PORT HARCOURT — OVER 100 youths believed to be members of the Niger Delta Peoples Volunteer Force (NDPVF) stormed the headquarters of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, last Thursday, disarmed the security agents in the place and laid siege to the premises for about an hour.
The youths numbering over 100 arrived the NDDC’s complex in five buses.
It was gathered that the youths complained that the peace process being brokered by President Olusegun Obasanjo and the NDPVF/NDV had not addressed the plight of the militant youths of the Niger Delta.
The youths therefore demanded N500 million from the NDDC to enable them resettle in their various communities and start normal life.
Vanguard gathered that the youths' presence at NDDC brought such high tension to the NDDC headquarters that members and staff of the commission either scampered for safety outside the premises or locked themselves up in their offices.
The youths reportedly found their way to the 6th floor demanding N500 million and threatening that if their demand was not met, they would blow up the elegant NDDC building.
At that point, some officials of the commission were said to have contacted Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo Asari who arrived the scene and rebuked the youths for their actions.
A visibly angry Dokubo was said to have ordered the youths out of the premises but they refused to comply with his instructions.
Vanguard gathered that it took the efforts of a Deputy Director in the commission, Elder P. Z. Aginighan to calm the militant youths.
Elder P. Z. Aginighan was joined in his efforts by the head of security of the commission, Alhaji Asari Dokubo as well as Brig-Gen. Broderich Demeyeibo (rtd.) who was said to be on a visit to the commission at the time of the incident.
When Vanguard contacted the Rivers State Police Commissioner, Mr. Sylvester Araba, he said, "I don’t know about Asari’s boys. Asari has denounced cultism, denounced violence publicly; he has surrendered weapons. These were miscreants (the youths who invaded NDDC) who were at NDDC. I am aware Asari was at NDDC on the said date but I don’t have the details of what he went there to do."
