National Daily

Challenges of developing the Niger Delta

It was a seemingly sigh of relief when the establishment of the Ministry of Niger Delta was announced by the Federal Government a fortnight ago. The excitement that attended the action was, however, coincidentally short-lived by the persistent military onslaught in the region by the Joint Task Force (JTF). There have continued to be concerns over the genuine mission and policy thrust of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua in the Niger Delta, reports SUNDAY ODIBASHI

“VICTORIES that are easy are cheap. Those only are worth having which come as the result of hard fighting”.
On September 8, 2008, Vice President Jonathan Goodluck, inaugurated a 40-member Steering Committee to review all previous reports on the Niger Delta and make appropriate recommendations on how to improve and develop the zone. At the Federal Executive Council meeting of September 10, the Ministry of Niger Delta was established.

To some stakeholders in the Nigerian project these two decisions by the federal government within the same week demonstrate the degree of confusion and disharmony in the governance.

While some have continued to give encomiums to the federal government for the creation of the Ministry of Niger Delta others are of the view that the entire episode has not displayed genuine commitment to the development of the region.

Some other stakeholders are yet to be convinced about the sincerity of President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to ensure justice and equity as panacea to the protracted crisis in the Niger Delta. They expressed the view that a Ministry of Niger Delta cannot co-exist with military occupation and perpetual war in the territory. They maintain that holding the Bible on one hand and gun on the other cannot guarantee peace. Apparently, there is the belief that there are elements of decoy somewhere.

It has become the obvious that all the decisions have not in any way minimized the violence from both the officers of the Nigerian Army and the aggressive youths in the region. Youth restiveness has been on the rise with every action of the soldiers and other security operatives provoking higher level of violence from the freedom fighters, apparently recycling violence in the zone.

Some analysts have argued that the perpetual injustice, deprivation, despondency and oppression preceded the violence in the Niger Delta and therefore any path to peace and security must begin with responding to the demands of the people than military action. Youth restiveness, they said, was a reaction to the hardship and impoverishment that the people have experienced over the years of oil exploration and exploitation.

There are also those that feel that the federal government should not be doubted at all time and therefore should be given opportunity to implement planned development programmes in the region. Given the establishment of the Niger Delta Ministry, they believe that it is time to lay down arms and see what the Ministry will be able to do within a given time.

Speaking to National Daily, an elder statesman clergy and advocate of social change, Dr. Moses Iloh, said that the establishment of the Ministry of Niger Delta is a sensible decision in the right direction. He quickly acknowledged that “it is one thing to take a decision in the right direction; it is another thing to have action”.

Iloh expressed that the Niger Delta problem with or without the Ministry could be solved, but submitted to the assumption that the Ministry is going to help to solve it. He indicated reservations over the role of the governors of the Niger Delta states in the development of the zone. He lamented: “the governors don't say a word; they are not in control; the governors are doing nothing; nobody is even mentioning them”. He asked why the militants are not targeting the governors in their struggle. “There is something there we need to find out”, Iloh declared.

He expressed the hope that the Minster of the Ministry of Niger Delta will not be from the Niger Delta, because (S)he would be exposed to danger. He suggested somebody from the South West as the minister who should go ahead and do something; admonishing that anybody who is there as a Minster must know that (s)he either performs or they kidnap him or her. He reaffirmed that the idea of having such a ministry might improve the situation, contending that “the worst enemy of the Niger Delta is sluggishness, slow implementation of development programmes, procrastination”. He acknowledged that that was the wicked act of Olusegun Obasanjo, Who ignored the people and kept on dragging the situation got to where it is today. He expressed the hope that the minister will be purposeful, businesslike and full of actions.

The elder statesman advocated for the dissolution of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) because such co-existence will be duplicating issues, suggesting that the budget of the NDDC should be passed to the ministry. He observed that the NDDC has not provided solutions to the problems of the Niger Delta and has been a source of political patronage, looting and fraud since its existence and should be wiped out.

It was emphasized that the role of the minister the governor and should be defined to avoid clashes. It was suspected that there are some hidden secret and that is why the governors are being ignored in the entire arrangements. He reiterated that the governors have taken much money and did little or nothing yet nobody is asking them questions, nobody is talking about them. Iloh stated that “the Niger Delta problem is more than that catches the eyes'; adding that “there is something that people do not know, the issue is not as straight forward as it is public looked at”. Given this conviction, he advocated for quick rapid development, and then watch what excuse the boys will have to continue doing what they are doing.

It was noted that probe has become a joke and meaningless in Nigeria and thus probing the Niger Delta governors may not yield the desired result. Iloh advocated for development actions, insisting that what will probe them will probe them.

The Elder Statesman expressed that the Ministry should be expected to supervise federal government projects in the Niger Delta as different from the projects that the governments of the Niger Delta states have. He said that before the Ministry starts operation, the governments of the Niger Delta states should tell the people what blue print they have for the development of the region to avoid duplication of projects and waste of resources but have programmes that will dovetail in the development process. This, the clergy believed, will guarantee progress.

Iloh observed that the committee inaugurated by Vice President Jonathan Goodluck that preceded the establishment of the Niger Delta Ministry, was part of the deliberate ploy to confuse people. he emphasized that Nigeria does not need such committees to develop that region, adding that not many of such committees were set up to develop the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. He articulated that these indicate that nobody is telling Nigerians the truth about the Niger Delta crisis. “The problem is pregnant. I believe that the Niger Delta problem is making so many people rich and they won't like it to end” Iloh declared. He insisted that only urgent and affirmative actions of development would terminate both the crisis and the hidden beneficiaries of the crisis.

It was further said that the President should supervise the Ministry and ensure that anybody who heads it must be cautious not to lead the country into full scale war and bloodshed because the tension there is real than imagined. He stated that any idea to appoint former Delta State Governor, James Ibori, Minister of the ministry would demonstrate that Nigeria is a conscienceless, nation without shame and an insult on the pole of this country.

He condemned the continued military actions in the Niger Delta. It was pointed out that Obasanjo wickedly ignored the Niger Delta problem throughout his years in office and Yar'Adua has not been decisive in addressing the problem but opted for military action. He affirmed that military action is a waste of time but development action is the way out.

Speaking to National daily in a telephone interview, the National Director of Research, Intelligence and Planning of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), National Secretariat, Abuja, Mr. David Dogoh, said that the establishment of the Ministry of Niger Delta has not added anything to the solutions to the Niger Delta crisis. He expressed that the Ministry of Niger Delta is a mere change of nomenclature. According to him, “whether you call it development commission, a national conference or ministry, that is not the issue. The issue is commitment to feasible development and amelioration of the lives and environment of the people”.

Dogoh articulated “the basic thing is the political will, the leadership will, the decisiveness to implement policies to improve the lives of the people in the Niger Delta”. He said that Yar'Adua has already sent wrong signals to the people 'indicating his inability to solve their problems'. The ANPP stalwart said that Yar'Adua has demonstrated the traits of the weakly and this he said had made the people continue taking up arms in struggle.

It was recalled that the 1789 Revolution in France was the result of the people seeing the leader as weakly. Dogoh asserted that Louis 14 was seen as weakly and the people had to rise up in arms. He noted that the struggle started from the top before the common people were mobilized for mass action in executing the revolution. He said that Yar'Adua has shown gross inconsistencies; noting that he says one thing and does another, making it difficult for people to trust his leadership but continue in arms struggle.

Dogoh advocated that Yar'Adua needs to be decisive. The creation of Ministry of Niger Delta was indicated to be sheer game. The ANPP Researcher was of the view that “Yar'Adua has not shown the political will to deliver; has not demonstrated the capacity to involve all the stakeholders in charting the course of development of the Niger Delta”. There was a caveat against any practice of exclusivity or negligence of any stakeholder in the Niger Delta question.

There was an emphasis for the establishment of a direct development authority like the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Abuja that will participate actively in direct implementation of projects in the Niger Delta. Suggestion was further made that the ministry should be less burdened with bureaucratic bottlenecks and red-tapism for effectiveness and efficiency.