Ex-Mend Commanders Deny Endorsing Buhari A former leader of the - TopicsExpress



          

Ex-Mend Commanders Deny Endorsing Buhari A former leader of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, ‘Gen’ Reuben Wilson, has denied the endorsement of the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, for February election. Vanguard reports that Wilson urged Nigerians to disregard the said endorsement, assuring that the ex-militants were all for President Goodluck Jonathan in next month’s presidential election. MEND, is believed to have been hit by a crisis as Jomo Gbomo, who speaks for the group, has lambasted the PDP, and Ijaw Youth Congress, IYC, for questioning its credibility and describing the movement as a ghost organisation because of its proclaimed support for Buhari. “MEND views the recent question and statement credited to the PDP National publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, as very callous and irresponsible. The question: ‘Explain your connections with MEND’ further confirms and vindicates our views about President Goodluck Jonathan and the PDP. MEND strongly denies any links with the APC and has never been approached for anything, at any point in time, by the party, as alleged by Olisa Metuh,” Gbomo said. Meanwhile, Wilson, who spoke for the ex-militant commanders, also urged Nigerians to ignore the alleged endorsement of Buhari, saying; it is part of the APC propaganda ahead of the general elections. Wilson, who is now a pastor while reaffirming the ex-warlords support for President Jonathan’s re-election, said: “MEND ceased to exist from the day we all keyed into the amnesty programme of the Federal Government,” adding that what they had as Jomo Gbomo was a pseudonym used by the ex-agitators to prosecute their crusade as MEND years back. “We challenge the Jomo Gbomo to show his face on a national television the way we will do, as we have always done. Since we left the creeks, we have integrated into the society, contributing to the development of the country. We have stopped all forms of militant activities under any guise, including MEND activities.” The repented militant further reiterated that at the moment there was nothing like Jomo Gbomo or MEND, stressing that they owned MEND and also collapsed it after they embraced the Federal Government’s amnesty programme. Meanwhile, Wilson, who spoke for the ex-militant commanders, also urged Nigerians to ignore the alleged endorsement of Buhari, saying; it is part of the APC propaganda ahead of the general elections. Wilson, who is now a pastor while reaffirming the ex-warlords support for President Jonathan’s re-election, said: “MEND ceased to exist from the day we all keyed into the amnesty programme of the Federal Government,” adding that what they had as Jomo Gbomo was a pseudonym used by the ex-agitators to prosecute their crusade as MEND years back. “We challenge the Jomo Gbomo to show his face on a national television the way we will do, as we have always done. Since we left the creeks, we have integrated into the society, contributing to the development of the country. We have stopped all forms of militant activities under any guise, including MEND activities.” The repented militant further reiterated that at the moment there was nothing like Jomo Gbomo or MEND, stressing that they owned MEND and also collapsed it after they embraced the Federal Government’s amnesty programme. READ ALSO: Ex-militants Vow To Deal With North If Jonathan Is Not Re-elected In 2015 “We have read and heard of reports in the media on the purported endorsement of the APC presidential candidate, Buhari, and have decided to inform the public that we, the former leaders of militant camps, who owned and controlled the activities of MEND, did not and could not have endorsed Buhari as our candidate. We are aware that the APC and their presidential candidate are desperate for power and are ready to do anything to mislead the public as part of their desperate efforts to take over power this year. But it is criminal to use the name of MEND to score a cheap point and deceive the public. For the avoidance of doubt, let us put it clearly that we owned MEND and we never endorsed Buhari. Neither Buhari nor MEND can shave our head in our absence,” he said. It would be recalled that the ex-militants of the Niger Delta region declared they would do everything to ensure that President Jonathan not only contest the 2015 presidential race, but also completes his second term in 2019.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 19:39:23 +0000

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