The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Niger-Delta

  • NCDMB plans construction of nine industrial parks in Niger Delta

    As part of efforts to boost local capacity, the Federal Government said it has concluded arrangement to build nine industrial parks in the Niger Delta states to enhance harnessing of the abundant hydrocarbon resources in the region and for the overall development of the economy.

    The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Ernest Nwapa, made the statement at the 10th year anniversary and thanksgiving ceremony of Divcon Group of Companies, an oil service firm, held at Ota, Ogun State.

    Nwapa who was represented by the Head, Marginal Oil Development, NCDMB, Mr. Rotimi Olagbaye, said it will locate one industrial park in  each  of the oil producing states in the Niger Delta region to involve Nigerians in the sourcing of equipment and inputs used in oil and gas production.

    The industrial parks, he said, will apart from providing inputs to harness oil and gas, also create jobs for Nigerians.

    The Group Managing Director of Divcon Nigeria Limited, Andy Ikhide, thanked God for sustaining the company and provided dedicated staff to run its affairs for the past 10 years without much hitches.

    He said that for Nigeria to become great and truly become the giant of Africa, Nigerians should change their mindsets, do the right things at the right time adding that technology transfer is a fallacy as no nation would willingly transfer technology to the nations seeking it at no cost.

    He said: “If Nigeria wants to transform to be the giant of Africa, Nigerians must change their mindsets, change the way they think, think positively and do the right things. Nigerians are one of the best brains in the world; they are making exploits in the United States, Europe and other parts of the world. We have created enabling environment for these brains to come home and assist in the development of our economy.”

    He explained that technology advancement is either stolen or acquired by nations seeking it. He cited Japan that was devastated after the second world but picked up again through research and development and has transformed as one of the leading world’s technology advanced countries.

    Ikhide urged Nigerian leaders to take a  cue from Japanese model by embarking on the application of research and development, change curriculum model in schools, resolve security challenges because no country can make progress in regime of insecurity.

  • Niger Delta varsity hosts medical conference

    The Niger Delta University Teaching Hospital (NDUTH) has hosted the eastern zonal conference of the Christian Medical and Dental Association Students (CMDAS). The three-day event with the theme: Latter rain, took place at the Living Faith Church, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. It was attended by medical students from all teaching hospitals in eastern part of the country.

    Welcoming the participants, President of the NDUTH chapter, David Adika, said it was high time medical students returned to the founding values of the profession, advising them to remain focused.

    National Mission Secretary of the association, Emmanuel Ajayi, who spoke on: Character of the kingdom, said medical students should come to terms with  the present realities of the profession, saying they should exemplify Jesus Christ in their dealings.

    Highlights of the conference were academic seminars, report of mission activities by the various schools, case studies and choir ministration by the host school. The conference ended with prayers for Nigeria, the medical profession and the teaching hospitals in the eastern zone.

    Jerry Okoro from the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital said the programme was enriching.  “I really enjoyed the academic segment and case studies session. I am going to put to practice what I have learned.”

  • How Public-Private Partnerships is promoting Niger Delta’s prosperity

    How Public-Private Partnerships is promoting Niger Delta’s prosperity

    Ali Moshiri, President of Chevron Africa and Latin America Exploration and Production Company, examines how the governments of the Niger Delta states and oil companies are promoting prosperity in the region. 

    Nigeria recently claimed the title of largest economy in Africa, with a gross domestic product of $510 billion – underscoring its tremendous economic potential and the opportunity to improve livelihoods by promoting peace and further economic growth.

    Private companies have a role to play in this story. The energy industry, in particular, should continue to be a major contributor to social and economic development.

    Societal expectations have never been higher, and companies need to advance economic opportunity for communities where they do business by creating jobs, hiring local workers, and developing their skills and capabilities through on-the-job training.

    The oil-rich Niger Delta is the source of 80 percent of Nigeria’s revenues. Having been part of this community for a long time, we are familiar with the challenges facing the region – from limited economic growth to uncertain conditions of security and peace.

    We’ve also seen the positive, sustainable impact we can have on economic development as a private-sector entity. We do this not only through philanthropy, but also through a strategic, partnership-based approach to help create prosperity – now and for generations to come.

    In Nigeria, we approach our social investments with the view that public-private partnerships are critical for successful economic development. But those partnerships are necessary, as well, for creating an enabling environment for business.

    One example of this is the Niger Delta Partnership Initiative (NDPI), established in 2010 as a five-year, $50-million endowment by Chevron. Over time, this investment grew to $100 million after being matched by partner funding.

    Since inception, this model – which focuses on removing systemic constraints that can lead to poverty and conflict – has involved 172 local and international partners and has directly affected

    more than 10,000 people.

    Organisations such as the U.S. Agency for International Development, the United Nations Development Programme and others have supported these projects with best practices, global credibility and local reach, magnifying the impact.

    Over the past four years, NDPI has trained more than 5,500 people, created more than 600 new jobs and stimulated new growth sectors in the local economy. Job creation, increased incomes for residents through improved productivity and efficiency are helping to break the cycle of poverty and conflict that has been a root cause of some of the region’s problems.

    Encouraged by NDPI’s initial success and looking to the future, Chevron is reinforcing its long-term support by pledging an additional $40 million over the next five years to expand and build-out successful programs and practices that have laid the groundwork for transformative change. This additional funding brings the company’s total investment in NDPI to $90 million, the largest social investment in the corporation’s history.

    Four years in, NDPI has identified key factors for success.

    First, work closely with the community to identify pressing local needs and understand where the company’s support can have the biggest impact

    Second, create effective programs that address these needs and build local capacity.

    Third, generate local ownership of the projects and long-term buy-in to enable local organisations to sustain the beneficial outcomes.

    The additional funding will allow NDPI to take all this learning forward and expand projects. This is a long process in which the path to success requires strong, committed participation from governments, businesses, nonprofit organisations and communities doing business in Nigeria.

    The shared vision that is built into the NDPI model is crucial to socioeconomic success in the Niger Delta. Together, NDPI and its partners have made great strides and will continue to implement projects that help move the region toward shared prosperity.

    Culled from allafrica.com

  • Niger Delta delegates reject 13% derivation

    Niger Delta delegates at the National Conference yesterday rejected a resolution by the Committee on devolution of Power to retain the controversial 13 per cent derivation principle.

    The delegates also described agitation by northern delegates for the scrapping of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Niger Delta Ministry and amnesty programme as laughable.

    Most southern delegates at the committee were said to have been overwhelmed by the insistency of their northern counterparts to succumb to the decision to retain 13 per cent derivation principle.

    Northern delegates in the committee, an insider said, “demanded and insisted on the reduction of 13 per cent derivation.”

    But some Niger Delta delegates who are not members of the committee told The Nation that “we are waiting for the issue to come up at plenary.”

    A member of the committee, Annkio Briggs, however, expressed disappointment over the resolution to retain 13 per cent derivation principle.

    Briggs, an activist from Rivers State, said the delegates from Niger Delta came to the conference to make a presentation on ownership of the resources in their zone.

    The activist noted that she was disappointed that those who were not bringing anything to the sharing table of the country were the people dictating the direction of issues at the conference.

    She said that the argument that the status quo of 13 per cent derivation should remain while funds should be made available for the development of other mineral resources in other states is preposterous.

    The position of Niger Delta people, she said, was that derivation should go up to 50 per cent.

    She said: “Our position is that derivation should go up to 50 per cent. What we expected was that we will discuss the position of 50 per cent. If you don’t agree to the position of 50 per cent, what is it that you agree to? Is it 35 per cent or 25 per cent derivation?

    “We expected that we should agree on something so that we graduate upward over time, but those things were not discussed.

    “We sat down and what was clear to me was that people were sitting in groups and making decisions. I refused to agree with the decisions and the major decision was that we should allow 13 per cent derivation status quo to remain.

    “This is based on the presumption that certain amount of money will be invested in other mineral resources in other states and when money is invested in other mineral resources in other states, it will still remain 13 per cent derivation principle.

    “But I cannot lose sight of the fact that until those other minerals are exploited, the only exploration and exploitation that is going on is oil and gas.

    “I refuse to go back to Niger Delta and tell my people that I brought back the status quo of 13 per cent derivation principle and that this status quo is based on the decision of people that are bringing nothing to the table.

    “I, therefore, wish to say that after spending two to three months here that what we are going to take back to the Niger Delta is that 13 per cent derivation principle remains and that the decision was taken at the whims and caprices and the arrogance position that is playing out here.

    “This position is definitely not in the interest of Nigeria and definitely not in the interest of the Niger Delta. And I refuse to accept it on behalf of my people.”

    Asked what steps she wanted to take to redress the alleged injustice, Brigss said that whatever action Niger Delta people decide to take she would join them.

    Reminded that perhaps Niger Delta people ought to be happy that they escaped with the retention of 13 per cent, she thundered that there was nothing to be happy about.

    She said: “I don’t know the Niger Delta people you are referring to. If you are referring to the Niger Delta people that include me, I tell you by my reaction you can see that there is nothing like happiness in what has happened here.

    “I am not happy, my people are not happy and we cannot be happy. It is not about happiness. It is not about what anybody thinks here, it is about justice and it is about doing the right thing.

    “To say that 13 per cent should remain in Nigeria of today is not doing the right thing in this country. We have to be very careful what we expect people to bring when we are bringing absolutely nothing.”

    On the agitation by northern delegates for the restoration of onshore/offshore oil dichotomy, she said that the bridge would be crossed at the appropriate time.

    She said: “It is arguable but we will cross that bridge when we get there. But I want to point it to you that Nigeria as a country is laying claim to the waters through the fact that we the oceanic people, we the people of the riverine area are in Nigeria.

    “If we are not in Nigeria today Nigeria cannot lay claim to the area. So it a privilege to Nigeria that we are in Nigeria because that is the only way they are laying claim to the waters.”

  • Chevron chief advises on Niger Delta growth

    Chevron chief advises on Niger Delta growth

    The Executive Vice President of Policy and Planning of Chevron Corporation, Rhonda Zygocki has said the only way the Niger Delta region can reach its full potential is when all stakeholders start working together in new collaborative ways to provide an integrated platform for building capacity towards conflict resolution and long term development in the region.

    Speaking during her visit to Nigeria, she said: “The Niger Delta will only reach its full potential when all stakeholders start working together in new collaborative ways to provide an integrated platform for building capacity for conflict resolution and long term development in the region.”

    Zygocki, who was in Warri, Delta State as part of her working visit to Nigeria, took time to assess the progress being made by the Niger Delta Partnership Initiative (NDPI), established by Chevron in 2010 as part of its social investment strategy in collaboration with its Nigerian affiliate.

  • Niger Delta master plan impracticable, says Minister

    Niger Delta master plan impracticable, says Minister

    The Niger Delta master plan, launched by the Federal Government with fanfare cannot work, Supervising Minister of the Niger Delta Darius Ishaku said yesterday.

    According to him, the plan is not practicable.

    He said what is needed to accelerate infrastructural growth and development of the oil-rich region is not a master plan but a physical development plan.

    Ishaku, who as Minister of State for Niger Delta Affairs, was part of the Master plan which was launched last year in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, when Mr. Godswill Orubebe was minister of Niger Delta Affairs.

    The minister spoke yesterday in Abuja while receiving the leadership award of Grand Commander of Niger Delta and Peace Medal on behalf of President Goodluck Jonathan, from the Niger Delta Peace Initiative Project, (NDPIP).

    He said: “ Last year, we launched the Niger Delta development plan, but I keep on saying repeatedly that what they called master plan is not a master plan, I am a planner, and I have told you that in my years of experience in this profession, what we need in Niger Delta is a Physical development plan. Physical development plan is a plan that tells you physically what is on ground. What and what needs to be done and when to do it and how to do it.

    “So that at the end of the day, if the parts are fixed together, you develop from all parts and at the end of it, if you put the different parts together, you will realise that you have made more progress.

    “Physical development plan means man sits down and conceives ideas of the areas based on the problems and the relations he has based on the fact on the ground, then he puts a physical project. When you are developing an area, you will go in the sequence of five years, 10 or 15 years, all the parts come together. As it is now we are developing differently. “

    The minister also spoke on the East-West road which he said government is committed to its completion.

    He said government had taken necessary steps to ensure that the project is delivered by the end of the first quarter of next year.

    Ishiaku blamed lack of funds for the postponement of the completion date for the project.

    He said the ministry was yet to access the N93.9 billion Subsidy Reinvestment Programme, SURE-P allocation to it for this 2014, saying: “We only accessed the ones of 2012 and 2013.”

    He added: “We are presently approaching the Infrastructural Development Bank (IDB), to source for loan; we are expecting the remaining 50 per cent of the ADB loan and the SURE-P. So, by the time we put all these together, the road will receive adequate funding.”

    He added also that the ministry was making progress in the construction of skill acquisition centres, youth empowerment, which according to him, has contributed in reducing the incidence of militancy in the region.

    The minister added: “Being able to engage the minds of our youth is very critical. Our skills acquisition centres are used for this purpose.

    “The trainees will be held in factories and those who wish to set up their own businesses after the training will be empowered to do so.’’

    “A total of 500 youths will be mobilised for training in various skills at the commissioning of the skills acquisition centre in Otuoke,” he said.

    Ishaku recalled that the ministry in 2008 initiated the establishment of skill acquisition centres in the nine oil producing states of Delta, Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Bayelsa Rivers, Edo, Ondo, Imo and Abia.

    President of Niger Delta Peace Initiative Project (NDPIP), Mr. Julius Enehikhuere urged the Federal Government to review upward the annual budgetary allocation to the ministry.

  • For a non-violent Niger Delta

    A Fact Sheet by the Department of State’s Bureau of Conflict and Stabilisation Operations has spelt out how it is promoting non-violence in the Niger Delta.

    Last September , the U.S. State Department launched a conflict mitigation initiative in the region. In launching this campaign, the fact that Nigeria plays a critical role in Africa’s stability was not lost on it. Also not lost on it is its strong interest in the country’s peace, prosperity and security.

    Also of particular interest to America is the undisputed fact that the resource-rich Niger Delta is vital to Nigeria’s economic health and its stability, which America considers a top priority.

    The Fact Sheet on the initiative reads: “The U.S. initiative in the Delta aims to address the risk of destabilising violence and increase confidence in the power of nonviolent problem-solving among citizens, government, and other key actors.

    “Despite the difficulties facing the Niger Delta, leaders are challenging the social acceptability of violence and striving for a future of peace and prosperity. Teachers, journalists, and religious leaders are joining forces to strengthen the social contract by increasing accountability between citizens and government and condemning violence. NGOs and Nollywood stars are teaming up to give voice to communities shaping a legacy of non-violent civic activism. If amplified, these inspiring stories can drown out the adage that “violence pays,” and set the tone for a new public narrative of peaceful problem solving. Partnering with a core group of Nigerian activists, businessmen, media entrepreneurs, and thought leaders that comprise the Niger Delta Legacy Board of Directors, the U.S. government is catalysing the launch of a mass media campaign supported by community and government outreach.

    “The Niger Delta Legacy Board of Directors is launching TV and radio shows and social media content that will capitalise on these rapidly expanding media platforms. Featuring prominent celebrities and public figures, the campaign’s centerpiece is a television show called “Dawn in the Creeks.” It will showcase stories of communities and government working together to non-violently solve problems, in order to inspire similar efforts. With leading broadcasters, producers, and creative artists as partners, the engagement will produce popular media products that will continue paying stability dividends after U.S. government support phases out.

    “Building on successes showcased in the media campaign, the Board of Directors has identified practical ways to help communities and governments use non-violent methods more broadly and effectively to resolve problems and meet their priorities. The U.S. Government will work with state and local governments to reinforce the impact of these efforts.

    “The goal is to see the Niger Delta emerge from the 2015 election period without destabilising violence and on a path toward peace, accountable governance, and prosperity. We will measure impact by: Tracking frequency and intensity of violence using open-source “big data” tools and monitoring public perceptions of and behavior regarding violence, civic activism, government responsiveness, and the social contract.”

    This approach by the American government is welcome and it is hoped that all hands will be on deck to ensure it is not derailed.

    A violent Niger Delta is not just in the interest of the region, its people but also of Nigeria and the international community. The oil for which the region is known is consumed by several countries of the world and it is the mainstay of the nation’s economy. That is why the country has always gone out of its way to ensure that there is peace in the region.

    Efforts such as this one can compliment that of the Amnesty Office. No one should frustrate it.

  • East-West road to be ready 2015 – FG

    East-West road to be ready 2015 – FG

    The biggest Federal Government project in the oil rich Niger Delta, the East-West road will not be ready until 2015.

    The last scheduled completion date for the over N300billion project was December, 2014. The completion of the road project has suffered many postponements in the past.

    The supervising Minister, Arc. Darius Ishaku said that the project has reached overall completion of 70 per cent.

    Ishaku who addressed Journalists in Abuja, Monday, said the completed sections of the road are already been put to use.

    The minister also allayed fears that funding might continue to be a problem, pointing out that the ministry is already working out alternative funding outside the budget line for the remaining N100 billion needed to complete the project.

    He said the African Development Bank (ADB) and the SURE-P has proven to be worthy alternative sources of funding.

    Ishaku further revealed that the ministry has so far been able to access $150million of the $300million ADB loan.

    The minister who also attributed the slow pace of work to kidnapping and excess demands on contractors by communities and individuals assuring the people of the region that the ministry will work harder to ensure that it delivers on its mandate.

     

  • Before guns boom again in Niger Delta

    Before guns boom again in Niger Delta

    The creeks are calm now. Chirping of birds could be heard from the mangroves of the Niger Delta. No more reckless booming of guns. The warriors are out of their notorious camps where they commanded guerrilla fighters.

    From the trenches, they have become millionaires. The ex-militant commanders own mansions, drive exotic cars and have damsels at their beck and call. They appear to have forgotten resource control, development, equity and fairness which they claimed were the reasons they took up arms against the Federal Government.

    But it is not yet uhuru in the Niger Delta. Apart from widespread and intractable menace of economic sabotage such as pipeline vandalism and crude oil theft, violence looms. The amnesty granted the creek warriors by former President Umaru Yar’Adua has only succeeded in making a few millionaires to the detriment of the region.

     

    he region has remained largely underdeveloped. There is rising frustration among the teeming population of unemployed youths. Their anger is like a keg of gunpowder waiting to explode. Their unhappiness is worsened by their inability to derive tangible benefits from the Presidency which is occupied by their kinsman, President Goodluck Jonathan.

    In 2011, Jonathan and chieftains of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) traversed their poverty-stricken communities and promised them development, job opportunities and empowerment. They spoke of modular refineries, coastal roads, East-West roads, training programmes and other juicy dividends of democracy.

    The Association of Non-Violence in Niger Delta (ANVND) implored the government to address all issues of empowerment and development of the region before 2015. The Coordinator of the Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Mr. Kennedy Tonyo-West observed high level of unemployment in the system.

    He noted that many factories and industries had gone moribund in the region and asked the government to intensify efforts in reviving them. He asked both state and federal governments to look for and recover underutilized opportunities.

    For a violent-free 2015 general elections, he asked the PDP-led government to explore all sectors in the Niger Delta region so as to create needed opportunities for the youths.

    Specifically, he called on interventionist agencies in the region, such as the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the Ministry of the Niger Delta Affairs and the SURE-P Programme to build 100 sports centres in 100 communities in the region.

    Describing the youths in the region as skillful and talented, Tonyo-West said it was regrettable that facilities were not in the region to enable the youths hone their skills. He said Olympians and award winners in sports would emerge from the region if facilities to develop such skills were built.

    “The skills are dormant because the facilities are not there. If Samuel Peter had remained in the Niger Delta region, he wouldn’t have been a good boxer. But he found himself in an environment with facilities he needed to become an excellent boxer”, he said.

    Apart from sports facilities, he called for commencement of work on the Bonny and Brass Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) projects. If completed he said the projects would offer many job opportunities to the unemployed especially ex-militants who had undergone technical training. He said the two projects, when completed, would serve as a “positive distraction” for the youths of the Niger Delta.

    Tonyo-West insisted that the government must muster required political will to assist the youths. For instance, he said the federal government should turn the technical school in Bonny to an oil and gas university. This, he said, would provide needed empowerment for the youths to become employable in the oil and gas sector.

    He said: “We also want the Federal Government to urgently rehabilitate Bonny Technical College in Rivers State and upgrade it to Oil and Gas University.

    “The facilities the students can learn from are already there. We are pleading with President Goodluck Jonathan to upgrade the BTC as a matter of urgency.”

    Besides, he called the attention of the Bayelsa State Government to the moribund Hyndai project which was initially conceived by the past administration of Governor Timipre Sylva to attract investors and create over 2000 jobs.

    “This project is designed to mop up unemployment. The government should look into the matter and address the issues. He implored the Senate to immediately pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law.

    He said the Niger Delta region would base its voting decision in 2015 on the passage of the PIB.

    He said the the bill was essential for the growth and development of the country’s petroleum sector.

    He said: “We call on the Senate President to make a firm decision on PIB still lying in the Senate without being passed. We do not want to believe that members of the upper legislative chamber have been induced to withhold passage of the bill into law.

    MAY we, therefore, call on the Senate to give express passage of the PIB into law for the benefit of the country and the citizens. We are against all the delays that have characterized the passage of the PIB.”

    Tonjo-West also called on Jonathan and the National Assembly to pass the Nigeria Merchant Navy Security and Safety Corps (NMNSSC). He said NMNSSC would no doubt contribute to the reduction of pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta.

    “The Nigeria Merchant Navy Security and Safety Corps will create safety on our waterways. Besides, it will be a good outlet for employment creation as well as securing lives of seafarers,” he said.

    He commended the establishment of Youth Development Centre (YDC) in Bayelsa State. He, however, appealed to Governor Seriake Dickson, to appropriate funds needed for the centre to take off.

    The NGO was not happy that most of the programmes and projects formulated in the past to benefit the youths were abandoned on the way by the government. For instance, he observed that two expensive trawlers acquired for commercial fishing in Bayelsa State had been abandoned to rot at Ogbia waterside.

    The trawlers, MV Patience Jonathan and MV Margret Alameiseigha, were acquired under the agricultural programme of Sylva. They only went fishing in the sea once. Since then they were anchored and forgotten at the Ogbia waterside. But Tonyo-West appealed to the government to revive and put them to use.panies like Okomu and others.

  • Life without good luck

    The position of leadership should be one of trust. Only people who can be trusted or are trusted should be given leadership position.

    Until recently, many communities in Edo State were made to live a lie. They were made to believe their communities did not deserve good things. The liars had nature as excuse. Since these communities, such as Anenegbette, Udaba, Okpekpe, Imiegba and Imiakubu, in either mountainous area or marshy areas, they were told by their past leaders that it was difficult or perhaps impossible to construct access roads to their communities.

    Because of this lie the people of Anegbette and environs in Estako Central of Edo State, always prayed against rains. Each time it rained they were usually sacked by flood. The two local bridges constructed on two rivers leading to their community were usually overrun.

    For Okpekpe, Imiegba and Imiakubu, which are located on mountainous terrain, the situation was not palatable. It was so bad that their rich sons and daughters would rather build houses at Auchi, headquarters of Estako West. No thanks to lack of access roads.

    Simply put, the communities were living life without good luck. All that have now ended and the good times are here.

    It took a visionary leader like Adams Aliyu Oshiomhole to end their life without good luck. Oshiomhole has either completed some access roads or about to complete them .

    In Estako West, Council Road, Iyofa Road, Okotokwe Road, Iyekhe Road and Jattu-Elele Road have been completed with side drains to help fight erosion in Auchi.

    And in Etsako East, Ayogwiri- Apana-Imiegba-Imiakebu road and the Apana-Okpekpe road have been completed with bridges. To build these bridges, rocks had to be blasted.

    A resident of one of the communities said: “Look at our Imiegba. Our village is now a town. The governor has turn it to London. What we need now is water. You are a good governor and we have not seen a man like. Others said the road was impossible but now it has been done. Our people can now come home without stopping at Auchi.”

    Significantly, when construction started on these roads, people thought they would not be completed.The lie they had been told that it was impossible to have roads leading to their communities had stuck in their heads.

    No wonder Oshiomhole remarked: “Today, I am glad that the road project has been completed on schedule. You can see the quality of the road, so by the grace of God, we will bring more development.”

    For these people, it is the dawn of a new era. Never again will they believe anyone who tells them it cannot be done. Now they know it can be done once the political will is there. It is not just about cash. Yes, the terrains are difficult and more money may be required to have access roads in some communities.

    The country has enough for its needs, but perhaps not enough for the greed of the elite, which means once the greed of the elite can be contained, nothing really is impossible.

    We say kudos to Oshiomhole. We also say other Niger Delta communities, such as the oil-and-gas rich Bonny Island, deserve access raods too. For years, the Federal Government has been earning billions of dollars from Bonny as a result of the operations of Shell, Chevron and the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited. Eight years ago, the contract for the Bodo-Bonny Road was awarded, but nothing concrete has happened. President Goodluck Jonathan blamed former President Olusegun Obasanjo. He too has been in power for years and still no dice. He has made a fresh promise. The time to keep the promise is now. The people will sure remember him as the man who ended their era of life without good luck. They sure deserve good luck.