Abuja—Members of the third phase beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) yesterday presented an award of excellence to the Interim Administrator, Major General Barry Ndiomu (rtd).
Mangrovepen.ng gathered that the honour was an appreciation of his efforts to bring peace and stability to the Niger Delta region.
The chairman of the Third Phase Forum, Mr. Tonye Bobo who made the presentation at the PAP office in Abuja on behalf of the national and state Third Phase ex-agitators, applauded the PAP boss for initiating legacy projects such as the PAP cooperative society and other reforms and initiatives undertaken by the PAP under the current dispensation.
Bobo expressed satisfaction with the leadership style of Ndiomu and assured him that the third phase and other ex-agitators were solidly behind him.
While stating that the award of excellence was a testimony of their satisfaction of his one year in office, Bobo however appealed to Ndiomu to continue with the educational scholarship program for ex-agitators.
“The educational scholarship has helped the region to grow its human capacity base to become a region producing professionally qualified young men and women to compete with other Nigerians,” he said.
The ex-agitator leader further called for training and empowerment schemes for the leadership of the third phase ex-agitators which according to him will help them move from dependency syndrome to become more self-reliant.
Responding, Ndiomu expressed gratitude to the ex-agitators for the honour and award
“On my assumption in the PAP office last year, the briefings I got did not include the weighty liabilities especially those from the education scholarship program and the vocational training centers.
“Contrary to public opinion, I did not stop the scholarships, rather my administration adopted it and worked to clear off the debts incurred from the tuition fees amounting to more than seven billion naira which as of the 31st of March 2023, has been cleared,” Ndiomu explained.
He stated that in a bid to stop the continuous circle of corruption in the system, the Presidential Amnesty Programme Cooperative Society Limited (PACOSOL) was established for ex-agitators to benefit directly from the Programme without middlemen interferences.
The Interim Administrator while further expressing gratitude to members of the third phase ex-agitators for the award, enjoined them to disregard rumors and disruptive tendencies by detractors.
