Days after his
acclaimed meeting
with the militant
group, Niger Delta
Avengers (NDA),
Sports and Youth
Development
Minister, Mr.
Solomon Dalung,
appears to have
run into trouble as
President
Muhammadu
Buhari has ordered
the probe of
circumstances
surrounding the
parley.
“Mr. President has
ordered that the
minister provides
an answer as to
whether or not he
actually met with
Avengers, and if
truly he did, he
wants to know
from him who
authorised the
meeting,” a
presidential aide
told our
correspondent.
This development
came, as it
emerged that one
Jude Tabai, the
son of a retired
justice of the
Supreme Court,
facilitated
Dalung’s trip to
Oporoza.
But the minister
did not disclose his
identity to the
host community
during his visit as
he introduced
himself as the
head of a non-
governmental
organisation (NGO)
working for
development in
the Niger Delta.
The duo of the
minister and Jude
went without any
security escort, a
local source said.
On Monday, the
Sports Minister
claimed to have
met with the
leadership of the
militant group as
well as community
leaders in Oporoza,
Gbaramatu
Kingdom of Warri
South West Local
Government area
of Delta State.
But the source,
who spoke on the
heels of the NDA’s
and Oporoza
community’s denial
of any meeting
with Dalung,
disclosed that the
president has
directed the
National Security
Adviser (NSA),
Major General
Mohammed
Monguno (rtd) to
“get to the root of
the meeting.
“The first question
Mr. President
raised on the
report that the
minister visited
the leadership of
the Avengers and
Oporoza
community was,
who authorised
the visit? The
question became
necessary because
neither the NSA
nor the petroleum
minister or even
the military task
force was aware
of the minister’s
trip to the area.
”One thing again is
the fact that
anything could
have happened.
And again, it raises
the question that
if government now
knows who the
leaders of the
Avengers are, then
what next? “Mr.
President is
unhappy over this
and he directed
the NSA to get to
the root of the
said meeting
because it became
more embarrassing
when both the
Avengers and the
community are
denying that they
met with the
minister,” the
source told New
Telegraph.