Dr. Dennis Brutu Otuaro, Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Program (PAP), has implored the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) to mobilize support for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu in 2027.
He said it is in the strategic interest of the Ijaw and Niger Delta people for the president to win a second term.
Otuaro spoke when the newly inaugurated 10th Directorate of the AIJ, headed by the President, Dr. Doubra Okotete, paid him a courtesy visit at his office in Abuja at the weekend.
He urged them to guard against division in the region and mobilize strongly for the re-election of President Tinubu next year.
“My call to the AIJ is that nothing should divide us, 2027 is already here. Let’s support the president and mobilize for him to win a second term.
“We must not allow anyone to cause division among us or change us for a new hope. It is within the strategic national interest of the Ijaw to support the president to ensure victory,” he said.
Otuaro commended the council and other well-meaning stakeholders in the Niger Delta for their unwavering cooperation and support to the PAP peacebuilding process in the region.
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Describing the support as massive and encouraging, he noted that they had always expressed solidarity with his peace efforts and the results-oriented reforms he introduced to reposition the PAP.
Expressing his appreciation for the gesture, he said: “Many well-meaning stakeholders in the Niger Delta, including the AIJ, support the direction we have taken.
“Their support and cooperation has been massive and encouraging, working together with the Office to sustain peace and stability, and the generations we are preparing for a better tomorrow in the Niger Delta through enormous scholarships.”
He pointed out that only a few selfish elements have remained uneasy about the sanity achieved by his reforms, particularly the expansion of the scholarship scheme and the huge deployment of beneficiaries in domestic and foreign universities.
He told IYC leaders that currently 8,700 are studying in the country, while more than 270 have been sent to offshore institutions, in addition to the 93 deployed in January and May, and the 150 to be sent in August/September.
Otuaro said President Tinubu and the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, are happy with what “we are doing to build sustainable peace in our region and the huge grants.”
The PAP chief thanked the AIJ for the visit and stressed that sustaining peace and stability in the region is a collective responsibility.
Earlier, the AIJ President had stated that the visit was in recognition of the PAP’s “unprecedented success in educating and empowering the Niger Delta youth” under Otuaro.
Okotete commended the PAP helmsman for his commitment and judicious application of funds, which have helped thousands of youths in the region receive quality education.
He also expressed the council’s willingness to work with Dr Otuaro and also look at areas of further partnership between the PAP and the IYC.
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