Again, Militants Threaten Proposed PANDEF Meeting in Warri

Emmanuel Addeh in Yenagoa

The Reformed Niger Delta Avengers (RNDA), has again kicked against the proposed Tuesday meeting of the Pan Niger Delta Elder Forum (PANDEF) in Warri, Delta State, describing the meeting as a threat to the peace in the region.

Security operatives had a few weeks back disrupted a similar meeting of PANDEF at Hotel Presidential, Port Harcourt, Rivers State, citing threat by the ex-militants to stop the meeting and resume bombing of critical infrastructure in the region.

The RNDA, whose members the leader of PANDEF, Chief Edwin Clark, had always described as ‘ laptop militants’, reiterated the rejection and disbandment of the Clark led group, warning that if the Federal Government allows the meeting to hold, there would be a series of coordinated attacks on oil and gas pipelines.

Led by John-Mark Ezonbi, the group said it arrived at the decision after a meeting held along the creeks of Benin River in Delta state, adding that the aftermath of the proposed Warri event, if allowed to hold, should not be blamed on them.

“The lukewarm attitude of the federal government will spell doom for the region as oil production will stop, following series of well-coordinated attacks that will take place simultaneously across the length and breadth of the region.

“To this end, the RNDA has alerted all its commanders spread across the deep creeks in the region as its targets remain major trunk export crude oil pipelines that will bring the nation’s economy to ground zero.

“Plans have been concluded to fire series of warning shots in the region to alert the federal government of its preparedness to disrupt crude oil flow due to the disbanded PANDEF leadership”, the group warned.

It added: “PANDEF has been disbanded by militants and other stakeholders in the Niger Delta and should not be allowed to meet anywhere in the South-south region to discuss issues concerning the region which they have continuously used as their “wares” for trading while the people continue to suffer neglect, deprivation, starvation and all forms of inhuman treatment in the guise of representing them.

“Let us sound a note of warning that the planned PANDEF meeting scheduled to hold on Tuesday, November 21, 2017, at the PTI Conference Centre, Effurun will not hold because any attempt for members of the disbanded PANDEF to meet will be resisted vehemently even if it will means blood spilling”, RNDA boasted in the message.