Rivers Dep Speaker Canvasses Speedy Talks With Boko Haram

THE Deputy Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Mr. Leyii Kwanee, wants expeditious dialogue between the Boko Haram sect and the Federal Government.

Kwanee who seeks a peaceful resolution of the crisis stated this when a delegation of Titled Women Prayer Association of Nigeria (TWPAN) paid him a courtesy call in his office in Port Harcourt.

The Deputy Speaker said that the intervention of God was required for the amicable settlement of the conflict.  He noted that throughout the history of man it has been learnt that violence does not contain violence, hence the need for dialogue.

He cited the case of the Niger Delta where military force could not suppress the restiveness.  Kwanee, who represents Khana 11 constituency, noted that only in a peaceful atmosphere can the potential of Nigeria be realized. According to him, “without peace there cannot be any meaningful development.”

He appealed to the Boko Haram sect to accept the olive branch of the Federal Government for peace to reign once again.

The Deputy Speaker lauded the women for identifying with the power of prayers and assured them of his support.   He accepted the offer of a patron from the group, promising that he would do his best to support the programmes of the group.

The President of the Titled Women Prayer Association of Nigeria, Mrs. Blessing Ekpemiro, said the group decided to identify with the Deputy Speaker because of his Christian virtues and encouragement of prayers in his Ogoni ethnic nationality in order to restore peace.

She informed the Deputy Speaker that the group is a national organization that believes in the efficacy of prayers to resolve conflicts.

The president congratulated the Deputy Speaker for his return to the State House of Assembly as a two-term legislator and commended him for his development initiative in his Ogoni ethnic nationality in the areas of employment, empowerment and support for the less privileged.

“I will not hesitate to commend the efforts of Honourable Deputy Speaker ‘a God fearing man’ who has restored peace and tranquility in Ogoni land through his pet project (Ogoni for Christ)”, she said.

Mrs. Ekpemiro further told the Deputy Speaker that the group was on its way to visit northern leaders like the former military president, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida; the former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and other prominent Nigerians to canvass peaceful resolution of the Boko Haram crisis.