MR. TONY URANTA
SAN FRANCISCO, October 11, (THEWILL) – Executive Secretary of the Nigerian National Summit Group and Member, Presidential Advisory Committee on National Conference/Dialogue, Mr. Tony Uranta, has dismissed the allegations by a group, calling itself ‘MEND’, saying the group “lied outrageously in nearly every line of its putative statement.”
In a statement on Thursday, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), reportedly passed a vote of no confidence in the National Conference initiated by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Spokesman of the group, Jomo Gbomo, purportedly claimed that it was contacted by Tony Uranta, soliciting understanding and support of its members for the dialogue.
However, in a reaction, Uranta dismissed the allegations of the group, describing them as tissues of lies.
He said: “(My) attention has been repeatedly drawn to the outlandish mendacities put out, today, under the pseudonym ‘MEND’, and with regard to my person.
“‘MEND’ has lied outrageously in nearly every line of its putative statement!
“But, then, which ‘MEND’ is this: the anti-Jonathan ‘MEND’, the Boko Haram-sourced ‘MEND’, or the phantom-‘MEND’ that the founders/commanders of MEND (who have since embraced President Yar’Adua’s Amnesty offer, and ‘suspended’ the many activities by the real MEND…the enigmatic Tompolos, Boyloafs, Farahs et al) have long denied knowledge of?!
“I have never been in touch with any of the above ‘ersatz-MEND’, one of which must have put this bunch of ridiculous lies, and hereby, categorically, state that I never have, at any time, sought the support of any such body in my vocal pursuit of a Nigerian National Conference; that I have, consistently, aligned only with progressive-minded individuals and bodies that share the wish for a National Conference that will strengthen this nation’s unity, enthrone justice and equity, and fashion out a truly People’s Constitution.
“Nigeria shall survive! No demons can hold back the hands of time. This is Nigeria’s time for Re-birth!”
Gbomo, in his statement, had allegedly quoted Uranta as saying that a rejection by a body (MEND), from the South-south would be an embarrassment to the Presidency.
The MEND statement had expressed surprise that the call for support was coming from the same person (Uranta), who, it said, had been campaigning that the militant group ceased to exist after the Niger Delta Amnesty “fraud”.
The supposedly MEND statement read in part; “Our scepticism and suspicion of the so-called National Dialogue may also have to do with the antecedents and lack of integrity of Mr. Uranta himself.
“Some hours after we took responsibility for our symbolic October 1, 2010 twin car bomb blasts in Abuja, Mr. Uranta sent a text message to Mr. Henry Okah (MEND leader), asking him to reach out to me (Gbomo) to retract our earlier claim of responsibility.”
MEND also alleged that Uranta claimed that the Jonathan administration wanted to blame some northerners, such as former military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida and a former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, for the explosion.
“It was in anticipation that MEND was contacted by Mr. Okah, that President Jonathan confidently came on national television that night to absolve our group of the attack.
“Mr. Uranta was also involved in collecting $50,000 bribe, on behalf of the Save Nigeria Group (SNG), which led to an embarrassing scandal at the time.
“The same people, who managed to hoodwink an entire nation into believing that over 30,000 men and women in the Niger Delta – now requiring an annual training/rehabilitation budget of over N30 billion – took up arms.
“How can the government correlate its display of less than 3,000 weapons, most of which were donated by the military for the disarmament show, with over 30,000 so-called repentant militants? Were the rest fighting with sticks?
“Millions of hard-working Nigerians remain unemployed, our educational system is going down the drain with strikes and the country is getting increasingly full of educated derelicts. The government still shares out billions of naira monthly to miscreants, criminals and conmen, who claim to have been freedom fighters,” it said.
MEND also alleged that the amnesty deal was designed by some people in government, who created ghost freedom fighters, with the connivance of those at the highest level .
