The Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Colonel Milland Dixon Dikio (rtd), on Wednesday harped on the need for more synergy with the military towards boosting the programme.
Dikio stated this when he led top officials of PAP on a visit to the Nigerian Naval Engineering College, in Sapele, Delta State and the Naval Shipyard Limited in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, respectively.
According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr. Nneotaobase Egbe, he said PAP’s partnership with the critical stakeholders would help to reposition the programme.
He pointed out that the scheme was undergoing a lot of transformation.
He said as an institution, the military had key role to play in the newly-introduced Train, Employ and Mentor (TEM) scheme, which he explained would provide needed approach to training and empowerment of ex-agitators.
He said the ex-agitators would be exposed to military discipline and precision in addition to the training on specialised maritime and engineering courses.
Dikko said, “I know the military has a lot of highly installed capacity and as much as possible, those of us looking on the outside want to be able to tap into the capacity through knowledge and skill transfer which creates the bridge that enhances the civil-military relationship in our society.”
“On the substance of it, the core of the ex-delegates are largely from the riverine communities and so the current management of PAP is of the thought process that they have inherent skills and if we can convert that energy positively, they will contribute to our dominance of the maritime economy.”
“There is a lot, so many of them are beginning to realize that the economy of the Niger Delta is not just oil. There is a lot that can be harnessed if only we keep our heads down and look carefully around us.”
Commandant of the Nigerian Naval Engineering College, Cdre A. Abdullahi in his remarks listed some of the courses offered by the institution, adding that they were ready to work with PAP to achieve set targets for the wellbeing of the ex-agitators.
The Superintendent of the Naval Shipyard Limited, Rear Admiral SJ Oyegade, promised the support of the company in the realization of the core objectives of the PAP under Col. Dikio.
