The Amnesty Program and the Quest for Peace in the Niger Delta

Like physicians searching for the cure to AIDS, the Nigerian government has been searching for a solution to the struggle for justice, equity and development in the Niger Delta. The response of the state to solving the Niger Delta problem is over 50 years old. During the colonial era the Willinks Commission was set up following the agitation by the minorities over what they saw as imbalance in the political and economic structure of Nigeria. In 1989, the military government of General Ibrahim Babangida, in an attempt to assuage the people of the Niger Delta, set up the Oil Minerals Producing Areas Development Commission (OMPADEC). During the Obasanjo’s administration the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was established by President Olusegun Obasanjo in the year 2000. The most recent effort is the amnesty program. This book examines the extent to which the amnesty program can go in bringing sustainable peace to the Niger Delta.