Niger Delta crisis - Mend

Nigerian President meets with rebel leader

Article published on the 2009-10-20 Latest update 2009-10-20 10:33 TU

A view of the Niger Delta from space
(Photo: Nasa)

Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua has held his first-ever meeting with the leader of the main rebel group in the oil-rich Niger Delta, leading the rebels to express cautious optimism on Tuesday.

"It looks like this is the beginning of dialogue Mend has been advocating," Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta spokesman Jomo Gbomo said in a statement. "If this happens, it is surely light at the end of the tunnel."

Henry Okah, Mend's presumed leader, met Yar'Adua at the president's villa in Abuja on Monday, the presidency announced, describing the meeting as "very fruitful".

The meeting was facilitated by the publisher of one of Nigeria's leading daily newspapers, according to Mend.

Newspapers said Okah, who was in South Africa for treatment of a kidney condition, was flown to Abuja in Yar'Adua's presidential jet. He was freed in July after nearly two years in jail after treason and gun-running charges against him were dropped under an amnesty offer.

The meeting between the president and the rebel leader came after the government had intensified efforts to end the Niger Delta crisis, offering unconditional amnesty to thousands of militants.

It also emerged Monday that the government plans to plough 10 percent of the money it makes from Niger Delta oil back into the region.

A key demand of the Mend is that local communities must benefit from the region's oil wealth. The rebel's three-year campaign has slashed Nigeria's oil output by a third.