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Tag: Niger-Delta

  • FG to recruit 10,000 youths from Niger Delta – Boroh

    ABout 10,000 youths from oil-bearing communities in Niger Delta will be engaged by the Federal Government as surveillance and security officers at oil pipelines in the region.

    Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Chairman, Presidential Amnesty Programme Brig. Gen. Paul Boroh announced this at a news conference in Abuja, yesterday.

    He said:  “The Presidential Amnesty Programme is responsible for interacting with nine state governments, including Ondo State, and we  aware of what is happening there. They (kidnappers)  are also part of those that will benefit from the Federal Government inclusive principle in ensuring that youths of the region are adequately accommodated in the areas of inclusiveness.

    “Inclusiveness means what do we do in ensuring that youths from the oil-bearing communities are engaged adequately in the oil business. It could be pipeline surveillance, it could be part of the modular refinery initiative. These things will engage youths. Most youths have taken it beyond the normal approach because they are not adequately employed.

    “This, the Federal Government is aware of, and is responsible for ensuring that they achieve in the principle of inclusiveness in the strategic Niger Delta programme. The Strategic Work Plan for the Niger Delta region is an inclusive work plan that will involve youths, particularly those from oil-bearing communities.

    “I have got names of persons from almost all the states; we will collate them and when I meet with our ministerial group, we will look at it holistically to see how we can get them but nothing less than 10,000 youths are going to be engaged from oil producing states because it has to do with surveillance of pipelines. All of them are going to be included.”

    Dismissing fears of a possible hijack of the planned engagement of 10,000 youths by some forces, Gen. Boroh explained that the exercise would involve the leadership of the communities, who forwarded names to his office.

    Speaking  on the Nigeria Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Delta State, Gen. Boroh denied insinuations the Federal Government had  dropped the idea of establishing the institution.

    Gen. Boroh presented three delegates of the Amnesty Programme, who made First Class in Belarus.

    He gave the names of the delegates as Dan Obi Vincent from Rivers, Okorie Chukwuemeka from Imo State and Vincent Isoboye from Rivers State.

  • Niger Delta

    Niger Delta

    Jaw-jaw always better than war-war. But all sides should show good faith

    Just as well the Federal Government has met with the Edwin Clark-chaired Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), after PANDEF’s August 1 “ultimatum” to the federal authorities to parley or expect the worst.

    In that “ultimatum”, Chief Clark urged the Federal Government to follow up on its  November 1, 2016 vice-presidential visit; and show practical demonstration that it was not just buying time, and taking the people over there for granted. He cited the slow work on the Maritime University, Okerenkoko, Delta State, which Acting President YemiOsinbajo had then promised would soon take off.

    He also, and rightly too, complained about the promised but yet to take off Ogoni clean-up programme. Since the federal authorities launched the “clean-up” very early in the Muhammadu Buhari Presidency, not much has happened in terms of the actual clean-up.

    Although the federal authorities admitted that nothing on the surface appeared to be going on at the Ogoni environmental front, a lot indeed was happening, given that the various technical committees needed to do the clean-up were already in place. That could well be, for a foundation for a giant building often takes time, before the actual erection of blocks.

    Still, given the hope the Ogoni clean-up project triggered, and the political and environmental health capital it could have given the Buhari administration, losing that momentum was something close to a tragedy, particularly with the restiveness in the area. That is why the Federal Government should use this PANDEF alert as re-starting point, and begin to do the needful on that front.

    But then, after all the legitimate complaints, the PANDEF chair then launched into what sounded like a veiled threat: that the so-called “youths” were getting restless; and that many of them had inundated him with telephone calls, threatening to re-embrace violence, after the Niger Delta Avengers’ bombing campaigns of 2015/2016.

    Inasmuch as the Clark alert might serve as accurate gauge to describe the near-peril of the deteriorating situation, throwing an ogre of violence, in the face of the government, is manifest bad faith on the path of PANDEF.

    The reason is simple: if violence could solve the problem, why did the initial violence not lead to a solution, but instead a fresh opportunity to dialogue? In other words, what did the so-called “youths” that rushed into violence achieve, except to secure an agreement to discuss the problems with the authorities? And if violence didn’t entirely work then, how can it work now?

    No matter the level of provocation or perceived insincerity, Niger Delta elders must always impress it upon the rash “youth” to always develop a deep sense of introspection; and not to permit themselves the illusion that violence can solve any problem. It can’t. Besides, the elders should be able to manage them, without having to throw the threat of violence in the face of the dialoguing party.

    Apart from that, Niger Delta elders should be wary of romanticising violence, through fawning, inexact terms that lend dubious credibility — if not legitimacy — to brazen crime. Law-abiding “youths” don’t embark on destroying common facilities, built with tax payers’ money. Only criminals do — and criminals should be called what they are, and not by any other fanciful names.

    Besides, the last bombing campaign by the Niger Delta Avengers had made the area a worse environmental nightmare than it was before the bombing. It therefore appears a lose-lose situation that should be avoided by all right-thinking persons.

    Having said that, however, it is absolutely scandalous that the Federal Government had to jerk awake from its seeming slumber, just because of a threat to resume violence. Such negligence, for whatever pressing reasons, is intolerable and unbefitting of any government worth its name.

    Besides, a part challenging the might of a whole government, with its theoretical monopoly of lawful force, could indeed be a suicidal trip. Still, government is not just about raw force. Indeed, what propels the force is legitimacy, which gifts it its moral fibre. An illegitimate government theoretically becomes a bully, which overthrow could be justified. That is why every government must do its duty by the people to retain legitimacy at all times.

    Which is why the Federal Government must do its duty to the Niger Delta, and indeed, every part of Nigeria it swore, by the Constitution, to care for. Of course, not a few could scoff at the urgency PANDEF now feigns, given that the situation was pretty much the same when its own son, Goodluck Jonathan, was president.

    True. But as government is a continuum, and the Buhari administration has a pact with Nigerians who voted it in, the sanctity of the Niger Delta space, and the welfare of its people, should be top priority for any sitting government. That a son of the soil didn’t do his duty should not excuse any subsequent government to abandon its own bounden duty.

    But it is heart-warming that both sides are talking again. Niger Delta, the proverbial goose that lays the golden egg, is to parrot Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, the open sore of the nation. The sore must be sorted fast.

  • No going back on new vision for Niger Delta – Osinbajo

    No going back on new vision for Niger Delta – Osinbajo

    Acting President Yemi Osinbajo on Thursday night declared that no effort would be spared to implement the new vision for the Niger Delta.

    Stressing that the Federal Government has been committed to the vision, he said the government would be fair to all parties towards implementation of the vision.

    He stated these during over three hours closed doors meeting with members of the Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

    In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, the acting President endorsed the integration of PANDEF in the Federal Government’s Inter-Ministerial Group tasked with the implementation of the vision

    According to him, the federal government is fully committed to realising a new and prosperous Niger Delta developed through forthright partnerships between federal government, state governments, private sector and local communities.

    He said: “We are fully committed and thankful for your contributions and feedback. We are working on this day by day. From the beginning, we took the 16-point demand very seriously and we also developed our own plan mostly based on those demands.

    “Personally, I believe the issues of the Niger Delta must be addressed. When I undertook the visit to the Niger Delta region, my sole intention for participating in this process is that we need forthrightness and a hands-on approach.

    “There is no week that has passed that I have not held one meeting or the other on the Niger Delta issue. I have spent quality time looking at how we can implement this (new vision).

    “It can’t be done overnight. We are also looking at the integrity of the process so we can meet our targets. We are not out of line. Everything is on course the way we set it out. We have got to do it right.”

     

     

  • My battles with beggars at NDDC’s gates -MD

    My battles with beggars at NDDC’s gates -MD

    The Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Nsima Ekere, is a former Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom State. In this interview with our Bureau Chief in Port Harcourt, BISI OLANIYI, and select journalists, he explains why the commission recently cancelled over 600 projects and terminated contracts worth N200 billion across the nine states of the Niger Delta. He also says the NDDC is determined to go after all the contractors who got money from the agency but abandoned the project sites. He explains the reasons for the strain relationship between the commission and the governors of the Niger Delta region and speaks on the running battles the commission has been having with beggars at its headquarters, among other issues.

    There are contractors who even before they are awarded contracts have the mind-set that they are coming to defraud the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and the region. What steps are you taking to ensure that such persons are punished?

    First of all, I will like to acknowledge the efforts of the last board and management of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). Conscious of the fact that some contractors are fixated on just getting the projects, getting the money and running away, they came up with a policy and they stopped making advance payment for projects. Even though before now all advance payments that were made by the commission were backed by payment guarantees from banks, some people were still able to beat the system. So, they came up with the idea of stopping to give advance payments. It is good and then it is bad, but we are determined to go after all the contractors who got money from NDDC and abandoned their project sites.

    And we are not going after the contractors alone; we are also going after the banks that issued the payment guarantees. We have already recovered about N60 million from the banks. We have a committee that is working on it. So, we want to ensure that all NDDC funds that are in the hands of contractors and projects have not been executed to match the funds that have been paid out, we recover the money. We are also going to prosecute the contractors involved. We are working with the Office of Mr. President on the prosecution of defaulting contractors.

    Is there a way of getting economic direction for NDDC’s projects?

    That is exactly what I have been talking about. By the time we update the master plan, we will have an integrated development master plan for the region, so that every project that is done will be in the master plan. That will almost drastically reduce or eliminate the incident of having stand-alone projects or duplication of projects.

    We had cases in the past where the state government would be doing a project and NDDC and the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs would be doing the same project. We had a particular case where a state government had awarded a project to a contractor, money had been paid, but NDDC awarded the same project to another contractor with money paid, and the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs awarded the same project and money was also paid to a different contractor, because there was no coordination.

    The development agencies must partner and engage one another to know what they are doing. Duplication of projects will then be eliminated. The idea of competition among government agencies must be totally avoided. In the new focus of engagement with the relevant stakeholders, such will be a thing of the past.

    What is happening to the overseas scholarship scheme of NDDC and why were some of your scholars abandoned?

    NDDC does not have the intention and will never abandon any of its scholars. When we came in, I do not want to say fraud, but we discovered that there were a lot of discrepancies in the way the scholarship programme was being administered. When you award scholarships, these scholarships are for studies abroad. We found that monies were paid to people who were still in Nigeria, and we did not see why that should happen.

    There were cases where people got admissions for certain courses in certain universities and got approved for NDDC scholarship, but along the line, because there is a fixed amount that is paid to every scholar, some of them would go to other universities for different programmes than they got the scholarships for, just because the universities were cheaper. But NDDC’s record would indicate different information about the scholars only for the commission to be receiving completely different invoice from the same students.

    Also, on course of study, NDDC has areas to concentrate on: to develop manpower and specialist personnel. We discovered that some of them had gone to other courses, different from what they were approved for. Then we set up a committee in-house to look into all the discrepancies and resolve them.

    Fortunately, within two weeks of setting up the committee, the first set of disbursements was made for the people that had no issue whatsoever. They continued working. Just recently, we made another set of release for over 80 of the scholars. What is remaining is just a very negligible number, which we are still working on and we intend to resolve. Some of our scholars with genuine cases, I sympathise with what they are going through. Anytime we see a genuine case, we treat it immediately. We understand what they are going through, but a lot of people have abused the scholarship scheme.

    A lot of people have defrauded the Federal Government, using the NDDC scholarship scheme, because the funds are paid in dollars and other foreign currencies. A lot of people wanted access to foreign currencies and they would pretend that they were NDDC scholars, when sometimes they were not. So, these are the problems we have had and why it had taken time and why some of the scholars did not get their monies on time.

    The assurance I want to give to all genuine NDDC scholars is that they will most definitely receive their due disbursements. It may take time and we regret the delay and the hardships. But we are doing everything possible to ensure that we resolve the issues and we release the funds to them as soon as possible.

    It was alleged that NDDC recently pulled out of the partnership with the Rivers State Government on the building of the Mother and Child Hospital in Port Harcourt. Why that?

    NDDC did not pull out of the partnership. Rather, it was the Rivers State Government. Because as part of the programmes the administration was trying to do for the 50th anniversary of the creation of Rivers State, the Rivers State Government did us a letter, which we are still looking into, informing us that it wanted to pull out of the project.

    We are still looking into the details to see the way we can resolve the issue. Rivers State Government is our host government, and we have a very good and robust relationship with it. We are in tandem and we will continue with the good and robust relationship with the state government and indeed all the state governments in the Niger Delta region.

    So, we will try the very best we can to reduce and eliminate areas of conflict with our state governments. That we are committed to doing and we are working on it.

    You have just stated that you have a cordial relationship with the Rivers State government and the governments of the eight other states in the Niger Delta region. But just on July 13 this year, at Bori Camp, during the operationalisation of the 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt, which you attended along with the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai; the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 6 Division, Maj.-Gen Enobong Udoh, who is also from Akwa Ibom State; the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Udom Emmanuel; and other eminent personalities, the Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, in his remarks, said: “The Rivers State government is not having a good relationship with the NDDC.” What is responsible for the strained relationship and what is the way forward?

    Our target in the current board and management of NDDC is to ensure that we have a very cordial relationship with not just the Rivers State Government, which is our host state government, but with other state governments in the Niger Delta region.

    The major problem in the past was the disconnect between the NDDC and the state governments in the projects being planned and executed in the respective states. I have had a meeting with His Excellency, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and he highlighted the key areas that he had concerns about. We need to engage with the government of Rivers State and indeed the governments of all the Niger Delta states, because the projects that we want to do are in their states. They (governors of the nine states in the Niger Delta) must know about what we are doing, so that there will be no conflict and we do not have to duplicate projects in the states. So, we are going to keep engaging more with the Rivers State Government and all the governments in the region. One thing that we have done differently, since we assumed office, is that we set up state budget committees.

    In drawing up budgets for the various states, we set up state budget committees that will sit down with their state governments and look at the development plan and agree on projects, based on the needs analysis that was done by our consultants, so that there will be no conflict with the state government and there will be no duplication of projects.

    We must agree that these are the areas we want to focus on, because the state governments and NDDC, we do not have infinite funds. We have got to be able to agree. The little resources that we have, how will they be deployed? So that we have the greatest good for our people and for the region. That is the problem that we had, but we believe that with more engagements with the relevant stakeholders and the state governments, these problems will be eliminated and the relationships, which we actually crave, will be very good, will be developed and will be better.

    The National Assembly members took steps to amend the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Company Act and NDDC has interest in the amendment. But Rivers State governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, recently declared that he would mobilise other governors in the Niger Delta region to resist or oppose the amendment. What is your take on the crucial matter?

    NDDC is committed to continuously improve the engagements that we have with the respective state governments in the Niger Delta region, to agree on the projects to do. Generally, the needs of the Niger Delta region are well known. They are there for everybody and all the development points to see. If you engage more with the relevant stakeholders, areas of conflict will be eliminated. That is what we are committed to doing.

    What is your reaction to the underfunding of NDDC, especially the refusal of the oil companies to properly support the commission, the disagreements on funds to be contributed to the Federal Government’s interventionist agency and huge funds still yet to be released to NDDC by the Federal Government, as its contribution to the commission?

    It is true that there have been disagreements in the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, the Federal Ministry of Finance and NDDC over what should actually be paid to NDDC, in accordance with the provisions of the NDDC Act.

    We did a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari on this. Fortunately, Mr. President has directed that we (NDDC officials) should sit together with officials of the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Federal Ministry of Budget and Planning to set up a reconciliation committee that will reconcile exactly what has been paid, what is supposed to be paid and then when we know what is due us and what is outstanding, we will agree on a payment plan, based on the resources available to the Federal Government. Something acceptable between NDDC and the Federal Government.

    We believe that this is going to be resolved and then the Federal Government will make good its contributions to NDDC’s funds.

    How much is the Federal Government owing NDDC?

    From our records, we have something in the neighbourhood of about N1.7 trillion that is outstanding, in favour of NDDC.

    There is a reconciliation presently going on, as directed by President Buhari. At the end of the reconciliation, we intend that the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Budget Office will have one figure and NDDC will have the same figure, so that we know that it is exactly what it is and the Federal Government will work towards the payment.

    There is the slogan that without the contractors, there can be no NDDC. Some of the contractors have been grumbling that every new board/management of NDDC comes and awards fresh contracts, abandoning old projects. What is your management going to do about the payment plan for executed projects?

    If you look at the framework of the present budget that we are doing, we have 60:40 split. 60 per cent for ongoing projects and 40 per cent for new projects. That is what we are doing. In view of the number of all ongoing projects, we cannot realistically take on all of them. We have set up a committee. We are looking at the projects that will deliver the greatest good to our communities and the region.

    Then, we will prioritise those projects that we can complete very quickly, that will give the highest impact for the people of the host communities and the region. Then, we will concentrate on them. And we are advocating 40 per cent of our budget to continue with those projects. The rest will take care of overheads, staff and new projects. We are not going to go that much into brand-new projects, except the regional projects that will be deliberately targeted at creating an integrated regional economy. Those are mostly the new projects that we are going to start. Otherwise, the concentration will be working on the projects that are already ongoing. So that we can deliver on them for the good of our people and the Niger Delta region.

    What are you doing to engage idle youths of the Niger Delta, thereby discouraging them from going into militancy, cultism, youth restiveness, kidnapping, sea piracy, armed robbery, assassination and other criminal activities, and what is NDDC doing about youths who are always begging visitors for money at the gates of the commission’s corporate headquarters on Aba Road, Port Harcourt?

    It is unfortunate that some youths are hanging at the gates. When we resumed, we found that there was a group of young people who usually stayed around the gates of the NDDC. We understand that some of the beggars had been there right from the inception of the NDDC in 2000. We also understand that some of them have even benefitted from training programmes that NDDC had over the years. After the programmes, they would get the starter packs, but unfortunately, they would sell them off and go back to the gates. I had to ask the staff of the commission if it is more profitable to remain at the gates as beggars than to be employed. This is one of the larger problems of the region.

    We need to change the mind set of our youths and our people. We need to restructure their thinking. They should think more of sustainable economic activities than just harassing people and receiving money from them. That attitude and that very unfortunate way of thinking are partly responsible for the problems we have had in the region. Most of the businesses that were here (Niger Delta) have moved out.

    So, we will keep working with the youths. We are committed to developing a sustainable economic model that will get the youths engaged and get them employed in sustainable livelihoods. Most of the training programmes that NDDC had done over the years and what we are going to do, going forward, will be geared and tailored towards ensuring that the beneficiaries are involved in meaningful and sustainable economic activities. We have many skill acquisition programmes in agriculture, aquaculture and welding, among others. The idea is to get our youths properly trained in the right skills that the oil and gas industry needs, so that they will be useful for themselves, being engaged in oil and gas companies and they will also provide the needed manpower that the oil and gas industry needs.

    We also had many kinds of skill acquisition training like sewing. Recently, we had catering, home management, food processing and other kinds of ventures. So, we are looking at an entire package and a new way of developing skills’ acquisition, training, equipping them with the right skills that will make them useful to themselves and to the society. Another thing that we are thinking of doing is direct support to Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises (SMEs). And we are going to work with the relevant development partners and institutions, to achieve these for a very long term.

    There is something that we have also discovered that we must deliberately do. Ordinarily, the Niger Delta is one region in this country that does not attract industrial activities. The people in the Niger Delta are in the region mainly to exploit hydrocarbons, the natural products that God has helped us with, the natural resources that we have in the region. The Niger Delta is a region that has over nine months of rainfall in a year. Over 70 per cent of the core Niger Delta states are below sea level. The terrain is not very friendly/attractive, because of the cost of development. That is why the infrastructure in the Niger Delta is very expensive to build, because of the very peculiar terrain. It is a rain forest and you have infestations of mosquitoes and all kinds of natural challenges, making the region less attractive for investments and industrialisation. So, we must come up with a well-articulated plan to attract businesses and investments to the Niger Delta region. That is the way we are thinking. We are articulating it. There is a programme right now, which we are working with our consultants on and we shall be able to unveil it in the next couple of months.

  • Restructuring: IYC attacks Senate over rejection  

    Restructuring: IYC attacks Senate over rejection  

    The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide, has grossly lashed out at the Nigerian Senate over its recent refusal to amend the constitution to actualize the need to decentralize or devolve powers from the Federal Government to the State Governments.

    In a press release made available to the press and signed by the National Spokesman of Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide, Barr. Henry Iyalla, the apex Ijaw youth body condemned the move, saying it has exposed the level of indifference and lack of interest by majority of the Senators.

    The group noted that it was regrettable that this issue is happening at the time when majority of the people are strongly resolved towards restructuring the country.

    The statement further noted that it would be in the best interest of the Senate to reconsider their position on the issue of devolution of powers to the State as their refusal to accept it does not serve the general purpose or interest of the Niger Delta people and Nigerians.

    The statement reads in part: “It’s quite unfortunate that the Senate who has the Opportunity to restructure this country in line with the tenets and principles of True Fiscal Federalism has failed to do so.

    “We must however continue to agitate for the decentralization of powers as against the quasi- military or unitary system of Government we operate; anything to the contrary would be against our age-long agitation for Resource Control and Self-Determination. We emphasize that states should be given the powers to manage and control their own resources”.

    The Ijaw Youth Council in its statement has therefore challenged the Senate to convoke a Constituent Assembly were all ethnic groups would sit to determine the veracity of rejecting the operation of true federalism in Nigeria.

    “Let it be said unequivocally, that the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) and the Niger Delta people as a whole would reject any move aimed at perpetually subjecting our people to a life of penury in plenty.

    “We call on the President of the Senate and all distinguished Senators to review their stand in other to help a country that is in dire need of mental and physical restructuring.”

     

  • Buhari committed to peaceful, developed Niger-Delta – Boroh

    Buhari committed to peaceful, developed Niger-Delta – Boroh

    The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh, says President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is committed to a peaceful and developed Niger Delta region.

    Boroh, who is the Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in New York on Wednesday that this commitment has encouraged investors movement into the region.

    “The impact of the Presidential Amnesty Programme in the Niger Delta region has been very satisfactory and encouraging because the ex-agitators have imbibed that culture of ensuring peace.

    “This is to allow for growth in the region and they are happy about it because a lot of valuable entrepreneurship programmes are ongoing in the entire Niger-Delta region.

    “Their (ex-agitators) morale is high and they are happy.

    “Each time I go to discuss with the ex-agitators and the youth, they pledge their loyalty and support to the present administration.

    “This is so that the administration can continue the good things it is doing because of the commitment of Mr President in ensuring peace, stability and development in the region.

    “The Niger Delta today is stable, peaceful and expecting investors moving there and help in adding value to the region,” Boroh said.

    According to him, well over 5,000 ex-agitators have benefitted within the past two years in critical areas of aviation, maritime, oil and gas and agriculture.

    The amnesty coordinator said agriculture was now the main focus of the programme in line with the government’s economic diversification strategy.

    “This is to ensure that the ex-agitators imbibe the details of the new agricultural policy so that they can be professional farmers at the end of the day.

    “This will create massive job opportunities, ensure that there’s food security in the region and the country at large and again, enhance our financial position.

    “Niger Delta is stable and investors are moving in to continue their business,” Boroh said.

    The presidential aide also explained that the programme has a terminal phase but that the ex-agitators would be empowered before the final phase.

    “The programme has a timeline to phase out. It has to do with ensuring that the ex-agitators that are in the programme are adequately trained and empowered so that they can leave and this is ongoing.”

  • Future of the Niger Delta

    SIR: In 1999, some Niger Delta states were at par with Lagos State but is the region on a mission for growth and development like Lagos state today? Whatever the quirks of the leaders of Lagos might be, they haven’t lost track of the view of the future. They have succeeded in grooming the right people for the right job. There appears to be a pressure group fast-tracking the development of that state regardless of which party is in power. And the parties in opposition do not badger the party in power counter-productively.

    People run systems and not resources. All we hear in the Niger Delta is that we have resources. We do not hear about any capacity in any sectors apart from oil. Resources are always in reference to oil. What happens when oil loses its value? Relationship-building between and among people in the Niger Delta is abysmal. It has reached the stage that politics in the Delta is war.

    The executives and members of the opposition in other regions have all settled down to work, away from warring, waiting to be judged by the electorate in the coming elections.

    Many people blame events in the Niger Delta on a conspiracy theory by the federal government. I disagree to an extent only because while the federal government leads, “the people should manage and trust me, the people haven’t managed well.”

    Politicians in the Delta do not act for the region but only for the party and party members. Do they truly mean well for the region? How can the Delta grow under a cloud of mistrust, fear, brickbats and disillusionment? The Delta is gradually being destroyed. What follows destruction? What happens to the people that the region was created for?

    Recently, I was busy grabbing a meal in a restaurant, when I met someone I hadn’t seen for almost a decade. He told me, “Sir, politics has destroyed this good state. Some men do not talk to their wives if they support different parties. Same thing with sisters and brothers. It is so bad now, community youth presidents select people to work for oil companies if they belong to their party.”

    Warring by the people is a cheap distraction from the life-affecting under-development in the region. A lawyer from the Delta told me not long ago that in the event that this country ceases to exist, the Delta people would seek the Igbo to teach them how to run their republic – whatever that meant.

    The Delta people and leaders need to significantly foster and nurture relationships with people in the Delta and outside the region. This would open new markets for companies, while creating prosperity and reducing poverty. So far these relationships are out of kilter. The economy of the Delta is in the hands of the Igbo and northerners, many of whom run businesses but they are not respected as they should be. Go to some Delta states at Christmas time to understand why this is so. Apart from a growing interest in oil, The Delta has invested little in relations with other parts of Nigeria. This is very dangerous for trade.

    Why trade? Because commerce is a key component of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the 15-year plan to fight global poverty. ?According to the UN, “trade can help to promote productive employment and decent work, women’s empowerment and food security, as well as a reduction in inequality.”

     

    • Simon Abah,

    Port  Harcourt.

  • Niger Delta youths urge NNPC to implement palliatives promised by FG

    Niger Delta youths urge NNPC to implement palliatives promised by FG

    Niger Delta youth leaders have urged the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to implement the palliatives pledged by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo during his tour to the region.

    The youths made the call when the leadership of the Niger Delta Ex-Agitation Forum and Niger Delta Non Violent Youth Leaders’ Assembly paid a courtesy visit to Mr Kennedy Tonjo-West in Yenagoa on Tuesday.

    Tonjo-West is the Senior Special Assistant to Bayelsa State Governor on Niger Delta Youth Matters.

    Prince Amaibi Horny, who spoke for the ex-agitators under the amnesty scheme, noted that the region was eagerly awaiting the implementation of promises made during the fact-finding visit by the acting president.

    Horny observed that most of the palliatives aimed at stabilising the Niger Delta region and consolidating the peace process lied within the purview of the NNPC.

    According to him, after several months of conclusion of the tour, the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mr Maikente Baru was yet to take steps on the palliative measures.

    “It is shocking to know that since Maikente Baru assumed office as NNPC Group Managing Director, he has not initiated or implemented any project or programme that will deepen the existing peace painstakingly put in place by the president.

    “The current peace is due to extensive consultative engagement by the acting president’s dialogue with stakeholders during his tour of the region.

    “Instead of commencing some of the projects and issues raised by youths and people of the region in this period of peace to upgrade his score card, the GMD feels very unconcern about the plight of the region,” Horny said.

    Mr Tonye Jeminimiema, who spoke for Niger Delta Non Violent Youth Leaders’ Assembly noted that Dr Ibe Kachikwu had traversed the region promising that President Buhari administration was committed to developing the Niger Delta.

    Jeminimiema urged the acting president to prevail on NNPC to step up its activities to redeem Federal Government’s pledge to the region during his tour which includes the establishment of modular refineries.

    He said that it was evident that the peace deal had resulted in the increase of crude output from 1.2 million barrels to two million barrels after the peace deal but regretted that the NNPC was yet to fulfil its part of the accord.

    In his response, Tonjo-West appeal to the youths in the region exercise patience, adding that plans were ongoing to open a window for discuss with the stakeholders.

    According to him, Chief of Defence Staff, National Assembly, Minister of State, Petroleum and the Group Managing Director of NNPC and himself will look at the issues objectively and iron out the grey areas.

    “My fear is that if the government pays deaf ear to these complaints, crisis is inevitable and one can imagine where that will lead us to, especially when the country is passing through a difficult phase in its nationhood,” he said.

    Tonjo-West commended the Bayelsa governor for the establishment of the state vigilante group and the Bayelsa state volunteers to strengthen security in the state.

    He also applauded the Rivers state government for empowerment of Youths Based Land and Waterway Surveillance to boost security in the state.

    He also commended security agencies in the region for their dogged approach to curbing crime.

    He observed that there was the need for the Federal Government to team up with governors in Niger Delta states for the development of the region.

  • Why sustenance of Niger Delta peace is key to economic recovery, by stakeholders

    Why sustenance of Niger Delta peace is key to economic recovery, by stakeholders

    To some experts and analysts, there is nothing in the N7.44 trillion 2017 “Budget of Economic Recovery and Growth” to inspire hope of a quick economic recovery. Rather, they argue that what will pull the country out of recession are basically developments in the oil and gas industry. They suggest how to make the relative peace in the Niger Delta permanent, reports Assistant Editor CHIKODI OKEREOCHA. 

    The fear of resurgence of militancy in the Niger Delta is the beginning of wisdom for the Federal Government, oil companies and stakeholders in the oil and gas industry.

    The relative peace in the oil-producing region has contributed to the increase in oil production to 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd). Oil output had been cut to about half a million bpd by a fresh wave of militancy by restive youths before the attainment of a ceasefire.

    With oil price yet to rebound and Brent crude standing at $48.46 per barrel as at the weekend, experts and operators in the oil and gas industry believe Nigeria might be out of recession faster than envisaged if the current 1.8 million bpd production output is sustained and pushed up further.

    But they said the Federal Government must muster the political will to sustain the prevailing peace in the Niger Delta for this to happen.

    Some of them, who spoke with The Nation, warned of the consequences of a resurgence of militancy in the Niger Delta, saying such development will hurt oil and gas operations. According to them, sustaining the oil production level was critical to the implementation of the N7.44 trillion Appropriation Act.

    The Chairman, Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria and National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (PENGASSAN & NUPENG) National Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) Committee,  Hyginus Onuegbu, argued that the 2017 budget remained an estimate and that its revenue targets were based on mere assumptions.

    Acting President Yemi Osinbajo had last month signed the N7.44 trillion 2017 budget tagged “Budget of Economic Recovery and Growth” into law. The lawmakers had raised the figure from the initial N7.28 trillion estimate presented by President Muhammadu Buhari in December last year.

    Osinbajo said that the N7.44 trillion budget had a revenue projection of N5.08 trillion and an aggregate expenditure of N7.44 trillion; the projected fiscal deficit of N2.36 trillion is to be financed largely through borrowing.

    It also set aside N1.84 trillion for debt servicing, N177.4 billion for sinking fund, N2.97 trillion for recurrent expenditure (non-debt) and N2.177 trillion for capital expenditure.

    The Acting President said the budget would deliver positive economic growth and prosperity, as it would be implemented in line with the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP). He said the budget was designed to bring the economy out of recession onto a path of sustainable and inclusive growth.

    But Onuegbu disagreed. As far as he is concerned, “the 2017 Budget should not be celebrated.”

    The immediate past Chairman of the Rivers State chapter of Trade Union Congress (TUC) said Nigeria will come out of recession not because of any special aspect of the 2017 budget.

    Onuegbu said: “This is a budget that was signed in the middle of the year. he charged, asking, “How can you sign a budget in the middle of the year and come round to say it will bring the country out of recession? When will capital development begin to take place?”

    Onuegbu insisted that the only viable way out of recession is for the Acting President and the Federal Government to take the peace that currently exist in the Niger Delta seriously and ensure that the promises made to the Niger Delta people are kept.

    According to him, this was necessary to avoid any disruption in oil and gas operations.

    “If there is crisis in the Niger Delta, the nation’s oil production target will not be met, and of course, its revenue target will not be met”, he warned.

    Before the truce, oil output was cut by 50 per cent the disruption of oil installations and operations by militants. It was the lowest in almost 30 years. The effects of the sharp drop were devastating. The government lost an estimated 60 per cent of its revenue to the series of attacks by militants on oil gas facilities.

    Besides, 60 per cent of her gas supply was lost to pipeline vandalism, a development which left sour taste in the mouths of investors in the power sector and by extension, electricity consumers across the country.

    The belief in some quarters is that the devastation would not have been far-reaching if Nigeria had not depended on oil for 70 per cent of its revenue and 95 per cent of her foreign exchange earnings. The reliance on oil as the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy accounted for why the crisis in the region pushed the economy into its worst recession in decades.

    It took the intervention of the Acting President to reign in the region. His diplomacy shuttle to oil-producing communities in some states in the Niger Delta where he held series of dialogue with leaders and representatives of the militants yielded positive report.

    The militants agreed to sheath their sword after securing Osinbajo’s assurances of government’s commitment towards genuine peace and development of the region. Certain promises were also made. The result was spontaneous. Disruption of oil production and destruction of oil installations and pipelines stopped, thus pushing up oil production level to 1.8 million bpd.

    But the expert’s argument is that sustaining the peace in the region must be sustained to maintain the prevailing oil production level, which they say is critical to the delivery of this year’s budget.

    “The Federal Government should understand that critical to the achievement and delivery of the 2017 Budget is the maintenance and sustenance of the peace in the Niger Delta so as to engender increase in oil & gas production that we are witnessing now”, Onuegbu told The Nation.

    A Lagos-based lawyer and public affairs analyst, Mr. Obiora Akabogu, aligned with Onuegbu’s position. Noting that Niger Delta remains Nigeria’s wealth base and the goose that lays the golden egg, he hinged the growth of the economy on the level of peace in that region.

    He urged the government to muster the political will to make necessary adjustments and concessions to ensure a lasting that region.

    Akabogu said: “There are some adjustments the government can make with executive fiat; you don’t even need constitutional amendments just to make the people of that area more comfortable.

    “People of that region are not greedy; they are easy to placate because if it were some other hostile environments they would have held the government to ransom until you meet up to 70 per cent of their demands.”

    He insisted that the government must develop the political will and strategy to develop that region and also resist pressure to mount military operation in that region.

    Akabogu said: “It is not a win-win situation militarily because of the peculiar topography of that region. Rather, dialogue and political will can do a lot of good to the Federal Government.

    “The mere fact that the budget came mid-way into the year shows you that the survival of the economy is not necessarily based on the budget; that there are other indicators and calculations.”

    Akabogu recalled that previous budgets have not done any serious miracle to the economy, but one way or the other, Nigerians have found a way to survive outside the budgets.

    He said that the budget may be ambitious important because of capital projects, the fact that it came late into the year meant that Nigerians should not expect too much.

     

    Fears of poo, shoddy implementation

    The late passage and signing of the budget into law has raised fears over possible delay in the kick-off of its implementation, and consequently, its capacity to achieve the intended outcomes.

    The Registrar/Chief Executive of the Institute of Business Development (IBD), Mr. Paul Ikele, said that beyond basing it on realistic assumptions, the budget must be judicious implemented to take country out of recession.

    He told The Nation that it was necessary to avoid the same low and shoddy implementation of last year’s budget if this year’s must succeed.

     

    Push for uninterrupted oil production heighten

    Akabogu explained that the optimism that the economy will bounce back has nothing to do with the budget’s intended outcomes, but with other extraneous calculations such as the predictions by World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

    The World Bank recently upgraded its forecast for Nigeria’s economic growth to 1.2 per cent for 2017, citing improved oil production due to decreased militant activities.

    The bank, in its June 2017 Global Economic Prospects report, said: “Nigeria is forecast to go from recession to a 1.2 per cent growth rate in 2017, gaining speed to 2.4 per cent in 2018.”

    It noted that: “In Nigeria, militants’ attacks on oil pipelines decreased…..Oil exports are rebounding in Nigeria on the back of an uptick in oil production from fields previously damaged by militants’ attacks…”

    The IMF also raised its projections for Nigeria’s economic growth this year to 0.8 per cent. It also revised its forecast for Nigeria in 2018 to 2.3 per cent, from its previous projection of 0.7 per cent. The forecasts were revised up mainly to reflect high oil production due to security improvements in the resource-rich Niger Delta.

     

    How to sustain peace in the Niger Delta

    Onuegbu spoke of the need for the Federal Government to abide with the agreement it reached the leadership of communities in the Niger Delta for continued peace in the region.

    For instance, he said that issues around modular refineries must be resolved.

    His words: “When the Acting President came to the Niger Delta, he made a promise about modular refinery. As a matter of fact, some youths started organising themselves. In fact, there was an association of modular refiners in Nigeria. That is an issue that needs to be resolved.”

    The government had announced plans to establish modular refineries to engage youths engaging in illegal oil refining. The planned upgrade of illegal refineries in the region to modular refineries has been welcomed by the people.

     

    Suspicion

    As youths and prospective investors in modular refinery business waited anxiously for the government to come out with modalities for the take-off of the project, there were reports that the government would not allow the proliferation of such refineries across the Niger Delta.

    The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, explained that having such refineries scattered across the Niger Delta would worsen environmental degradation and gas flaring, which will increase the problems of the region.

    According to him, the government would commission a broad study for the development of an intelligent plan for the construction of modular refineries in the region. ,

    The minister said: “It is important to clear a misconception, especially as it has to do with modular refineries.

    “Setting up smaller modular refineries in so many places in the Niger Delta would worsen gas flaring in the region and also bring about environmental challenges. It is critical to develop an integrated approach and plan to modular refineries construction in the Niger Delta, ensure that they are properly optimized and are not scattered everywhere.”

    But Onuegbu counselled the government against reneging on its promise about modular refineries. According to him, this was necessary in order to sustain the peace in the region and starve off disruption of oil and gas operations.

    Yet, the modular refinery, which has been put on hold, was one in the long list of issues agitating the minds of Niger Delta people that have not been resolved. There is also the issue of restructuring and funding of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    Onuegbu regretted that the government owed a lot of money to the NDDC, which it has yet to remit. He pointed out that these are funds necessary for the development of the Niger Delta.

    The Nation learnt that restructuring and funding of NDDC was part of the 16-point demand being adopted as working document to end the Niger Delta crisis when Osinbajo led a high-powered delegation to the region early this year, beginning with Delta State.

    The 16-point demand, prepared by the people of the Niger Delta under the aegis of Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), under the leadership of Ijaw leader and elder statesman Edwin Kiagbodo Clark, was presented to Buhari when the President received them at the State House on November 1, last year.

    On PANDEF’s shopping list are: Presidential Amnesty Programme; Law and justice issues, Effect of increased military presence in the Niger Delta, Plight of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP), Relocation of administrative and operational headquarters of International Oil Companies (IOCs), Ogoni clean-up and environmental remediation, and the Maritime University.

    Other demands include: Strengthening the Niger Delta Ministry; the Bakassi question, Fiscal Federalism, Key regional critical infrastructure; Security surveillance and protection of oil and gas infrastructure; Power supply, economic development and empowerment; and Inclusive participation in oil industry and ownership of oil blocs.

    Sources close to the preparation of the 16-point demand hava admitted that the government has made some appreciable progress in meeting some of the demands. They note that the commencement of the clean-up of Ogoni land, the revisiting of the unpaid amnesty stipends and the National Maritime University, among others, are signs that the issues agitating the minds of the people are gradually being addressed.

    But, will the government pluck up the courage and political will to holistically address these demands rather than quick fixes? Will it strive to build trust, instill confidence and give the local communities in the Niger Delta some sense of belonging?

    As answers to these questions remain a matter of conjecture, the prevailing ceasefire militancy and may not be permanent for as long as the issues remain unresolved.

    Analysts say that no stone should be left unturned to guard against the resumption of hostilities in the oil-rich region and not hurt ongoing efforts at reflating the economy and take it out of recession.

  • Agriculture revolution in Niger Delta

    As an officer in the Army, I took to farming believing that is the future of the country and that  on a personal level, I could better sustain my family. Our lands are so fertile that I did not need much fertilizer; the inputs were minimal and the yields were much. Our climate, by God’s grace is predictable; it rains when it should rain and the sun shines when it should; so why not take advantage of what nature has freely given us as Nigerians.

    When in July 2015, His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari appointed me Special Adviser on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, I had the primary responsibilities of streamlining the Programme and transforming it back on track, working for peace in the Niger Delta and sustainably reintegrating some 30,000 Amnesty beneficiaries back into society.

    Although we have various integration programmes which include education, vocational training, professional training in Aviation and Maritime, automobile engineering, entrepreneurial training and tourism and hospitality, I had no doubt that the best way to integrate such a huge number of beneficiaries quickly and sustainably, is through aquaculture and agriculture. However, I also realized that  this requires a lot of planning and painstaking implementation; like other programmes, we had to conceptualize, plant, culture and  water  the ideas to the germination and harvest stages.

    We approached a number of agencies and embassies especially the Israeli Embassy. We have also  gone into partnership with various Agricultural bodies. But as a basic step, we had to get the beneficiaries interested so they can buy into the Programme. In keying into the Federal Government’s Agriculture Initiative, we presented our  ideas and the facts on the ground.

    The facts are that agriculture creates mass sustainable jobs and empowerment; advanced  technology and high yield varieties ensure good harvest, and costs can  be drastically reduced by building locally fabricated integrated feed mills which rely entirely on local products. Also,  our country of over 180 million people is a huge market in itself and additionally, the ECOWAS (West African Region) provides a market that is more or less limitless. On the national level, we know that in   taking to agriculture, the country is moving towards  food self- sufficiency and security.

    I am happy at the level of enthusiasm for agriculture amongst Amnesty Beneficiaries and to harvest this, we had turned to the  National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) with an agreement to train an initial one thousand beneficiaries and youths at its Bio-Resource Centre in Odi, Bayelsa State. Unfortunately, budget delays have not allowed us to take full advantage of this agency which uses  technology and the principles of science to produce high yields in farming.

    However, the Presidential Amnesty Office  has  trained and began to empower Amnesty Beneficiaries in crop farming,  fishery and  poultry. As at June, 2017, 1,000 Amnesty beneficiaries across the nine Oil-Producing States are being trained in agriculture and will be empowered to establish their own farms.  These include 105 Beneficiaries undergoing training in Agro-Business with the Songhai  Rivers Initiative at the Songhai Farms, Rivers State,  and 100 Beneficiaries training in fish farming under  kabocastle Services  at its Perecastle Fish Farm, Patani, Delta State.

    Also, an average of 25 Beneficiaries each are being trained in fish farming in   six centres including  the Delta State University by  Gedisco Energy solutions, Infinite Farms in Ozoro, Delta State and     Orus Resources Farm, Aluu, Rivers State. At the  Institute of Oceanography, University of Calabar, Cross Rivers State,  96 Beneficiaries are undergoing training in fish farming. The Ma-Atari Farms,  Port Harcourt are training some Amnesty Beneficiaries in agriculture and poultry farming, the Ogbebor Leadership Institute, Ologbo, Edo State is training some in rubber processing, TSC Services is training 24 in General Agri-Business  at the  Edo State College of Education, Iguoriakhi, Edo State while  Eunirusk Investment is training 18 in  Cassava, Corn and Oil Palm at the Federal University of Technology, Akure, Ondo State. Forty eight Amnesty beneficiaries are  being trained in crop farming by the Faculty of  Agriculture,  Imo State University.

    The  training in  agriculture is designed as a full value chain ; from farming, production, processing, packaging, marketing to  Agri-Business Management. By our planning, each farm  will require the services  of at least four farmers. This has the prospect  of creating 4,000 farm workers in the Region under this phase.

    Also, some leaders of the Amnesty Beneficiaries have bought our argument that  building houses is not sustainable as they have to be serviced and  maintained, but in contrast, taking to agriculture is a money-yielding venture. So many of them have bought  into the agriculture revolution.  One of them is into large scale rice farming in Bayelsa State while another which has taken to plantain  cultivation, is emerging as  the biggest farmer in Bomadi, Delta State.

    It is not only the consciousness of the Amnesty Beneficiaries that  need to be transformed but also  that of the Niger Delta and country as a whole; oil is a wasting asset, it may dry up in the foreseeable future. In contrast what the future foresee is that agriculture would enrich us all. So let us start with the basic policy of eating only what we grow, and growing what we eat. Change should begin with each of us.

    • Brig.-Gen. Boroh (rtd) is the Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta and Coordinator of the Presidential Amnesty Programme.