Former militants from the Niger Delta, who are being denied their amnesty stipends have urged the Federal Government to compel the Joint Task Force (JTF) to release their colleagues from detention.
The ex-militants threatened that failure to heed the piece of advice would force them to return to the East-West road en masse to enforce their rights.
It will be recalled that the ex-militants had, on Tuesday, protested at the Mbiama axis of the East-West road early Tuesday, over unpaid four months stipends.
The JTF had disrupted the peaceful protest with sporadic gunshots into the air to disperse them and, in the process, apprehended three of them who are now coming off in detention.
In statement on Thursday made available to Nigerian Tribune, the Bayelsa State chairman, Phase 2 Ex-militants, Mr Stephen Ebisinte, said that the military had shown desperation in a democratic setting where the citizens have the constitutional rights to draw attention of the government to do what is needful.
According to him, if the military could perform so abysmally by using force on peaceful protesters who had renounced violence, then the much-needed peace in the region remains a mirage.
“If the Federal Government says we don’t have right to protest, and if we protest for our rights the military will scare us, then we still have a long way to go in the peace process.
“We are asking the Federal Government, Brig-Gen. Boroh and the JTF to release our colleagues under their detention without further delay, failure to do so will force us all to go back to the East-West road.
“We marvel if President Muhammadu Buhari, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, is aware of this ill-treatment against us and subscribed to it?
“We are ready to go all out to the road and die if our three colleagues, Mr Seaman David and others remain detained,” they vowed.