The Presidential Amnesty Programme has sent 4,500 students on scholarship to universities within Nigeria for the 2025–2026 academic session, as part of efforts to invest in the future of the Niger Delta. The Administrator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, Dr Dennis Otuaro, said President Bola Tinubu is pleased with the achievements recorded by the agency in the region within about two years.
Otuaro spoke on Monday at the flag-off of the fourth batch of the two-day Leadership, Alternative Dispute Resolution, and Mediation Training for PAP stakeholders. The training was organised by the agency in collaboration with the Alumni Association of the National Defence College at the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, Abuja.
He recalled that the PAP successfully held similar capacity-building workshops for three batches of stakeholders in July and August 2025 at the same facility, noting that the exercise is part of a continuous peacebuilding process in the Niger Delta.
According to Otuaro, the President is delighted with the programme’s expanded scholarship scheme, inclusive engagement with stakeholders, and sustained peacebuilding efforts across the region. He urged stakeholders to continue playing active roles in promoting peace and development.
He said President Tinubu remains strongly supportive of the programme due to his desire for sustainable peace, stability, and development in the Niger Delta. Otuaro described the workshop as a vital component of the PAP peace process, stressing that all stakeholders are important partners.
He said participants are not only partners in peace efforts but also peace ambassadors of the President in their various communities. Otuaro also commended the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for providing strategic support that has strengthened the programme’s initiatives and helped it meet its objectives.
While declaring the workshop open, Otuaro said, “His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR, is very happy with what we have achieved so far in one year and nine months. As stakeholders, you should continue to be key players in the peace and development of the Niger Delta, which His Excellency has been very supportive of and desirous of.”
He added, “The objective behind this training is to ensure that all of us are partners in every peace effort in the Niger Delta. This initiative is also to give you a sense of belonging.”
Otuaro said the agency had earlier assured stakeholders that more people would benefit from the training programmes. “When we organised this workshop in July and August this year, we assured stakeholders that more people would also participate in the training. We don’t want to do the PAP’s work alone. It is a process of putting our heads together to ensure that the region is peaceful and united. When we are united, Mr President will do more for the region,” he said.
He stressed that peace begins at the community level and described the participants as leaders in their own right. “We must also realise that peace starts from our communities; you all are leaders in your own rights. I know and acknowledge the support that the Office has received since we came on board. This leadership workshop is part of our peacebuilding process and is designed to ensure that peace is sustained in our region,” Otuaro stated.
Speaking on the scholarship programme, he said, “Since we came on board, we have redirected the Programme towards our people and for the next generation. We have achieved a lot. This 2025-2026 academic session, we have sent 4,500 students, our future leaders, on scholarships to universities within Nigeria. We are doing this to invest in the future of our region.”
Otuaro said his leadership would not be distracted by smear campaigns from what he described as anti-Niger Delta elements, adding that “nobody will hold the region to ransom.” He urged stakeholders not to allow themselves to be manipulated by political merchants and called on them to support President Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid, citing the President’s clear agenda for the region.
He encouraged participants to engage actively in the workshop and apply the lessons learned to strengthen peace and development in their communities and across the Niger Delta. Otuaro also thanked the management of the Nigerian Army Resource Centre, the resource persons, and the President of AANDEC, Rear Admiral Ndidi Agholor (retd.), for partnering with the PAP to deepen the peace process.
