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Tag: Niger Delta

  • Reps reject call to restore Niger Delta ministry

    Reps reject call to restore Niger Delta ministry

    The House of Representatives on Thursday rejected a motion that sought to restore the Federal Ministry of Niger Delta Development.

    The motion, which was sponsored by Rep. Oboku Oforji (PDP-Bayelsa), was dropped following Speaker Tajudeen Abbas’ announcement that the President was willing to sign the South-South Development Commission Bill.

    Abbas told the House that he got the President’s assurances over the bill in a meeting, saying that the motion had been overtaken by events.

    The Majority Leader of the House, Rep. Julius Ihonvbere (APC-Edo) said that the issues contained in the motion were germane.

    He, however, said that the conversion of the Niger Delta Development Ministry to that of Ministry of Regional Development will not in any way deny the Niger Delta region of its due development.

    According to him, it will reduce its impact in the region, but it had only broadened its scope to develop other regions.

    It would be recalled that President Tinubu had on Oct. 24, scraped the ministry and replaced it with the Ministry of Regional Development.

    The change expanded the mandate of the new ministry to encompass developmental activities in all the six geo-political zones in the country.

    Earlier, Oforji recalled that the Ministry of Niger Delta Development was created on Sept. 10, 2008 by late President Umaru Yar’Adua, who appointed Ufot Ekaette as the first minister.

    He explained that the ministry was created to promote and coordinate policies for the development, peace,unity and security of the Niger Delta region.

    The Rep. said that the ministry was to ameliorate the suffering, agitations and neglect of the oil rich region for decades by successive governments.

    He said that the years of oil spillage, lack of arable land and social amenities in the region had necessitated the emergence of militancy in the region.

    “It was in the short term of late President Yar’Adua ‘s leadership from Katsina State that dialogue was initiated with major stakeholders in the region and militants culminating in the Amnesty Programme that has brought relative peace to the region.

    “These were prelude to the creation of the ministry, which was aimed at infrastructural development, environmental protection and empowerment of the youths in the region.

    “The people of Niger Delta believe that the lofty dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the region will be actualised someday, hence their embrace of the creation of the Ministry of Niger Delta Development,” he said

    Oforji said that the oil rich region witnessed palpable tension following the announcement of the scrapping of the Ministry of Niger Delta Development.

    The House, however, resolved to step down the bill and to expedite actions on the bill on South-South Development Commission, which currently exists in other geo-political zones and controlled by the new Ministry of Regional Development.

  • Tinubu’s regionalism gamble – By Prof. G. G. Darah

    Tinubu’s regionalism gamble – By Prof. G. G. Darah

    Pandef, Pandef, beware of false prophets masquerading in electronic garments. There is sour mutilation of historical facts in the narrative on “How Tinubu Is Reversing The Damage Ironsi Did To Nigeria” attributed to Reno Omokri.

    During British colonial rule, Regions were created in 1939 and their elected goverments were in office from 1951. The Regions were three in number: Eastern, Northern, and Western. There was gross inequality and injustice in the regional system. For example, the territory of the Northern Region was larger than the combined territory of the Eastern and Western Regions.

    This lopsidedness triggered agitations for more political restructuring. Furthermore, hundreds of minority groups were lumped with more populous and hegemonic ethnic groups. The situation in the Northern Region was more bizarre as about 300 ethnic groups were put under the political yoke of the Fulani-controlled Islamic Sokoto Caliphate.

    From the 1940s agitations for more regions or states rattled the colonial regime. The agitation of the oppressed minority groups for autonomy dovetailed into armed uprisings in the Benue-Plateau areas, leading to federal armed campaigns to quell them. At the 1957-58 constitutional conferences in Lagos and London, the demand for the creation of states caused stablemates.

    The British responded by setting up the Henry Willink’s commission on the fears of minorities and how to allay them.  The commission toured all of Nigeria and received bundles of memoranda from freedom-seeking minorities. The commission’s report did not support creation of new administrative units with the excuse that doing so could derail the march to Nigeria’s independence scheduled for 1960.

    But the agitations continued unabated after independence, culminating in the creation, by plebiscite, of the Midwest in 1963. The emergence of the fourth Regiin  fired more insurgent demands. The military governments from 1966 inherited this unresolved problem. Gen Aguyi Ironsi’s quibbling approach fuelled more intense agitation. Gen Yakubu Gowon, from the ‘ulltra-minority’ Ngas ethnicity in Plateau province could not ignore the matter.

    Thus, on May 27, 1967, he created 12 states, six each in the northern and southern halves of the country. Recall that the vast majority of the combants in the armed forces were from the oppressed minorities in the former Northern Region, among whom was Gowon himself. Therefore, from 1967, the idiom of federalism shifted from regions to states. There are now 36 states.

    The 2014 National Confab recommended 18 more in furtherance of a more balanced federal system for the 389 ethnic nationalities in Nigeria. Perhaps, with the exception of the Igbo and Yoruba separatist extremists, the option of returning to regionalism is not on the agenda of the other 387 ethnic nationalities.

    Therefore, President Tinubu is swimming against a raging historical flood with his “panel-beater” method of “smuggling” the issue of regional governance into the national political discourse. His efforts are likely to end up in fiasco because the existing States will not meekly accept the option of “impeachment” and unconstitutional replacement which President Tinubu’s regional gamble portents.

  • Tinubu’s cabinet confusion: Deliberate disdain for Niger Delta, South East – By Ikeddy Isiguzo

    Tinubu’s cabinet confusion: Deliberate disdain for Niger Delta, South East – By Ikeddy Isiguzo

    By Ikeddy Isiguzo

    PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu cherishes opportunities to maximise his minimalistion of some parts of Nigeria. In tweaking his cabinet, he extended his disdain for the South East to the oil producing Niger Delta.

    He knows what he did. Scrapping the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs could not have been to reduce “cost of governance” when in the same breath he set up a Ministry of Liverstock Development, and employed seven new Ministers in place of five he sacked.

    The President is not averse to displeasing the oil-producing areas whose environment is devastated while oiling the wheels of Nigeria’s economy. Is the President concerned only about certain parts of Nigeria or so obsessed with showing off his acclaimed political deftness that he ignores economic sagacity? What about political economy?

    Liverstock Development should not be more than a directorate in the Ministry of Agriculture. If Liverstock Development is a pivot for Tinubu’s second term ambitions, must it be at the expense of the Niger Delta whose resources would fund the existence of the new Ministry?

    If both Ministries exist, would they dent Tinubu’s fame for wastes?

    Tinubu is intentional in running Nigeria as North East, North West, and South West. He ignores North Central but he is not interested in provoking the people as is the case with the South East and South South.

    His selective sidelining of both regional groupings is the newest confirmation of his disdain for those areas. It is not as if there were doubts about the President’s disinterest in both regions.

    History is on the side of the Niger Delta whose importance – fears of neglect of its fragile environments – had been recognised in official documents before Nigeria’s independence through the proclamation of the Niger Delta Development Board in 1959. The interests in protecting the oil-producing areas implicated the Eastern Region, Mid-Western Region, and were enrolled in the 1963 federal Constitution.

    Tinubu ignored this, cast aside his oath of office which asks him to be fair in dealing with all parts of Nigeria, discarded bridges he claimed to have built across Nigeria, to hatch his plan that he expects to rein in voices that call the President’s attention to injustices that include environmental degradation and theft of official rights of the regions to life, fuller participation of their people in the governance of Nigeria, and the continued militarisation of the regions.

    The summary of the duties of the 1959 Niger Delta Development Board was to assess  the impact of oil and gas production in the Niger Delta, and install measures for mitigating them, to keep accurate records of oil production so that communities that are affected by the disruptions of oil can be compensated through special financial allocations, development programmes, and employment opportunities.

    With the low level of oil production, the Civil War, the splitting of Eastern Region into three States, and the abolition of the 1963 Constitution with the coup, the life of the Niger Delta Development Board was not renewed in 1969, as the Constitution had stated. The national crisis had stalled the work of the Board from 1966.

    On 9 July 1992, General Ibrahim Babangida signed the Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission, OMPADEC, Decree, into law. It was the next effort to address the Niger Delta since 1959. OMPADEC comprised Rivers, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Imo, Edo, Ondo and Abia States. Bayelsa State was created four years after.

    OMPADEC was a more appropriate name as more communities outside the immediate Niger Delta had started producing oil. General Babangida’s OMPADEC drew from Section 159 of the 1963 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, “(1) There shall be a board for the Niger Delta which shall be styled the Niger Delta Development Board. (2) The members of the Board shall be – (a) a person appointed by the President, who shall be chairman (b) a person appointed by the Governor of Eastern Nigeria; (c) a person appointed by the Governor of Mid-Western Nigeria; and such other persons may be appointed in such manner as may be prescribed by Parliament to represent the inhabitants of the Niger Delta”.

    Babangida intended OMPADEC to be an intervention agency, development agency for oil producing areas. President Olusegun Obasanjo changed OMPADEC to the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.

    President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua set up the Presidential Amnesty Programme and created the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs on 8 September 2008 and tasked it with infrastructural and human resources development of the area for which he appointed a Minister and a Minister of State charged specifically with Youth Empowerment.

    Yar’Adua’s understanding was that the region required more attention. Government had to provide the financial and political muscles to do that. These Yar’Adua moves quietened the restiveness and criminalities in the region.

    Tinubu, 16 years on, wants to enact confusion in place of these arrangements that help in managing the volatile region, though successive governments through poor funding, corruption, and neglect have seen to non-development of the region.

    Anyone who has read Tinubu’s manifesto would be affronted by his futile efforts to garb the All Progressives Congress, APC, in a new attire. Apart from the unanswered questions of how he would implement the manifesto – politicians don’t find those details interesting – Tinubu the great party leader lifted, APC’s manifesto in places and lessened the 2015 promises.

    An example, “l will establish NEW industrial growth centres by creating six NEW Regional Economic Development Agencies, REDAs. These agencies will create sub-regional industrial hubs to exploit each zone’s competitive advantage and optimise their potential”.

    In 2015, APC had promised to:

    .Balance the economy across regions by the creation of 6 new Regional Economic Development Agencies (REDAs) to act as champions of sub-regional competitiveness;

    .Put in place a N300bn regional growth fund (average of N50bn in each geo-political region) to be managed by the REDAs.

    Tinubu gingerly left out the N50 billion funding of the REDAs of 2015 and avoided any mention of funding. He should be held to his words.

    His promise of “6 NEW Regional Economic Development Agencies (REDAs)” means that he has to establish the REDAs for North Central, and South South. Buhari established the North East Economic Commission which has been operating since 2017. North West, South West, and South East have theirs at different stages of take off.

    If Tinubu is not halted in his strides, he would count NDDC as the Commission for South South, ignoring the facts that NDDC has three States that are not from the South South zone, and that NDDC is a special intervention agency to deal with issues that are specific to the area.

    Tinubu cares enough for cattle, sheep, pigs, goats to create a Ministry for them. The least he can do for the human beings in the Niger Delta is to leave the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.

    Only in June, Senator Adamu Aliero, Kebbi Central, former Governor of Kebbi State, in an argument to shut down an anti-grazing bills had said that animals were citizens of Nigeria and therefore had the same citizenship rights as us. An aghast Senate President Dr. Godswill Akpabio over-ruled him several times.

    Akpabio will soon be approving a supplementary budget for animals even if it is not for their rights, the money for funding animals affairs and their indulgers would be at the expense of the same Niger Delta that cannot qualify for a Ministry to manage its affairs.

    Finally…

    THOSE awaiting the advertised fight between FCT Minister Nyesom Wike and beggars on the streets of Abuja should grab a copy of Aminata Sow Fall’s 1979 novel, Beggars Strike, rendered in French as La Grève des bàttu. In summary, beggars deserted the streets of Dakar to deny political office-seekers – who they blame for their plight – a chance to give alms which could make the Almighty look more favourably at their supplications.

    DOES Minister of Works, Engineer David Umahi believe his own tale that the Badagry-Sokoto Expressway was conceived 47 years ago and nobody did anything about it? He is wrong about nobody doing anything about it. President Aliyu Usman Shehu Shagari awarded the contract to the French company Fougerolle. It included an Apapa’s ports ring road, to empty the trailers that now clog Lagos, at Okokomaiko from where they were to join the expressway which as designed then had spurs to Shaki in Oyo State, and other places. Another person that did something about the road was Maj-Gen Muhammadu Buhari, who in 1984 after over-throwing Shagari, cancelled the contract and jailed a top Fougerolle official. Umahi should not deny people credit for their contributions to building Nigeria.

    ISIGUZO is a major commentator on minor issues

  • Ijaws kick against scrapping of Niger Delta ministry

    Ijaws kick against scrapping of Niger Delta ministry

    The Ijaw National Congress (INC) worldwide has faulted the Federal Government over the scrapping the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and appealed for the reversal of the action.

    Prof Benjamin Okaba, President, INC worldwide, made the appeal at a news conference in Abuja on Saturday.

    The Federal Government had on Wednesday announced the scrapping of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs replaced with the Ministry of Regional Development.

    Okaba said it was unfortunate that the ministry was scrapped with the Niger Delta region had continued to bear to the burden of the country’s income generation.

    According to him, the recent decision to dismantle the Niger Delta Ministry came as a shock to the region.

    He said this was especially to the Ijaw people, who were the largest oil producing ethnic group in the country.

    “This ministry was created by the late President Yar’Adua, who showed great empathy for the people of the Niger Delta and sought to fast-track the development of this historically neglected area.

    “Its establishment was celebrated by Nigerians who valued peace and progress, and every administration since then has upheld its importance.

    “When President Tinubu assumed office, one of his initial considerations was to dissolve this vital ministry. After widespread public outcry, he seemed to reconsider.

    “Yet, the region was blindsided when this decision was later enacted under recent government reforms. This action has left many feeling betrayed and disregarded’’, he said.

    He, therefore, urged President Bola Tinubu to reverse the decision.

    “Should this appeal go unheard, the INC will convoke a meeting of ethnic representatives across the Niger Delta to formulate a unified response to this unjust, divisive, and unacceptable decision’’, he said.

    The INC President further said the move was not only frustrating and inflammatory alleging that it reflected indifference toward a population that has long fought for basic social and environmental justice.

    “It is also puzzling that while new development commissions are being created for other regions, a long-established institution is being dismantled in the Niger Delta.

    “We are all aware that the people in other regions would never tolerate the level of oppression currently inflicted on the Niger Delta region.

    “They would have responded swiftly, possibly with affirmative action, and raised an outcry. The Ijaw and other Niger Delta communities remember how former President Goodluck Jonathan was treated with antagonism and a relentless campaign,” he said.

  • BREAKING! Tinubu scraps ministries of Sports, Niger Delta

    BREAKING! Tinubu scraps ministries of Sports, Niger Delta

    President Bola Tinubu at the Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting announced the scrapping of the Ministries of Niger Delta Development and Sports

    This was revealed by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, via his X, initially known as Twitter

    The presidential aide said, “President Tinubu and Federal Executive Council scrap Niger Delta Ministry and the Ministry of sports development. There will now be a ministry of regional development to oversee all the regional development commissions, such as Niger Delta Development Commission, North West Development Commission, South West Development Commission , North East Development Commission.

    “The National Sports Commission will take over the role of the Ministry of Sports.

    The FEC also approved the merger of the Ministry of Tourism with the Ministry of Culture and Creative Economy.
    The decisions were taken today at the meeting of Federal Executive Council in Abuja.

    Details shortly…

  • We’ll drive N/Delta economic devt. through Chamber of Commerce – NDDC

    We’ll drive N/Delta economic devt. through Chamber of Commerce – NDDC

    Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) says it has adopted the Chamber of Commerce template to drive economic development in the zone.

    NDDC’s Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, said this at a sensitisation workshop on the Niger Delta Chambers Of Commerce, Industry, Trade, Mines and Agriculture (NDCCITMA), on Tuesday in Yenagoa, Bayelsa.

    Ogbuku said that NDDC adopted the template, in line with its desire to proffer lasting solutions to the challenges plaguing businesses in the region, through provision of structured business financing to entrepreneurs.

    Ogbuku urged business owners in Bayelsa to take advantage of the capacity development, financial facilities and other opportunities presented to them through NDCCITMA.

    He said that NDCCITMA was established by NDDC across the nine states of the zone to drive entrepreneurship, while emphasising the board’s commitment to ensuring that development was brought to Niger Delta through genuine processes of economic empowerment.

    According to him, the chamber will stand between NDDC and the regional business community to assist innovators, entrepreneurs and struggling businesses to advance their aspirations.

    This, he said, would be done by providing modalities to help them through the stringent conditions of financial institutions.

    Ogbuku, who spoke through Sen. Elder Dumaro, member representing Bayelsa on the governing board of NDDC, urged all contractors and intending contractors working with NDDC to register with the chambers as a prerequisite for doing business with the commission.

    According to him, the activities of the chamber will equally enhance food security, manufacturing, skills development, blue economy and job creation for the youth.

    NDDC’s Executive Director Project, Mr Victor Antai, noted that the commission had entered into strategic partnership with the chambers to bridge the business gap and revive nano and micro-level businesses that had almost become non-existent.

    The executive director explained that members of NDCCITMA’s board of directors had been meticulously selected from across the nine states of the zone.

    Antai called on startups and individuals with business ideas to take advantage of the opportunity to seek valuable business counsel from the chamber.

    Earlier, the Chairman of NDCCITMA, Amb. Idaere Ogan, remarked that Niger Delta people had long desired a regional body to coordinate businesses in the area.

    Ogan, represented by Dr Solomon Edebiri, commended the NDDC leadership for its foresight in promoting the Chamber of Commerce, noting that NDCCITMA would work as development partner with the commission.

    He explained that the chamber would provide essential guidance to entrepreneurs and investors wanting to establish business in the Niger Delta zone.

    Also speaking, President of Yenagoa Chamber of Commerce (YECCIMA), Chief James Neminebor, enjoined the chamber to collaborate with the state chambers of commerce and work with its already existing elaborate structure.

    Some of the dignitaries present at the occasion included: local government chairmen from Bayelsa as well as the leadership of NDDC and NDCCITMA, amongst others.

  • Count us out of Oct. 1 protest – N/Delta youths

    Count us out of Oct. 1 protest – N/Delta youths

    Youths in the Niger Delta region on Friday disassociated themselves from the Oct. 1 planned nationwide protest.

    The youths, in their thousands, stormed Effurun to make their position known at a Stakeholders’/Engagement Forum convened by the Office of the Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP).

    NAN reports that Effurun is the administrative headquarters of Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta.

    The youths declared their stand on the planned uprising, pledging their continuous support for the President Bola Tinubu-led administration.

    They called on their colleagues in the region to shun the proposed protest, assuring that Tinubu was committed to addressing the various challenges confronting the region.

    Earlier, PAP Administrator, Dr Dennis Otuaro, had urged the Niger Delta people to resist any call for a protest.

    Otuaro noted that the peace and stability in the Niger Delta rest in the hands of its residents and urged them to continue to remain peaceful.

    He said that constructive engagement with the government was paramount to achieving growth and development.

    The PAP boss disclosed that construction work would soon resume on the East-West Road, which, according to him, is a major artery in the Niger Delta.

    “The President means well for the Niger Delta, and we must support his efforts to bring development to our region.

    “The Niger Delta people will not be part of any protest.

    “The problems of the Niger Delta will be resolved by the president, but it is up to us to ensure our region is not used as a base for protests.

    “We have a responsibility to ensure that our region is peaceful.

    “It is in our hands to keep the Niger Delta secure and support the Federal Government’s efforts to improve our communities,” Otuaro said.

    On his part, a leader in the Niger Delta, Mr Paul Elvis, sued for peace, emphasising that crisis was not the panacea to the challenges bedevilling the region.

    He stressed the importance of dialogue in resolving disputes, noting that peace could not be attained in an atmosphere of rancour and acrimony.

    “We must understand that violence will only lead to more destruction and suffering in our communities.

    “Our people have legitimate concerns, but we must channel these grievances through dialogue, not violence,” he said.

    Recall that PAP held a similar engagement on Wednesday with women groups drawn from the various ethnic nationalities in the region.

  • Niger Delta lawyers ask NNPCL Boss, Kyari to make Port Harcourt Refinery operational Before End Of September

    Niger Delta lawyers ask NNPCL Boss, Kyari to make Port Harcourt Refinery operational Before End Of September

    The Coalition of Niger Delta Youth On Energy Reforms and Transparency in the Oil and Gas Sector, has urged the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, to ensure that the Port Harcourt Refinery becomes operational before the end of September as he promised.

    In a press conference jointly addressed on Monday by Barr. Dickens A. Opu and Barr. Werigbelegha Zinake, the group lamented that, despite the billions of naira that have been earmarked and disbursed for the functionality of the Port Harcourt refinery, the refining plant remains non-operational.

    The group expressed concern about the energy crisis in the country caused by the non-functionality of local refineries, continued dependence on the importation of petroleum products, and the resulting cost implications for the country.

    The Lawyers noted that the failure of the Mele Kyari-led management of the NNPC to revamp local refineries has further worsened the country’s energy crisis and impoverished the people of the oil-producing Niger Delta, who are forced to buy fuel at higher rates than most parts of the country.

    The group alleged that the Port Harcourt refinery is being planned to be converted into a blending plant. They claim that substandard petroleum products from Russia will be mixed with chemicals and sold to the people of the Niger Delta.

    The Lawyers expressed concern over the potential environmental impact of converting the Port Harcourt refinery into a blending plant. They expressed fear that this move could expose the people of the Niger Delta to harmful chemicals from environmental pollution and degradation caused by the waste products released into the environment.

    The statement read: “As we may all be aware, all is not well in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria. The level of corruption is suh that if urgent steps are not taken to address the malaise, Nigeria might go into extinction.

    “We say this with all sense of patriotism given the precarious situation in the economic outlook in the country. It is indeed worrisome that an oil-producing country like ours is experiencing an energy crisis occasioned by the non-functionality of our refineries and the continued dependence on the importation of petroleum products and the attendant cost implication for the country.

    “It is indeed a shame that successive administrations in the country have done little or nothing to ensure the functionality of the country’s refineries. For example, despite the billions of naira that have been earmarked and disbursed for the functionality of the Port Harcourt refinery, the refining plant remains comatose.

    “This is on the heels that over 2 years ago, Mele Kyari the helmsman of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited indeed promised that the Port Harcourt refinery would commence operations on several occasions. This has not happened and it has further plunged the country into an energy crisis.

    “The attendant impact on the socio-economic life in the Niger Dental region can only be imagined. A situation where oil-producing communities are made to purchase fuel at a rate higher than most parts of the country is an anomaly perpetuated by the Mele Kyari-led management of the NNPCL. This is indeed a sorry tale in our quest for sustainable growth and development.

    “Those behind this anomaly are indeed bent on further impoverishing the people of the Niger Delta region. The sin of the Niger Delta people as it stands with the present arrangement is that they are considered less important in the socioeconomic standing of the country even though it is an oil and gas producing region in the country, whereas citizens of the country in other parts of the country will be buying at a cheaper rate from Dangote refinery and paying far less for a better product without so many chemicals in it.

    “We wish to state that we have it on good authority that the Port Harcourt refinery is being packaged to become a blending plant where substandard petroleum products from Russia will be mixed with chemicals and sold to the Niger Delta people.

    “This is not only acceptable, it also shows a gross disdain for the Niger Delta people. Those in authority do not care about the negative impact of this plan on the livelihood of the Niger Delta people. The Niger Delta people would be subjected to untold hardship by paying more for petroleum products, and also the attendant consequence in other critical sectors of the Niger Delta economy.

    “The economic value chain around the operations of the Port Harcourt refinery would be greatly disrupted and bring about a regime of hopelessness and the resort to crime and criminality to make ends meet. Let us not forget that the level of crime and criminality of proportional to the economic standing of the people.

    “The move by the Mele Kyari led NNPCL to convert the Port Harcourt refinery into a blending plant for substandard petroleum products from Russia and other European destinations comes with the attendant health implications for the people of the region.

    “The people would indeed be exposed to harmful chemicals from environmental pollution and degradation from the waste products that would be released into the environment as a consequence.

    “The rot in the administration of the oil and gas sector in Nigeria is phenomenal. The Mele Kyari-led NNPCL has taken the lack of transparency and accountability to another height. The country has lost huge revenues to the activities of the cartel that is aided and abetted by the Mele Kyari-led NNPCL. We are tempted to say that the Niger Delta people have been slated for extinction.

    “The Coalition of Niger Delta Youth On Energy Reforms and Transparency in the oil and Gas Sector frowns at such a disposition which is a dangerous trend that must be halted and addressed with a sense of urgency. The Niger Delta people are an important contributor to the revenue generation of the country and as such it must not be treated with disdain and levity.

    “We are therefore calling on the federal government to look into the plight of the Niger Delta people and do all that is necessary to improve the lot of the people through the entrenchment of transparency and accountability in the administration of the oil and gas sector in the country. The first step in this regard is to ensure the full functionality of the Port Harcourt refinery and other refineries in the country.

    “The second step is to institute reforms the administration of the oil and gas sector in the country with emphasis on the oil and gas-producing communities that are home to the major source of revenue for the country. The third step is to institute a probe into the administration of the oil and gas sector by the Mele Kyari-led NNPCL.

    “We are calling on the relevant authorities to urgently address the lingering issues in the oil and gas sector in Nigeria. The socioeconomic outlook of the country is worrisome and the country does not have the luxury of time as the situation in the country is getting grimmer by the day.

    “The time to act is now and it is our firm belief that the relevant authorities would act in the best interest of the Niger Delta people and the country at large.”

  • Omo-Agege hails Ibori on birthday, says he remains anchor for greater Niger Delta

    Omo-Agege hails Ibori on birthday, says he remains anchor for greater Niger Delta

    Chief James Onanefe Ibori has been described as the father of modern Delta State and a valiant fighter for the interests of the Niger Delta people.

    In a message to celebrate the first Fourth Republic governor of Delta State, immediate past Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege said Chief Ibori who is 66 years today, became the rallying point for the emergence of the Niger Delta from prolonged years of exploitation and neglect to a region that began getting its due.

    “Today’s leaders in Niger Delta owe it to Chief Ibori for his focus and doggedness in the resource control struggle that eventually led to what the region gets today as derivation fund. It is not yet a finished job, but the leaders have the accomplishments of Chief Ibori in that regard to build on,” Omo-Agege said in his birthday message to Ibori.

    “I congratulate His Excellency on his 66th birthday. He has done a lot for the people, but a lot of battles are ahead to be fought and won. He remains the anchor for the march to a greater Delta State and Niger Delta.

    “I pray the Most High God grants him long life in excellent health as he continues to contribute towards the progress of Delta State and our country, Nigeria.

    “Happy birthday, Your Excellency.”

  • Tinubu approves N50,000 monthly stipend for youths

    Tinubu approves N50,000 monthly stipend for youths

    President Bola Tinubu has approved a monthly stipend of N50,000 for 10,000 Niger Delta youths to mitigate current hardship in the country.

    President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, announced this during the Niger Delta Sensitisation Conference for ethnic nationalities and youths and women in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.

    He said the payment would be made under the NDDC Youth Intensive Scheme and would last for an initial 12 months with the possibility of extension.

    Akpabio emphasised that this move was part of Tinubu’s efforts to address the region’s challenges and urged against participation in the national protest scheduled for August 1.

    “The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) will implement this scheme immediately to support 10,000 youths with N50,000 monthly to cushion the current hardship.

    “We acknowledge the severe impact caused by oil and gas activities in the Niger Delta and are taking prompt action to address these issues.

    “The economic challenges in our nation are known by President Tinubu and is already receiving required attention to address them,” he said.

    Akpabio said that Tinubu had also approved the simultaneous commencement of the Lagos to Calabar coastal highway project from both states, which is expected to create thousands of jobs for the region’s youths.

    According to him, the forthcoming national protest was orchestrated by faceless people aiming to instigate chaos and damage across the country.

    “There is nothing in the 10 points agenda for the national protest that captures the interest of the Niger Delta.

    “The organisers are merely copycats imitating the situation in Kenya, not minding the potential anarchy their protest will bring upon this country.

    “The issues facing the country are currently being addressed, and so, there is absolutely no need to protest,” he stated.

    The senate president pointed out that necessary funds were being allocated for critical projects to meet the needs and dreams of the Niger Delta people.

    He urged for patience as the Federal Government’s policies and programmes take effect, emphasising that one year was too short a timeframe to measure its success.

    Earlier, Benjamin Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, called for calm and support for Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

    He stressed the immediate implementation of resolutions from the recent Niger Delta Summit to accelerate regional development.

    “Do not go out to protest, but rather let us consolidate on the gains this administration has made,” he pleaded with the youths.

    Sen. Asuquo Ekpenyong, the Chairman, Senate Committee on NDDC, warned that the protest would further damage the nation’s economy, which could take years to recover.

    He linked the current hardship to the removal of the corrupt petrol subsidy and the unification of the naira, asserting that these initiatives were necessary to prevent Nigeria’s collapse.

    The NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, stated that Tinubu met a very bad economy and had already initiated programmes to revive the economy.

    According to him, the Niger Delta was beginning to see the fruits of long-standing militant agitations for development under the present Federal Government.

    “The Project HOPE is bridging the skill gaps among our youths, while we are working with the Niger Delta Chamber of Commerce to train youths and young entrepreneurs of the region.

    “We are also collaborating with the chamber to support small and medium scale enterprises as well as partnering the Bank of Industry to fund our empowerment initiatives.

    “Youths should avoid participating in protest that could destabilise the country and hinder development, ultimately impoverishing the people,” he pleaded.

    Mr Jonathan Lopkobiri, President of the Ijaw Youth Council, reiterated that Niger Delta youths, particularly Ijaw youths, should refrain from joining the national protest.