The Presidential Amnesty Programme has disclosed that additional 450 ex-agitators have been deployed to facilities in the Niger Delta to learn the business of oil spill response, cleanup and remediation.
The programme, it said, was in line with the novel Train, Employ and Mentor scheme introduced by its Interim Administrator, Col. Milland Dikio (retd).
This was stated by Dikio while addressing the ex-agitators after the second batch of Basic Orientation Course organised for the former agitators in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
While harping on the importance of wealth creation and employment generation in the region, Dikio said aside from the training on oil spill cleanup, others were sent to acquire skills in solar engineering, plumbing, electrical installations, marine, metal, and woodworks.
The amnesty administrator urged the beneficiaries to take their training seriously to enable them to become employable, establish their own companies that would help them cater to their families and contribute to the economy of the Niger Delta region.
Dikio said, “You’re going to be deployed to learn and then add your own knowledge and skill to making the environment of the region better. We want to clean up our environment not only for ourselves but for our children and grandchildren.
“I want to urge you to take the training seriously. Anything you’re doing, do it well and you will see the result.
“What you will become tomorrow is what you decide today. You can learn from the experiences of all those who have made it today.
“This training facility where you are is owned by a young man. He didn’t achieve it in one day, it took him years but he was focused and determined to succeed”.
Earlier, a prominent ex-agitator, Pastor Nature Dumale Kieghe, shared his experience with the beneficiaries, saying he became a success story because of his resolve not to go back to his old ways.
“I was rejected by even my own family members because of my lifestyle. I was a lost child. No one could ever believe that I could be saved but here I am today with so much to show for turning around from my evil ways.
“I have traveled around the world, speaking to people about the dangers of engaging in destructive acts. You too can be like me if not better” Kieghe stated.