activities, told Alaibe they wanted FEHN's nonviolence training before departing, Onyema told Poloff on February 6. (Note: FEHN has trained over 200 Niger Delta youth. End Note.) Alaibe reportedly agreed and invited Onyema to a meeting with the Rivers State Director of the State Security Service (SSS),who said he would pick "the worst of the militants" to attend FEHN's training. -------------- Ekiyor Beats Out VP's Pick for IYC President -------------- ¶13. (C) Allen Onyema, National Chairman of the Foundation for Ethnic Harmony in Nigeria (FEHN) told Poloff he financially supported the bid of Chris Ekiyor, one of FEHN's young Ijaw trainers, to win the presidency of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC). Onyema said Ekiyor was intelligent, peaceful, and embraced the nonviolent path taught by Martin Luther King Jr., all virtues Onyema supported in a Niger Delta leader. Ekiyor subsequently won the position, beating out then Governor Goodluck Jonathan's preferred candidate. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶14. (C) These seemingly disjointed meetings paint a useful picture of challenges facing leadership in the Niger Delta and of the multiplicity of actors and issues that are intertwined. Sheen's Ijaw warning is worth noting: if the Ijaw believe DESOPADEC was created in poor faith in early 2007 following a year of kidnappings, they may more easily rationalize a return to arms. Similarly, although Okah's activities are purely criminal and he has never associated himself with Ijaw or Niger Delta efforts to improve the region, militants may use his detention to continue highlighting injustices in the region. End Comment. ¶15. (U) This cable has been cleared by Embassy Abuja. BLAIR