SUMMARY
From our analysis, the study have explained that the economic conditions of the Nigerian State as a result of persistent youth restiveness and militancy and the dispositions of late President Yar Adua led to the declaration of amnesty programme for the Niger Delta. Thus, the study further explained that the amnesty has helped to achieve ephemeral peace in the region hence the government has expended huge sums of money to drive the programme. However, the study emphasized that the grave danger is state inability to turn around the conditions in the Niger Delta especially those problems that instigated and sustained the violence.
The study emphasized that the prevailing fragile peace is not driven by amnesty rather by sympathy and sentiment for a President of Nigeria from Niger Delta extraction. Indeed, sustaining this fragile peace beyond President Jonathan’s administration means that Nigeria will rise to the challenge of ensuring concrete socio-economic and environmental transformation of the Niger Delta region. It is based on the above that this study recommended among others that the government should exert more efforts generally at building human capacity and infrastructural development in Niger Delta so as to dissuade people from resorting to violence and avert future slide back to crisis especially at the end of President Jonathan’s leadership.
There is a view that the PAP has overstayed its welcome. This is because it has deepened the entitlement culture based on monthly federal government payments and the region witnessing probably the highest level of oil theft despite the massive presence of security agencies; that it is now the time for a viable and sustainable exit strategy to be crafted and implemented especially since the root causes of the conflict are yet to be addressed. “What is needed in PAP is a clear exit strategy. Before this, an assessment of what has been achieved, what are the gaps especially in relation to reintegration of ex-militants and specific policy intervention to reduce these gaps,” a key informant, who is one of the young leading scholars/experts on Niger Delta issues, advised. In agreement, another key informant noted: “The government needs to undertake a rigorous review of he PAP and come up with timelines for integrating the programme into a more comprehensive regional plan for development and peacebuilding in the Niger Delta.”46 While there seems to have been no obvious or planned exit strategy from the initiation of the programme, as its main reason for existence is to quieten those who have been fomenting trouble in the region, shutting down the programme is not feasible at this point in time. “If the PAP closes it would be a disaster for the region as well as the country. A vocal minority in the Niger Delta is vehemently against the closure of the programme.” It is clear that sustained infrastructural development and poverty alleviation activities need to be front and centre stage in the next reiteration of the programme in order to address youth restiveness in the region. Environmental challenges such as gas flaring and improving the lives of the people in the region need to be addressed as well as this is seen as a ticking time bomb.
