Nigeria condemns attack on Equitorial Guinea
* MEND fingers U.S., Washington denies
From Madu Onuorah (Abuja), Kelvin Ebiri (Port Harcourt) and Francis Obinor (Lagos)
THE Federal Government yesterday dissociated itself from "whatever group that took that cowardly action" of attacking the facilities of government of Equatorial Guinea in the early hours of Tuesday.
It said that the government and people of Nigeria condemn in "very strong terms" the attack, which was initially blamed on elements of the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta (MEND).
But MEND, in its response, said it suspects Western powers such as the United States of America (USA) of being behind the attack to create fear in the Gulf of Guinea to justify African Command (AFRICOM), a military project of American government.
However, the U.S. yesterday dismissed the allegations as "groundless and baseless."
American Embassy's spokesperson, Jennifer Dewitt-Walsh, told The Guardian yesterday that the allegations were not only unfounded but also inaccurate". According to her, " they are amazing and baseless."
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, told journalists after the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja that the attack "should be condemned."
The attack, he said, shows the imperative for African governments to work together to enhance the security architecture of the continent.
Maduekwe said Nigeria is "in solidarity with the people and government of Equatorial Guinea as they confront this unfortunate threat and this unfortunate action. And we hope they are able to apply the full force of law to deal with the elements that want to create problems."
Nigeria, he said, sends its "message of solidarity and congratulate them as they were able to stem the attack."
The Spanish State news agency EFE, quoted Equatorial Guinean government spokesman, Jeronimo Osa, as blaming the attack on an armed group operating in the oil-rich Gulf of Guinea in the Niger Delta. Gunmen from the region have previously launched sea-borne attacks on Cameroun and Equatorial Guinea. Osa said the attackers had arrived in motorised open wooden boats and had been repelled by Presidential Guards. Soldiers then took up positions in the streets, EFE reported. There were two casualties, but he did not say from which side.
Maduekwe said investigations by Nigeria so far "shows that authorities in Equatorial Guinea themselves are not certain about the identities of those people. But whoever they are, whether they are militants from the Niger Delta or they are mercenaries from outside Africa, this kind of act should be condemned. And it is the latest wake-up call for countries all over Africa, but particularly countries around the Gulf of Guinea, to work more closely to share information, to share facilities, to share our collective strength, in order to confront non-state actors, who wish to destabilise the region. We have the capacity to do so as countries of the Gulf of Guinea. And already, there is a lot of progress in terms of the Gulf of Guinea Commission (GGC).
"A meeting had just been concluded in Luanda (Angola). What we need to do is to get more action out of those meetings to ensure that the actual operational details of what needs to be done to ensure that this is not just a zone of tremendous prospects and emerging prosperity of oil resources but should also be a zone of peace and security."
On insinuations that the attack was engineered by militants from Niger Delta, Maduekwe said Nigeria is "united with the government of Equatorial Guinea, and indeed any other African country to confront any criminal elements on the continent that disturbs the stability of the continent. If those criminal elements are from Nigeria, that is the more reason why we have the responsibilities, not only to deal with criminal elements within our own laws, but assist any other government that itself is also on the receiving end from that kind of criminality. You also know we are facing challenges from Nigerians, who for their own machinations, for less than noble virtues, have resorted to criminal actions as a way of wanting to make a point..."
MEND was accused by the Equatorial Guinea of launching the attack on the country's presidential palace in Malabo on Tuesday, an allegation which the group has since denied.
MEND spokesperson, Jomo Gbomo, in an online interview with The Guardian, said by the accusation, there is indeed a sinister plot to discredit MEND in order to derail the emancipation of the Niger Delta.
Gbomo said: "We are also suspecting the USA of trying to create fear in the gulf of Guinea to justify AFRICOM. There is indeed a sinister plot to discredit MEND to derail the Niger Delta emancipation.
"The only stake we have in Equatorial Guinea is our feelings for the common citizens of a country still run by a despot kept in power by the oil majors and some Western countries for cheap oil. MEND was not involved in any attack there as our hands are full in the Niger Delta."
Gbomo said MEND has friends from Equatorial Guinea, who wish to see the type of change President Barack Obama of the U.S. is talking about. According to him, MEND shares their vision for change the same way they share theirs for the Niger Delta.
"Giving a dog a bad name is not new to us. If Henry Okah was free in South Africa, he would have been falsely accused. Today, it is MEND because there is no Okah to blame," Gbomo added.
On the withdrawal of the judge handling the case of Henry Okah from the matter, MEND said the best thing for the country to do is to dismiss the case for lack of merit. It added that the case against Henry was an unnecessary distraction that Nigeria cannot afford now.
Meanwhile, United Nations (UN) Assistant Secretary-General, Dr. Charles Lopse, has said that the situation in the Niger Delta is being blown out of proportion and canvassed the need to transmit the right image about the region.
Lopse, who is also the Executive Director of UNITAR, stated this yesterday at the Government House, Port Harcourt, shortly after a closed door meeting with the Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.
He said: "I think it is important for us to separate speculation from fact, we are on ground in the Niger Delta, so we know exactly what is going on here. There is a lot of rumour about the area but there is also something that need to be taken care of."
He explained that despite the security challenges in the region, its offices in Port Harcourt are functional, because they have assessed the situation and identified areas that are dangerous.
