Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was a result of years of
struggle by oil producing communities to have a fair share of the oil
wealth produced from their domain.
The Region produces the oil
wealth that accounts for the bulk of Nigeria’s foreign earnings.
Paradoxically, however, these vast revenues barely touched the Niger
Deltans.
All their expectations from government and oil companies
operating in the region have remained frustrated.
While many,
especially the youths took to arms, others embraced dialogue. They
produced charters, declarations, agenda and resolutions to express their
demands.
These began with the Ogoni Bill of Rights in 1990 and the
Kaiama Declaration by Niger Delta youths, containing "100 reasons why we
want our resources".
In Akwa Ibom the Oron Bill of Rights in which the
Oron people resolved to take their destiny into their own hands came
into being.
There was also the Warri Accord in which the Itsekiri people
of Delta State sought ways to maximum benefits from the oil production
in their area. And many other struggles.
The aggregate of these
and voices from the international community forced government during the
Obasanjo Administration to consider establishment of NDDC with a
mandate to develop Niger Delta.
But ironically since inception of
NDDC in 2000 those that have been given opportunities to execute the
above mandate have been hounded by a ghost which closed their eyes to
NDDC Core mandate.
What every appointee of NDDC from cleaner to
chairman of the board has always done is to see their appointments as an
anointing to take over from their respective state governors in the
"next election".
Under that illusion, they resort to series of
uncoordinated, spontaneous and sub-optimal projects and decisions with a
view to actualizing their governorship illusions. Meanwhile their jobs
and the people suffer. This has been the case since inception, board
after board.
Therefore when Sen Ndoma Egba led board took over
with Obong Nsima Ekere as MD, this writer was happy that for once a team
has come to NDDC who would for the first time implement the mandate of
NDDC for the benefit of the people.
I still have faith that the team is
solid with relevant qualifications, experience and discipline to deliver
on that mandate.
Speaking with Vanguard News shortly after his
inauguration, Obong Nsima Ekere said the new board will work with
partners to create a new narrative for NDDC and return to the core
mandate of the commission which is regional development.
This writer has not the slightest doubt that Nsima Ekere would deliver on that promise.
But in doing this he must strongly resist the ghost that has hounded
previous board members. From what I have seen of late it seems to me
that ghost is on the prowl.
The first sign that the destructive
and distractive ghosts have arrived was a few weeks ago when I read an
article published by APC purportedly written by one Nsikakabasi
Edemekong titled "NDDC Projects: Why Udom Emmanuel Is Jittery”.
The article shamelessly implied that 375 projects for which billions
would be spent were hurriedly put together purportedly to make Udom
jittery (whatever that means) rather than painstakingly targeted at
serving the people's needs.
This is usually how they start to create confusion.
If I thought that one was absurd, the next one was an enigma. This one was titled
AKSG Vs. NDDC: The Dog in a Manger Mentality
In paragraph 6 of the said write-up which was also published by APC the
writer brazenly and foolishly implied that people are trying to mess
the "POLITICAL GAINS" Obong Nsima Ekere's new projects sought to achieve
from NDDC Contracts Award. See below extract:
"...But instead of
situating the contracts and jobs done in their proper time and
circumstances, they brought in Obong Nsima Ekere into the fray, all in a
bid to pre-empt the likely political gains the MD would make of the new
wave of contracts in the state"
Political gains? For God's sake
we want to talk about people's satisfaction, people's appreciation of
the Buhari led FG through NDDC projects/programs, not some phony
political gain of one person.
Any discerning mind would know that these
dangerous, ill-informed and self seeking sociopaths behind these
publications can't mean well.
All they want is creating tension which
would bring them in to secure contracts purportedly to push one
political ambition or the other. This is the same path they have guided
all previous unsuccessful boards of NDDC.
Another terrible one
was that by a group that introduced themselves as Independent Akwa Ibom
Media who published a screaming headline "Nsima Ekere's NDDC of Fraud"
When you read it you find out it was a loud sounding nothing just to
tarnish the image of the MD who is by all means a high value Akwa Ibom
son.
All these nonsense only create tensions and deny the state
the synergy that could result from cooperation between the state and
federal appointees for the benefit of the state.
Judging from
what Nsima Ekere himself said, the only way NDDC can succeed in its task
of developing the Niger Delta is through partnerships with the
respective state governments, oil companies and other stakeholders
within the region.
They should take a cue from Obong Umana Okon Umana's
handling of the Free Trade Zone and Engr Ben Ukpong of National
Population Commission. Unlike previous boards, members of this board
should forge partnerships within and beyond their immediate states of
origin to deliver on their mandate rather than the self limiting
practice of allowing themselves to be used by these sickly elections
seeking ghosts.
Nobody says rehabilitating roads in Ewet Housing
is not good but it does not deserve the attention these ghosts sought
to portray.
Drafters of NDDC Mandate documents knew something very
vital - they didn't need to say it that in the documents that NIGER
DELTA IS POPULATED BY NEAR SCRAPS OF HUMANITIES WHOSE MEANS OF
LIVELIHOOD HAVE BEEN ERODED BY OIL EXPLORATION ACTIVITIES.
But they
handed over a great opportunity through NDDC for a total ECONOMIC
REHABILITATION of the region.
But no Board of NDDC to date has seized
that glorious opportunity. The Ndoma Egba led NDDC Board has opportunity
to write its name in gold by making NDDC relevant to the needs of Niger
Deltans for the first time since inception.
They can do these through
cooperation, exchange of ideas, joint needs identification and
partnerships with their state governments rather than what has become
traditional tensions between the respective board members and their
states of origin.
Drafters of the core mandate felt our pains
and therefore introduced a clause in item 2 in the document setting up
NDDC which clearly said:
"Conceptualize, plan and implement, ...projects and programs for sustainable development of the Niger Delta area..."
The emphasis is not only on projects like roads but programs as well.
This involves coming up with tailor-made programs and/or projects that
would assist Mrs. Susanna Ofume of Aniocha South LG in Delta State, a
widow with 7 children whose farm at Aniocha village can no longer
produce (because of effect of oil exploration) to recover some form of
livelihood to enable her feed, put a roof over the head and train her
children in school thus preventing them from becoming fodders for
militancy.
It doesn't matter whether the program is micro lending, grant
or conditional cash transfer so long as it leapfrogged Mrs Ofume out of
poverty and many others like her.
It also involves liaising
with Amaebi Nwokike from Yenagoa who read petroleum engineering but is
in detention because he developed what the authorities termed illegal
refining process and activities at Otuoke.
Amaebi and his likes within
the region should have an opportunity to explain their inventions and if
possible be assisted to expand on it to create jobs for himself and
other youths within the region to calm restiveness. NDDC has what it
takes to create such opportunities.
Uliong Essekak and his two
friends Nsima Tai from Ikot Abasi and Kayode Babalola from Ondo State
who came together many years ago to buy "ubom sakokpe" for fishing
business at Inuabasi in Mbo LGA but could no longer catch fish because
of environmental challenges in their area of operations should have
access to an alternative, like fish farm, using the strength of their
partnership and experience if the board create a path where such
ventures can find vents.
This should be the spirit of NDDC and not a
platform for politics. People are tired of politics. People want
to see service, they want to see creativities.
The type of creativity
that could see NDDC partnering with states, for instance, to develop low
cost Housing Estates and made affordable to the likes of Mrs Ofume.
After all the same money is used to resettle somebody in North East who
was displaced by Boko Haram for free.
How much less someone displaced by
oil exploration? Luckily this is the field of the current MD.
All over the world people are reacting against over politicization.
People are revolting against political establishments.
In Arab Spring,
many of the established governments were toppled in the Middle East. In
Brexit, the British voters disgraced all the mainstream parties. Same in
France as late as last week.
In US the people trumped the political
establishment and brought Donald Trump. In India and Indonesia, the
voters elevated promising provincial chiefs to premiers in 2014, both of
whom coming from poor backgrounds.
And it is just the beginning.
Across Europe and elsewhere in the world changes are happening to the
post-WW2 coalitions and political arrangements.
Everywhere, there is
an anger against politicians. Anger against the status quo. Like in the
late 18th century, this is the worst time to be a part of the political
elites.
People around the world have gotten tired of everything
being politicized. They have existential worries about their economic
status, their future and that of their children. Everything cannot be
politics.
While this writer is not against anyone's political
ambitions, he is of the opinion that politicians should begin to put
service first and foremost rather than use every platform for politics.
James Abang Writes From Atte-Okiuso Village, Urueoffong/Oruko LGA.
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