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Niger Delta Avengers want Buhari to call for a referendum

Niger Delta Avengers want Buhari to call for a referendum

Nigeria

The Niger Delta Avengers militant group that has been bombing oil installations in Nigeria’s oil-rich but ravaged region is calling for a referendum so that Nigerians can decide whether they want to continue with the current system of governance.

They asked President Buhari to learn from the lead of UK Prime Minister who called for referendum relating to whether or not United Kingdom should stay in the European union or not, a poll that the ‘leave’ proponents won by about 52%

‘‘President Buhari borrow a leaf from PM David Cameron, call for a referendum and let Nigerians decides like they did to vote you into Power,’‘ the group wrote in a tweet on Saturday night.

An accompanying map in one of their tweets labeled ‘Flag and Map of the Future,’ split Nigeria into five main political blocs, the Northern ‘Arewa Republic,’ the middle ‘Niger Middle Belt’ and ‘Oduduwa Republic,’ ‘United Niger-Delta,’ and ‘Biafra Republic’ to the south. > President Buhari Should call for a Referendum. pic.twitter.com/ZteHT4wrVO

— Niger Delta Avengers (@NDAvengers) June 25, 2016

In a statement that the group posted on their website, they asked Buhari to visit the region and to assess for himself the hustle that the host communities are suffering at the hands of the multinationals and the government.

‘‘Mr. President come and see for yourself what the host communities are going through in the hands of Nigeria government and the multinationals,’‘ the statement signed by Brig. Gen Mudoch Agbinibo concluded.

It would be recalled that the president had cancelled a last minute trip to the region to flag off the $1 million Ogoniland cleanup, delegating his vice Yemi Osinbajo to replace him.

SUGGESTED READING Buhari to kick off $1bn cleanup of oil ravaged Niger Delta region

The cleanup supervised by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) is largely funded by the multinational companies, whose activities have led to the pollution of water bodies, creeks and swamps in the Niger Delta region.

The activities of the Avengers have toppled Nigeria from the helm of oil production on the continent, whiles overtures to have them accept a ceasefire, seems to be far fetched over the past weeks.

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