Major General Barry Ndiomu (retd) has handed over the mantle of leadership of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP) to Dr Dennis Otuaro after 18 months of stewardship.
Ita Henshaw, technical assistant to the former interim administrator, handed over the notes to Otuaro in a brief ceremony at the PAP office in Abuja on Monday.
In his brief remarks, Otuaro said he would not betray the trust reposed in him by President Bola Tinubu and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu.
He said his mission in the Presidential Amnesty Office is to render quality service to the Niger Delta region and the nation, stressing that there would be no room for failure.
Otuaro urged the members of staff to be focused and give him the requisite cooperation to move the office forward.
While stating that he was not in the Amnesty Office to pursue personal gains, Otuaro urged the members of staff to embrace his principle.
“I need everybody’s cooperation here to take this programme to greatness. My appeal here is that, starting today, we should back the crowd and face the job. I need everyone’s cooperation so we don’t disappoint the President, the NSA, the people of the Niger Delta, and Nigeria as a whole.
“I believe in this country. Everything about me is in this country, and it is also in the Niger Delta.
“We will streamline whatever we know that is giving us the load to provide excuses; we must streamline some things, and we’ll work together,” he stated.
President Tinubu had approved the appointment of Otuaro as Interim Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme last Thursday.
Ndiomu, during his 18-month stint described as productive, left giant footprints. Niger Delta youths would be expecting Otuaro to raise the bar further to address the issues in the Niger Delta, as they concern the PAP and the struggle to better the lives of beneficiaries.
From the resuscitation and training of Type-Rated Pilots & Aircraft Maintenance Engineers to the Presidential Amnesty Cooperative Scheme and sustained scholarships, as well as many other flagship initiatives, Ndiomu’s contribution to the improvement of the lives of PAP beneficiaries remains indelible.
The Presidential Amnesty Programme was initiated and signed into law in 2009 to stem youth restiveness, agitation, and ruination of oil processing infrastructure in Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region. The mandate was to disarm, demobilise, and reintegrate ex-agitators back into society.
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