Bayelsa state governor gets findings from Ijaw congress panel on reconciliation

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has pledged that his administration will carefully examine the recommendations of the Ijaw National Congress Reconciliation Committee and engage in widespread consultations prior to implementing them, anticipating that these recommendations will bring about peace, progress, and stability, ultimately enhancing the Ijaw nation's relevance in Nigeria.

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Diri expressed his optimism regarding the committee's recommendations while receiving the report from the eight-man committee at Government House in Yenagoa on Friday, an event that followed the committee's inauguration by the governor on May 26, 2026, with the task of reconciling discordant interests within the Ijaw National Congress after a disputed presidential election.

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The report was compiled within the stipulated one-month timeframe, and Governor Diri commended the committee members for their diligence, emphasizing that nothing but excellence was expected from them, and they delivered a report that addresses the divisions and future possibilities of the Ijaw people.

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Diri described the Ijaw National Congress as the highest institutional expression of the Ijaw people's identity and historic aspirations, stating that the Congress and the people are inextricably linked, rising or falling together, and that the committee's report provides a pathway back to trust and collective purpose.

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The governor noted that the committee was given a sacred mandate to find reasons for the Ijaw people to stay together, and they discharged this mandate with diligence and courage, delivering a report that speaks to the divisions and future possibilities of the Ijaw nation.

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When inaugurating the committee, Diri had emphasized that the destiny of the Ijaw Nation was too precious to be left unattended, and the committee responded to this urgency, producing a report that exceeded expectations.

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Presenting the report, Reconciliation Committee Chairman Dr. Mathew Seiyefa, a former Director-General of the Department of State Services, explained that the committee interacted with all contestants in the Ijaw National Congress elections, including members of the electoral committee and the INC executive, and received memoranda from various zones of the INC and other critical stakeholders of the Ijaw nation.

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Seiyefa noted that the committee's expectation was that the Ijaw National Congress would serve as a voice for the Ijaw nation, its people, and their causes, and that a resurgent INC would be more consultative and inclusive, prioritizing its role as a platform for advocacy to gain greater traction and resonance in the lives of the people.

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A common trend that emerged during the committee's interactions was the overwhelming passion for the survival, renewal, and reinvigoration of the Ijaw National Congress, with a yearning for an INC that would rise to the challenges of the moment and champion the cause of the Ijaw nation and its people.

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This sentiment drove the committee's deliberations and informed the recommendations made, aiming to revitalize the Ijaw National Congress, the umbrella socio-cultural organisation representing Ijaw communities across the Niger Delta.