Posted by AFP on
Nigeria's president-elect Umar Yar'Adua said he would give priority to tackling the crisis in the oil-rich Niger Delta that has seen an upsurge in violence in recent months, his aides said Friday.
LAGOS (AFP) - Nigeria's president-elect Umar Yar'Adua said he would give priority to tackling the crisis in the oil-rich Niger Delta that has seen an upsurge in violence in recent months, his aides said Friday.
"I have given my honour and pledge that all necessary steps must be taken to protect the security of the Niger Delta because security of the Niger Delta is the security of Nigeria," Yar'Adua was quoted saying as late Thursday.
The president-elect, who will take over from outgoing President Olusegun Obasanjo on May 29, assured community and opinion leaders from the region that visited him in Abuja that his government would facilitate the development of the area.
The Niger Delta, home to Nigeria's multi-billion dollar oil and gas industry, has also seen an upsurge in militant attacks on oil firms and personnel in the past two years.
Some 100 foreign workers, mostly in the oil sector, have been kidnapped, but later released, while scores of Nigerian security personnel have been killed by militant groups seeking a larger share of the country's oil wealth for the local residents.
The unrest has reduced Nigeria's daily exports of 2.6 milllion barrels of crude by 25 percent.