“‘Tompolo Is More Ruthless Than Pharaoh’ — Activist Blasts Otuaro Over ₦65,000 Stipend, Petitions NSA Ribadu in Explosive Letter”
By Passman Akpos
A Niger Delta activist, Ezekiel Daniel, has written an open letter to the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, urging immediate federal intervention over the monthly stipends paid to more than 30,000 beneficiaries of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).
In the strongly worded letter, Daniel alleged that the current ₦65,000 monthly stipend paid to ex-agitators has become grossly inadequate in the face of Nigeria’s economic realities and rising cost of living. He appealed to the NSA to facilitate an upward review of the allowance through a formal memorandum to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The activist also made a series of personal allegations against former militant leader Chief Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo, describing him in harsh terms and claiming that his opinion was based on his personal experiences. He further alleged that he suffered detention by the Department of State Services (DSS) in 2015 and was kidnapped in 2023 because of his association with Tompolo, though these allegations were presented as his personal account.
Daniel recounted his involvement during the introduction of the Presidential Amnesty Programme in 2009, stating that he publicly campaigned for Niger Delta militants to embrace the programme established by the administration of the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua. According to him, he published appeals in national newspapers encouraging fighters to lay down their arms in the interest of peace.
He further claimed that he later supported Dennis Otuaro during his emergence as Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme and subsequently advocated for an increase in the agency’s budget. Daniel said he produced a video appeal to President Tinubu in Yoruba, which he claimed reached the President through the Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, shortly before the Federal Government approved additional funding for the programme.
According to the activist, despite what he described as improved funding for the Amnesty Programme, ex-agitators have continued to receive the same ₦65,000 monthly stipend. He alleged that the agency has sufficient resources to accommodate an increase while continuing to fund its operational activities, though he did not publicly provide documentary evidence supporting those financial claims.
Daniel accused the current leadership of the Presidential Amnesty Programme of failing to prioritise the welfare of beneficiaries and called on the National Security Adviser to direct PAP Administrator Dennis Otuaro to prepare and submit a formal proposal seeking presidential approval for an upward review of the monthly stipends.
He argued that improving the welfare of ex-agitators would promote peace, stability and social justice in the Niger Delta region.As of the time of filing this report, neither Tompolo nor the Presidential Amnesty Programme had publicly responded to the allegations and opinions expressed in the open letter. Likewise, there was no immediate reaction from the Office of the National Security Adviser regarding the request.
The development is expected to reignite public debate over the welfare of Presidential Amnesty Programme beneficiaries, the management of the programme’s budget, and calls for reforms aimed at improving the livelihoods of former Niger Delta agitators.
