Category: Opinion

Some Monday October 1, the country will be marking its 52nd independence anniversary. Bayelsa State will equally be rolling out the drums to mark the 16th anniversary of its creation on October 1, 1996.

Naturally, the state should command and evince the respect and admiration of all, owing to the discovery of oil in commercial quantity in Oloibiri in 1956. The discovery launched Nigeria into global reckoning as a major oil-producing nation. It is sad to note that 56 years after the discovery of oil and now 16 years since the creation of the state, not much has happened to alter the largely rural status of a state that is today nicknamed the Glory of all Lands.

Oloibiri, the small, creek community where oil was first found in Nigeria, has today become some sort of metaphor. Several authors have written about Oloibiri. One author likened the abandoned creek community to a once beautiful village bride, who suffered countless rape by the same man who professed undying love for her and with several unfulfilled promises of marriage. Now she lies desolate and there is nothing left in her that is desirable for any man to treasure.

Yet, another anonymous author once wrote in a piece titled ‘Mission Oloibiri: “The goose that lays the golden eggs nourish the same persons who famish her so as to exploit her more effectively”.

Many other narratives of the political economy of Bayelsa State by such discerning intellectuals like Claude Ake and local natives alike noted the prevailing unsavory ecological circumstances which had actually contributed largely to its under-development.

Some people have alluded to the emergence of Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan as President was God’s own way of compensating the deprived people out of whose land oil was first discovered. Good as it sounds, the line of reasoning smacks of conventional wisdom.

President Jonathan, no doubt, is first and foremost, a Bayelsan, one in whom we take enormous pride. Indeed, President Jonathan has exhibited a rare trait of a leader who truly symbolizes our collective resolve and aspiration as a people earnestly desirous of turning a new page in our country’s history.

I have heard people make comments like “It will be disastrous if President Jonathan fails to turn around the fortunes of his people after the expiration of his term in office.”

President Jonathan as the President of the whole country has a responsibility to govern all parts of the country, not just Bayelsa or Niger Delta. Besides, how does having a son of the soil as President, as many would like us to believe, amount to an appropriate compensation sufficient enough to atone for the long years of cruel, unjust deprivation and unfair exploitation and depletion of our natural resources? How does it adequately compensate for the terrible devastation of the natural environment and eco-system in the last 50 or more years since the discovery of oil?

What is important now is for us to press on in our collective pursuit to build a better country, where everyone will have a true sense of belonging and be made to feel the impact of government. The ethnic card and politics associated with it must stop as basis for national renewal. And this is why the emerging face of Governor Henry Seriake Dickson as a bridge builder in a multicultural nation like ours is most commendable. We are seeing a new era of politics of substance, politics of meaning and conviction.

For good reasons, Bayelsans who hitherto were cynical about politics and politicians due to their penchant for failed promises have had cause to beat a retreat. They are now seeing fundamental things happening in government unlike in the past. Consistently for the past six months, the Dickson-led administration has lived up to the commitment to announce and publish all revenues accruing to the state. This singular move, which was designed to entrench a regime of transparency and accountability in the conduct of government business, has indeed done a lot to rebuild the lacerated ligament of confidence of the people in governance. It has further endeared the state to investors as evident in the influx of investments in key sectors of the economy such as in the agricultural sector where a Memorandum of Understanding was recently signed with a Dutch firm seeking to set up a cassava processing plant in Bayelsa for the purpose of export.

Tourism is also looking up as a strategic means of development with the basic infrastructure and policy framework being put in place.

The last 16 years have been quite challenging as a state but our people are beginning to understand and appreciate that under the Dickson-led administration, politics is no longer business but a mission. Indeed, through his actions and pronouncements in office, Governor Dickson has re-enacted Dante Alighieri’s lux fiat – ‘show the light, to bring to the fore that he that finds himself at the head must lead the way for others to follow’.

Bayelsans are truly persuaded that the restoration agenda is well on track. The ban on commercial motorcycle has given way to brand new Restoration taxi-cabs and buses now visibly plying the streets of Yenagoa and its environs. There is also the massive restoration of decrepit infrastructure, reformation of the institutions of good governance, strict enforcement of law in line with the avowed commitment to ensure zero tolerance for crime and criminality. The Dickson-led administration has no doubt made the necessary investment in security in order to create and sustain a secure society governed by the rule of law.

Even more evident is Governor Dickson’s resolve to deliver on education given his principled stand on the development of the human capital. Little wonder, his declaration of state of emergency for the sector immediately resulted in the pronouncement of the policy on free and compulsory education for children in primary and secondary schools with emphasis on computer literacy, science and technology. This policy has since taken effect, so also is the rebuilding of educational infrastructure.

Bayelsa State is fast becoming the epicentre of educational excellence. Never in the history of Nigeria with exception to the regime of the Western regional government under the able leadership of Chief Obafemi Awolowo, has any state governent taken such keen interest in the education of its citizens like Governor Dickson has done. For the first time in the history of the state, tution-free education is backed up by provision of free school uniforms, writing materials, exercise books, school sandals, including the supply of state-of the-art school furniture to enhance the quality of learning for every Bayelsan child. Quality education has become a necessity, taking cognizance of the challenges of the modern knowledge economy.

To further underscore his attachment and passion to education, Governor Dickson’s giant strides in this sector are evident in the award of scholarships. First, was the award of N1billion post- graduate scholarships to 300 persons to study in the best universities in Nigeria and abroad. Then, there is also the award of schorships to 250 secondary school indigent pulpils under the Bayelsa State Restoration Secondary Schools Scholarship Scheme, started by Chief DSP Alamieyeseigha and President Goodluck Jonathan as governors of the state. The scheme is being sustained by Governor Dickson in its effort to build on the solid foundation already laid by the duo. What is interesting to note here is that, of the 250 beneficiaries of the scholarship scheme, 50 of the slots were allocated to students of Ijaw speaking parts of Edo, Delta, Akwa-Ibom and Ondo States.

As Bayelsa gets set to mark its 16th anniversary, one thing that can be taken for granted under this present administration is the fact that there is a new ‘sherriff’ in town whose word is his bond. Governor has really redefined governance as a tool for development, accentuating stout leadership and integrity. It is widely shared that the paradigm shift in governance offers the prospect of faster economic progress than ever witnessed. In the evolving scenario, we can see a bold identity of creative leadership and enterprise with the sole objective of casting off poverty in Bayelsa State. No doubt, making this vision an enduring one would require collective effort, cooperation and some sacrifice on the part of the good people of Bayelsa State, serving a higher, more worthy goal than individual or group interest. On the part of the leadership, we have seen a lot of courage in this regard, raising hope of greater possibilities. So at 16, it is plausible to contend that Bayelsa State is still relatively young and the journey of statehood arguably tough and mixed, but there is great hope that the future is very bright. This is the good news.

• Markson-Iworiso, Chief Press Secretary to Bayelsa Governor, sent this piece from Yenagoa.

At last things are beginning to look up in the maritime sector. The recent commissioning of the Onitsha River Port and President Goodluck Jonathan’s pledge that many more will soon follow suggest the determination of the present administration to restore water transportation to its pride of place. If vigorously pursued, marine transportation will become a huge foreign exchange earner for the nation.

Water is about the greatest natural resource God in his wisdom blessed this country with but its potential for rapid transformation of a nation is not widely recognised in Nigeria. So vital is this resource to human existence that the earth and the human body are each made up of 70 per cent water. Some other nations that are similarly endowed have applied this resource to a great advantage in the areas of transportation, hydro-electric power generation, irrigation purposes, aquatic farming and recreation. But here, the reverse is the case. Since the discovery of oil in Olobiri in 1956, ‘the blue gold’ has been relegated to the background.

The maritime sector is about the worst hit. Since the exit of the British, the sector has suffered serious neglect. A few Nigerians in the agencies entrusted with responsibility of growing the sector have been taking advantage of the prevailing situation to milk the nation dry. Dredging contracts invariably end up being abandoned with the connivance of the supervising government agencies and project consultants. Even when such contracts are completed, dredged silts are deliberately deposited near the channels knowing that with time the silt will surge back into the channel and pave the way for the award of fresh contracts. The stipulation that dredged silt be moved far away from the channel is never adhered to. All these have resulted in the unfortunate situation where some channels have been dredged severally to no avail and at huge cost to the nation. But despite its pitiable state, this sector remains the nation’s second highest revenue earner.

The lackadaisical disposition of successive administrations towards marine development reflects in the fact that the Onitsha Port complex has been commissioned twice. The first was in the early 80s by the National Party of Nigeria (NPN)-led Federal Government, but soon after, the port became moribund as the dredging of the lower Niger River was incomplete at the time the port was opened. Ever since the Onitsha Port has remained idle. Nothing significant was done by any other administration, military or civilian, until the award of the 2009 contract which culminated in the recent commissioning of the complex after a full dredging of the channel. The Goodluck Jonathan administration must be commended for this feat and going by the optimism of National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) officials, the inland ports of Oguta in Imo State, Degema in Rivers State and Baro in Niger State will soon come on stream. However, beyond reviving inland ports is the need to sustain them through periodic maintenance dredging. Any attempt to develop marine transportation without laying the foundation for its sustenance will come to naught.

Encouraging as the return of the Onitsha port may be, it is disturbing that we are still not getting our priorities right. Developing inland waterways and ports when nearly all the main water routes leading to the Atlantic Ocean are in various states of disrepair is like putting a cart before the horse. The international ports of Calabar, Port Harcourt, Azumiri, Koko and Ibaka that served the British so well in their quest to colonise Nigeria and for movement of slaves and agricultural produce have for so long fallen into disuse. It is imperative to pursue the development of these routes with the equal zeal so as to complement the inland routes. By so doing, the government will be taking marine development to great heights and the nation will then be in a position to reap its full benefits. The maritime industry has the capacity of stemming rural-urban migration, stimulating economic activities and creating millions of jobs that can catalyse the rapid development of this nation. This is besides its tendencies to reduce the cost of living given that water transportation is by far cheaper than air or land, and to absorb the pressure on the roads prompted by the movement of cargoes on the highway.

It is common knowledge that inland waterways are secondary channels and are dependent on the international routes to operate. This is because inland ports and waterways have certain inherent limitations that prevent ocean-going vessels from passing or berthing at the ports. For instance, inland ports are usually bordered by roads and bridges that make it impossible for big vessels to pass or berth. And with a draft of between 2.5 and 3.0 metres, inland waterways cannot accommodate big vessels that move on minimum draft of 8.5 metres. Consequently, mother vessels entering the country must first trans-load to smaller vessels which then will convey the goods through the inland channels to the river ports. The standard procedure is that mother vessels that are designed for a draft of between 8.5 and 10.5 metres ferry goods into the country and thereafter transfer the goods to barges, which in turn trans-load to smaller boats that can move on inland waterways and berth in inland ports.

Making the international ports and water channels commercially viable will not only increase the volume of maritime activities but also reduce freight rates. Vessels approaching from the Atlantic Ocean will have several alternatives to explore. They may for instance enter the Lagos channel for Lagos Port or veer into Benin River for Koko Port. They may also follow the Forcados River to Warri Port; the Bonny River to Port Harcourt and Onne ports or Calabar River to Calabar Port. The horrible state of most of these rivers puts so much strain on Lagos and Port Harcourt ports with attendant congestion of the seaports, delays in the evacuation of ship as well as land traffic that results from the movement of goods in and out of the ports. No doubt the international channels require much more capital outlay to fix but in the long run, these channels contribute more to the purse of the nation, create more job opportunities and feed the inland waterways.

This question that naturally arises is how to develop the international channels given the several unsuccessful attempts at making them navigable in the past. Happily, the Federal Government is already considering the ‘channel management’ option in respect of the Calabar Port and this appears to be the way out of the quagmire. Besides checking corruption and ensuring quicker returns to the government, the ‘channel management’ approach imposes on a dredging company the responsibility to ensure that the channels are in perfect condition all year round. Under this arrangement, channel managers owe all users of the channel a duty of care. If a vessel gets stuck in a channel or suffers any form of damage or loss as result of poor dredging, the negligent dredging company will be held liable and made to pay damages. Returns to channel managers are also dependent on the usage of the channel. In fact, the ‘channel management’ system has ensured the smooth running of the Lagos and Bonny channels; and will surely do the same in all other routes whether international or inland. The idea of engaging contractors solely for capital or maintenance dredging bristles with problems and has been the bane of marine development in Nigeria.

• Dr Nnadi lives in Lagos