Akhigbe calls for end to violence in Niger Delta

The federal government has renewed its appeal to the people of the Niger Delta area to concentrate on development and stop the campaign of violence, Nigerian radio said yesterday, monitored by the BBC. The chief of general staff, Vice Admiral Mike Okhai Akhigbe, was speaking at a meeting in Abuja yesterday, attended by a delegation of the Bini, Ilajes and Itsekiri ethnic groups as well as government representatives. The leader of the delegation from the Niger Delta region, Allison Ayida, called on the government to take “appropriate measures” to stop the campaign of violence against the Bini, Ilaje and Itsekiri groups, Nigerian radio said.