The President of Ijaw Youth Coucil, Udengs Eradiri, on Sunday, denied that he was the spokesperson of the Niger Delta Avengers militant group.
The Reformed Niger Delta Avengers had in a statement, signed by its spokesperson, Cynthia Whyte, alleged that Udengs was the spokesperson of NDA, using the pseudo-name ‘Brigadier-General’ Murdoch Agbinibo.
Speaking at Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital, the IYC president said he will continue to promote peace and dialogue in the Niger Delta. He also stated that he was being blackmailed by the Movement for Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND) for his opposition of their Aaron team.
Udengs said, “I have no business whatsoever with the Niger Delta Avengers. I am the President of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), the largest youth organisation in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria and not the spokesman of the Niger Delta Avengers.
“Since the splinter group of the Niger Delta Avengers said they have broken away and repented from their old ways, I call on them to come out in the open and identify themselves openly instead of still using pseudo-names such as Cynthia Whyte to issue statements.
“Any discerning mind would know that the said statement purportedly naming sponsors of Avengers was issued by the promoters of the Aaron 11 MEND negotiation with the federal government.
“Their grouse against me is because I said in my recent interviews that MEND Aaron 11 team does have the mandate of the Ijaw and other Niger Delta people to negotiate with the Federal Government. They are desperate because of the lack of credibility in what they are doing.”
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