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Tag: Southsouth

  • ‘Southsouth should produce next AGF’

    ‘Southsouth should produce next AGF’

    Emeh, a lawyer, is former Rivers State Commissioner for Transport and Chief of Staff. He spoke with reporters about the succession crisis in the Southsouth State and other partisan issues.

    There is the clamour for the Southsouth zone to produce the next Secretary to the Government of the Federation. What is your take on this?

    I have always advocated that one of the best things you can find in life that will not bring trouble in any society is equity. When you apply it, whatever decision you are making from the point of equity, fairness, fair play will work out fine. The southsouth region has always looked forward to when the Nigerian nation will begin to appreciate that the region is a very important component of the country. Every region is as important as the other, but it will not be out of place to say that the South-South region can be adequately described without mincing words, as the most important region in the country, being the region that produces the wealth which other regions are feeding on at the moment.

    So, we deserve a special treatment. Even when our young men went ahead to demand this special treatment, though in their own form through what they called militancy, most people did not understand that they were doing so, as a way of driving home their point, that the region deserves special attention.

    In the present dispensation, I have no difficulty in believing that President Buhari will pay special attention to the region and more importantly, the fact that every region has picked one important position or the other except the South-South region, we are very expectant.

    What it means is that the only next important position left untouched at the moment is the office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF). I don’t need a soothsayer to tell me that the decision is deliberate, it is designed and set aside for the people of south-south since other regions have been settled. We believe that the next SGF should come from the south-south region, and we don’t need much debate on it.

    Both the APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, and former Governor of Rivers State, Chief Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, are jostling for the position. What is your expectation of them?

    It is quite interesting to note that the two of such persons are being considered. I have read about this in the national dailies, and I am also aware that Chief Oyegun has opted out of the race, what it means therefore is that Rt. Hon. Amaechi is a candidate that has no competitor anymore. So far there is no other name that we know to have shown interest, or been penciled down to occupy that position.

    I would have said that both ex-Governors have  sufficient pedigree for the position, but now that Chief Oyegun has opted out, let us concentrate on the fact that Amaechi having been a two- term Speaker in a complex state as Rivers, and thereafter Governor for eight years, also in such a peculiar state as ours, we have no doubt that he has acquired sufficient knowledge, sufficient experience and sufficient information and therefore adequately ready to occupy and perform any administrative function of any type, irrespective of what name that office or position is called.

    I don’t see a person who has managed a place like Rivers State as a governor for eight years and would not be able to creditably perform in the position of Secretary to the Government of the Federation, which is just a component of government. I believe that, if it is the wish of the Federal Government to narrow the appointment of the SGF, to the South-South which in any case  deserves  the position and Amaechi is from the South-South, there should be no difficulty in situating him to the office, if that is what the president would wish to do. In any case every person in APC appreciate the enormous contribution of  Amaechi in the formation and nurturing of APC culminating in managing the party’s presidential campaign directing the election that threw up General Mohammadu Buhari as the winner.

    Both as South-Southerner and as a person, I think, it is like the proverb which says that, “you put a palm fruit into drum of palm oil”. I have no difficulty to believe that in view of Amaechi’s experience, just like any other person who has had high level of experience shouldn’t have difficulty in performing very well in the office of Secretary to the Government of the Federation SGF.

    What do you think the South-South region really needs from this new political dispensation?

    We have discussed a little bit in that regard, but for the sake of emphasis. If you build a house, chances are that you would not want to be kept at the corridors of the house. You will need a room. You cannot finish building a house, and you give the room and parlour to the visitor, and remain at the balcony of the house. The Southsouth, being the producers of the wealth of this country, deserve to be taken of by the government at the centre and I know President Buhari is disposed to carrying us along.

  • Southsouth youths warn against NDDC’s scrap

    Southsouth youths warn against NDDC’s scrap

    Youths of the Southsouth, under the aegis of Southsouth Youth Patriotic Movement for Ultimate Peace and Justice (SSYPAM), have advised against the scrapping of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    They also expressed their unalloyed supports for the in-coming administration of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari.

    The youths, who prayed for God’s directives to the President –elect  to  successfully bring the needed change, peace and stability in Nigeria,  warned those clamouring for the dissolution of the NDDC to desist forth-with in the interest of sustained peace in the country.

    The group, in a statement in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, congratulated the General for his victory at the polls and also asked him to ignore the calls against the commission, noting that those calling for the scrapping of the agency do not mean well for his government and the Nigerian’s oil-rich region.

    In the statement signed by their National President, Chinagorom Nwonkwo, they explained that the establishment of the Commission resulted in the peace being experienced in the region and safety of Federal Government’s investments/ oil installations in the area, stressing that the interventions being provided by the commission in the hitherto neglected area and their youths was responsible for the militancy and youth restiveness witnessed in the region before.

    Nwonkwo gave pass mark to the managers of the commission, especially the present Board but noted that the commission is being crippled by under -funded and even heavy debts.

    “We are calling on those demanding for scrapping of NDDC put a stop to it and give support to the commission to achieve the mandate of developing the region that produces the wealth which the nation enjoys.

    “NDDC from its inception has performed very well but due to scarcity of funds, it has continued to face the challenge of the level of performance as expected by the people.

    “The commission from the time of set-up has initiated and completed several structural projects in the region and also engaged in human development and empowerments programmes  for the people of the region, both locally and internationally, despite the challenge of under-funding and huge debt being owe it by the Federal Government,

    “Presently the commission is being owed a cumulative sum of N700 billion, if this amount is released to the Commission, it will go a long way in meeting the yearnings of the people of the region to the admiration, appreciation of the entire country.” They said.

    Speaking on the gains of the establishment of the agency has made said, “We also want to state that those calling for the scrapping of NDDC to first ask themselves, how youth restiveness in the region was drastically reduced?, how militancy became a thing of the past in the region among other.

    “The existence of the commission for the marginalised and abandoned region has made it possible for youths from the region to get small ticket jobs, contracts which they execute and get empowered to boost their economic well-being and that of their family members.

    “We are therefore calling on well- meaning Nigerians to support NDDC and its good works, instead of condemning it. We are also using this medium to call on President-elect  to ignore the call and map out strategies for effective and adequate funding of the commission  as soon as he assumes office next month to enable the commission deliver on its mandate.” They appealed.

  • New role for Southsouth, Southeast

    New role for Southsouth, Southeast

    The outcome of the general elections has reduced the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to a regional party. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines its implications and its likely effects on the political future of the Southsouth and the Southeast geo-political zones.

    The electoral defeat of President Goodluck Jonathan in the March 28 presidential election is already taking its toll on the ruling party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP). The party has been in power for 16 years. Given its national spread, the party has been domineering since 1999. It was against this backdrop that a former chairman of the PDP, Prince Vincent Ogbulafor boasted that the party will rule the country for 60 unbroken years.

    But the results of the just concluded elections have changed the political calculus of the PDP. An ominous sign that the claim of the PDP as a dominant party was in sight came when like-minded elements in four major opposition parties formed the All Progressives Congress (APC) which was registered in 2013. The party has made history as it defeated a sitting President.

    In the presidential election, APC won in 21 states while the PDP triumphed in 15 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. The states where the APC got majority votes are: Kaduna, Kwara, Oyo, Kogi, Kano, Jigawa, Ogun, Osun, Ondo , Katsina, Niger,  Lagos, Gombe, Adamawa, Zamfara, Kebbi, Benue, Bauchi, Yobe, Sokoto and Borno. The results shows that the APC is  the dominant party in the Northwest, Northeast , Southwest and part of the Northcentral.

    The states won by the PDP are: Enugu, Nassarawa, Ekiti, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Imo, Plateau, Ebonyi, Bayelsa, Cross River, Edo, Taraba, Delta, Anambra, Rivers and FCT. The results indicate that the party is strong only in the Southeast and Southsouth and part of the Northcentral.

    The governorship election results have given a broader picture of how the parties stand. The APC had won more states than it did in the presidential election. For instance, the party won Plateau and Nasarawa from PDP. Thus, the APC is in firm control of the Northcentral.

    The implication of the election results is that the PDP has degenerated into a regional party. A party that has strong presence in virtually all the six geo-political zones can now boast of the Southsouth and Southeast as its stronghold. Analysts say unless the PDP leadership go back to the drawing board to examine what went wrong with the once-upon-a-time national party, that has shrunk into a regional party, it will be difficult for it to win presidential election in future. They argued that a regional party cannot win presidential election and cited the case of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari, who despite his popularity in the North, failed in 2003, 2007 and 2011 to win because he contested on the platforms of the defunct All Nigeria Peoples’ Party (ANPP) and Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) which later merged with other opposition parties to form the APC.

     

    Electoral fraud

    in Southsouth/Southeast

     

    However, the desperation of the Southsouth and Southeast states to keep the PDP flag flying has resorted in monumental electoral fraud being perpetrated by leaders of the party in the two zones. There were reported cases of electoral malpractices in Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Cross River, Enugu and Imo, where results posted for the APC did not reflect the political situation in those states. The figures released for the PDP are so outrageous. For instance, it was reported that during the presidential and governorship elections in Akwa Ibom and Rivers states, the election materials were hijacked by hoodlums sympathetic to the PDP and election did not hold in many polling units. Yet, results were posted for such units. The figures released in some of the states tallied with the total number of registered voters, an implication that the areas recorded 100 per cent voter turnout.

    Local and international observers have written in their preliminary reporters that the turnout of voters for the governorship and House of Assembly elections was lower than during the presidential and National Assembly elections on March 28.

    This is not the first time that states in the Southsouth and Southeast will be voting overwhelmingly for the PDP. In 2011, when President Jonathan first contested for presidency, nearly all the states in the two zones recorded between 90 and 100 per cent of the total registered voters for him. The attitude then was that they had to give maximum support to Jonathan, who they saw as their brother.

    Kano-based legal practitioner, Mahmoud Garba, said it was amazing hearing people from the Southsouth and Southeast alleging that the North and the Southwest ganged up against the re-election of President Jonathan.

    Garba said: “These same group of people voted 100 per cent for their son. There is no single state in both zones where Buhari scored the minimum 25 per cent except in Imo and Edo.  On the contrary, Jonathan won in some states in the North and Southwest.

    “The ethnic and regional politics that our brothers in the Southsouth and Southeast are playing is not in their interest. No zone or region can do it alone. Nigeria has grown beyond regional or ethnic politics.

    Rather than turn the fall of PDP into regional affairs, they should examine the factors that led to its misfortune with a view to addressing them so that PDP can bounce back in the nearest future.”

    Former Senate Minority leader, Senator Olorunnimbe Mamora said the votes posted for the APC is not a true reflection of the party’s projected popularity and acceptability in the two geo-political zones.

    Mamora said: “I am not saying that we should have won in all the states in those zones but at least I was expecting that the number of votes returned for our party would have been much higher than what appeared to have been allocated to us.

    “We should not forget that APC still have some states that are currently under its control like Edo, Rivers and Imo. The purported performance of our party in those states remains a mystery.”

    Breaking ties with the North

     

    Since Independence, the Southsouth, then referred to as the minority group, has always aligned with the North for the fear of domination by the Igbos. When the late Emeka Odumegwu Ojukwu declared secession in 1967, the likes of Rivers and Cross River refused to be part of Biafra, they remained in Nigeria. In the Second Republic, the Southeast that was just coming out of the civil war believed it would not be wise for it to be in opposition, it joined the Northern dominated National Party of Nigeria (NPN) that ruled the country between 1979 and 1983. The Southsouth was also dominated by the NPN.

    That explains why both zones embraced the PDP which was predominantly a Northern party. The Southwest used to be in opposition right from independence till date. As from May 29, the Southsouth and Southeast will be in opposition.

    The implication of the new role that the two zones will play under the Buhari administration is that they will be out of power. They may lose ministerial appointments and top legislative and administrative appointments. The PDP swept all the senatorial and House of Representatives seats in the two zones. So they are not in contention for the office of the Senate President and Speaker of House of Representatives.

     

     

  • ‘We need to prevent a slide into anarchy in Southsouth

    The Nigerians United for Democracy (NUD) has stated that a slide into anarchy in the Southsouth geo-political zone and other parts of Nigeria must be prevented.

    It also told the leadership of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), especially its Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, to insist on the use of card readers, to ensure free, fair and credible elections on March 28 and April 11 this year.

    NUD described the card readers as Nigeria’s biggest hope for addressing electoral malpractices, while declaring that the persons who are against the use of card readers are election riggers.

    The pro-democracy group in the defence of Nigeria’s democracy maintained that INEC must hold elections on March 28 and April 11, in order to move the country forward.

    The Southsouth Convener of NUD, Anyakwee Nsirimovu, accompanied by the Chairman of an Abuja-based Partners for Electoral Reforms, Ezenwa Nwagwu, and other human rights activists, in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, admonished Nigerians to kick against electoral terrorism.

    The pro-democracy group said: “We need to prevent a slide into anarchy. We need to take our destiny in our own hands. We need to ensure that darkness does not once again descend on our country. We are insisting that nothing must change the new dates of March 28 and April 11. Elections must be allowed to hold on these dates. Nigeria is on the march again. This time, no one will be able to halt the decisive will of the people for democracy and sustainable livelihood.

    “We are also worried by the current move to frustrate INEC in conducting credible elections, by pushing for the use of Temporary Voter Cards (TVCs), which will not allow for the use of card readers, already procured for checkmating election rigging. We wish to emphasise that the use of the card readers is Nigeria’s biggest hope for addressing election day malpractices. The quest to remove the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega, in the middle of a context, further confirms the attempt by President Goodluck Jonathan’s government to undermine the use of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in the country’s forthcoming elections, which the main purpose is to perfect plans to rig the March and April polls.”

    NUD also noted with utmost concern, the growing political tension and killings in various states of the federation and their potential to undermine the electoral process.

    It particularly stated that the violence recently witnessed in Rivers state required vigilance, impartiality and professionalism on the part of the security agents, while urging the security agencies to ensure their fidelity to the constitution and that the citizens are not in any way undermined by political considerations.

    The pro-democracy group also condemned the buying of PVCs by politicians and bribing of voters, stressing that the electorate would not be able to vote with stolen PVCs, describing any attempt to illegally procure PVCs as an exercise in futility.

    The group said: “In rejecting the manipulation of the political transition, the NUD will continue with its rallies across the country, to condemn the conspiracy of the ruling clique against Nigerians.

    “The rallies are for Nigerians to stand hand-in-hand to speak with one voice against electoral terrorism, against any further polls’ shift, against any attempt to remove the Chairman of INEC, Prof. Attahiru Jega, before his terminal date of June 29, 2015, against any attempt to introduce an Interim National Government (ING), against any military incursion into politics, against corruption, against the devaluation of the national currency and conspiracy to use the court to frustrate INEC from conducting credible elections.

    “Civil authority is a delegation from the people. You cannot hold the country in darkness. Stop struggling against increasing light and liberality in the land. Allow Nigerians their inalienable rights and ensure the correction of abuses before we are completely destroyed under your (President Jonathan’s) leadership. It is a fact in political history that power abuse justifies resistance.”

    NUD also called on Nigerians to come out in large number to assert themselves and take control of their destiny, by fully participating in the nationwide rallies and to always give peace a chance.

     

     

  • 2015: Jonathan, PDP face tough task in Southeast, Southsouth

    2015: Jonathan, PDP face tough task in Southeast, Southsouth

    Contrary to the assumption of an easy ride for President Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2015 eletions, they may face some challenges in the Southeast and Southsouth.

    Some angry stakeholders in the zones are threatening protest votes if the party’s primaries were not transparent to allow the people’s will to prevail.

    One of the Southsouth governors has threatened to ask his favoured senatorial candidate to defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) to unseat a two-term senator.

    The development is said to be of concern to the PDP leadership.

    Investigation by our correspondent showed that the PDP is at a crossroads in eight states following attempts by some governors to impose governorship candidates on the party.

    A high-ranking PDP leader, who spoke in confidence, said: “We are having serious challenges in some states in the Southeast and Southsouth. The consensus option is being resisted in about eight states.

    “Some of the aspirants are already threatening to defect to APC or work against the interest of the party.

    “We have a case where a governor is threatening to work against the interest of the party. We may lose some states in the Southeast and Southsouth unless we are circumspect.

    “I can assure you that the President and PDP leaders will try to resolve the crisis.”

    A member of the NWC said: “We have already opened discussions with some of the affected governors in order to put the success of the party above any other consideration.

    “What you call problems or challenges are not limited to the PDP. We will sort things out in a ‘family manner’ to avoid going for the 2015 poll divided.”

    Some of the governors facing tough tasks in anointing their successors are: Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta), Godswill Akpabio (Akwa Ibom), Sullivan Chime (Enugu) and Theodore Orji (Abia).

    In Rivers and Imo states, the battle for the governorship slots is tearing the PDP apart.

    While the crisis of confidence in Rivers State is between former Minister Nyesom Wike and some stakeholders, the struggle for the ticket in Imo has pitched former Governor Ikedi Ohakim against Senator Ifeanyi Araraume and House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Emeka Ihedioha.

    The case at hand in Enugu State has pitched Governor Sullivan Chime against stakeholders.

    In Delta State, favoured candidate, Tony Obuh, is facing a battle from Ovie Omo-Agege, Ndudi Elumelu and Ngozi Olojeme.

    But the issue in Delta is the opposition to the zoning of the governorship slot.

    A source said: “As the PDP gears up to retain the Presidency and the governorship in Delta State, the party leadership needs to be conscious of a startling fact: In 2011, elections in Delta Central alone accounted for about 60 and 50 per cent of votes in the presidential and governorship elections.

    “Zoning in Delta State has been an issue of concern among the stakeholders. Even though Delta North keeps pushing, it remains the only zone that is yet to produce a governor. Delta Central and Delta South are saying the zoning formula does not come to play as far as the 2015 elections are concerned.

    “Many analysts believe President Goodluck Jonathan faces a tough reelection battle with the emergence of the All Progressives Party (APC), which is threatening PDP’s  hold on the central government.

    “In 2011, voter turnout in the Southeast and Southsouth was 65.8 per cent and 67.96 per cent. If Jonathan and the party must hold on to power, there must be an increase in voter turnout in the 2015 presidential election in these geopolitical zones…”

  • Southeast, Southsouth demand N2.6tr reparation

    Delegates of the Southeast and Southsouth at the National Conference demanded yesterday the payment of N2.6 trillion reparation for damages done in the zones during the civil war.

    The demand was contained in the documents circulated at the conference, titled: “Amendment to the proposed National Intervention Fund: The case of the Southeast, Southsouth zones of Nigeria” and “Ohanaeze Ndigbo: Atrocities and injustices against Ndigbo.”

    The documents were endorsed by the 20 Southeast and Southsouth delegates, including the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Gary Igariwey, the Secretary-General of Ohanaeze, Dr. Joe Nwaorgu, Prof. Ihechukwu Madubuike, Prof. Chinedum Nwajiuba, Ms. Annkio Briggs and former Senate President Adolphus Wabara.

    The delegates said their demand was meant to put a price on the death of millions of Igbo, who were killed in the civil war and on other occasions.

    The Federal Government, they said, should pay N400 billion each to the five states of the Southeast as compensation to those who lost loved ones, property and those still suffering dislocation.

    “The same amount should also be paid to the Delta State government for the benefit of Anioma area of the state,” the delegates said.

    According to the documents, “since the proposed National Intervention Fund is to address the vexed issues of devastation and upheavals caused by an act of war or outright war, the Southsouth and Southeast zones should be taken care of by the fund in terms of the physical infrastructure, rehabilitation, development and other losses resulting from the civil war.”

    Besides asking for payment of reparation, the two zones said the Federal Government should “set up a body to work out agreed reparation to settle the civil war issue once and for all.”

    They noted that fair minded Nigerians would agree that the former Eastern Region and part of the former Mid-West Region, which encompassed the present Southeast and Southsouth, were theatres of the civil war.

    The delegates said it is well known that the civil war devastated the Southeast and Southsouth and brought hardship to the citizens.

    “The case of the Southeast, which bore the full brunt of the civil war for 30 months, is tragic. Most of it has remained a wasteland, despite Gen. Yakubu Gowon’s declaration of three “Rs” Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Reconstruction,” they said.

    The conferees noted that the Boko Haram insurgency in parts of the country, especially in the Northeast, has brought up the issue of reparation and reconstruction “in whatever guise to the fore and the National Conference through its Committee on Devolution of Power has tackled it headlong.”

    The delegates insisted that “since what is sauce for the goose is also sauce for the gander, the conference cannot afford to ignore the yearnings of our people to rehabilitate and reconstruct the war devastated Southsouth and Southeast through the proposed National Intervention Fund or through any other integrated platform or plan available to the Federal Government.”

    They said the several panels set up by the Federal Government, including the Oputa Panel, had approved reparation for war damages “but to date this has not been addressed.”

     

     

     

  • Southsouth missing out on training centre, says Provost

    THE Provost, Federal Training Centre (FTC) in Calabar, Lady Veta Majoroh, has urged Southsouth states, particularly its host, Cross River, to take advantage of the centre to improve their manpower.

    She said the centre also got accreditation to offer diploma, which trainees can also use to pursue their careers.

    The centre is one of six established in the country to cater for junior and middle cadre manpower needs of the civil service.

    Mrs Majoroh said: “At present, the curriculum has changed from what it used to be, from just awarding certificates. Now, we also award diploma certificates. There are six FTCs – Maiduguri, Kaduna, Ilorin, Lagos, Calabar and Enugu – and the essence of the one here is to capture the Southsouth.

    “However, most people in the southsouth are not taking advantage of the FTCs, especially the Cross River State people. We expect that most of their workers should be coming for in-service courses to improve on themselves, but most of them do not really take advantage of the centre here,” she said.

    Mrs Majoroh, who spoke in Calabar, singled out Bayelsa for praise for training many of its workers at the centre.

    “I use this opportunity to congratulate the Bayelsa State government, because every year they send a lot of staff to come and train. The essence is to improve the civil service and the manpower needs and also at the same time create a career. So, for those who did not have the opportunity to go to a university, this is a way of improving themselves. It is like a form of adult education.

    “We are aimed at manpower development, so that the civil service is not stagnated. One of the transformation agenda of the president is manpower development for effective running of the civil service for results. It is only when they go on courses to learn modern trends that they would know how to handle their jobs in their various offices. The FTCs are one of the key areas where the middle and junior level manpower can key into the transformation agenda.”

     

  • Southsouth’s song

    Southsouth’s song

    I am blessed. I can say that again and again. I am also cursed. I can also say that again and again. But how can one be so blessed and yet so cursed? It baffles me once in a while. It does.

    My father, who Flora Luggard christened Nigeria, is also confused about how to deal with the challenge that I have become.

    I really did not start as a challenge to my father. No. As a matter of fact, my father was very happy with me when crude oil was discovered on my compound. My father was so happy that it invited oil majors from across the globe to come tap the goodies in my bosom. They were more than happy to rush in. Deals were cut. Many of which were not in my interest. But it was too early in the day for the implications of the corrupt deals to be obvious. It marked the beginning of that era when money was not my father’s problem but how to spend it.

    The crude oil on my compound was bringing so much that my father was donating money even to other people. To be sincere, the coming of the oil majors gave the impression that the good times were here. The swamps were bubbling. The creeks came alive. But the first shock that not all that glitters was gold first dawned on me when the oil on my first compound dried off. Before one could say Jack Robinson, the oil major drilling there left and it dawned on me that they were fair weathered friends. They left no development behind. It was all a legacy of dejection.

    Before the oil was discovered, the streams and rivers nearby were filled with fishes. The few lands around were also good for farming, which my people abandoned because of the free oil money. By the time the oil major left, the rivers and streams had become polluted. The farmlands were already contaminated and could no longer bring forth edible crops. In fact, many had even forgotten how to farm or fish.

    The evil wrought on the first area where they drilled did not stop my father from giving them the right to drill for crude on other lands we have. Then one by one, almost all our lands become polluted, leaving farmers and fishermen and women with no means of livelihood.

    With time, my people began to be creative. They discovered they could break the oil pipelines and steal oil. We thus entered the era of oil bunkering and, till today, no one has been able to stop it.

    My people did not stop at that. Another word was soon introduced into our lexicon. They call it militancy. We call it freedom fighting. Camps were opened in various creeks. Guns of all shades found their way to the creeks too. Don’t ask me how we got the guns. Anyway I will tell you. Many of them we got from politicians, who used some of my people as thugs during electioneering campaigns. We also get supplies from foreigners. You may wonder what foreigners stand to gain from supplying us guns and bombs. Wait a minute and I will tell you, even though I am not supposed to say it. But, this, for me, is the moment of truth when we must speak above whispers.

    In our camps in the creeks, we don’t just sit and smoke hemp or sleep with girls, we are actually in business. Yes, we are in the business of bunkering. The foreigners who supply us the dangerous weapons buy the stolen crude from us. It is a multi-billion dollar industry. We also have bases where we have illegal refineries where we use crude method to refine the crude oil. It is crude calling to the crude!

    I know someone might want to ask about kidnapping of foreigners and wealthy individuals for ransom. There is no need denying this. But, there is no need wasting time on this area.

    At a point, my father became scandalised at the rate at which I was becoming an embarrassment to him. Not only that, he was also scared that my activities were affecting what he was getting from crude oil sales. So, he came up with a carrot to buy me over. Before then, he had used the stick. My people met force with force and it became clear that force alone could not do it.

    My people were encouraged to bring out their guns in exchange for cash. The rest, as they say, is history. The violence has reduced, but the bunkering has not stopped. It has even increased of recent and dug huge holes in my father’s pocket. And my father cries every day. The international community, especially the American government, is also worried by my tendency for violence and daily comes up with ways to encourage my people to be like the late Martin Luther-King.

    I confess that I have given my father serious cause for concern. But, unless my father wants to lie, he has also been unfair to me. Of all his six children, no one brings more cash to my father like I do. If you call me the golden chicken that lays the golden egg, you certainly are not exaggerating. All you need to confirm this is to ask my father to bring out the account books and you will see clear signs of what I have brought to the table. Despite this, my father has chosen to spend more money on my siblings while I am the metaphor for lack and want. My people live in abject penury. They die young because their environment has been polluted. Strange diseases have taken over the environ.

    My father has also been deceitful. Or how do you explain what my father has done on a parcel of my land known as Ogoni? My father killed some of its leading lights, including Ken Saro-Wiwa. All because they insisted an oil major, Shell, was not treating them right. The height of the deceit was when my father got the United Nations Environmental Project (UNEP) to conduct a study on the oil spills in Ogoniland. It did and came up with far-reaching recommendations. When the report was submitted, my father promised action. Days turned into months. Months into years and still no action has taken place. And Ogoni people, my people, continue to bear the brunt of my father’s deceit. Activists shout daily on this matter, still my father pretends as though no one is talking.

    My heart is heavy, I must confess. I am disappointed in my father. He has messed me up. And to add salt to injury, my father says I am the devil. This is the same father who once called me blessed.

    At this stage, I have gone past the stage of respecting my father. He has not been fair to me. So, why should I be fair to him? So, when he said I was cursed once, I told him I inherited it from him. His eyes turned red when I said this and he threatened to slap me and I dared him to do his worst. After all, of what use is a useless father. A father who lies to his son, a father who shows preference for one kid over the other, a father who takes from one child and gives to the other and a father who, like politicians, lieS to his children.

    Help me tell my father, in case he does not read this lamentation, that once he remains irresponsible, the lure of easy money and the danger of extravagant lifestyle will continue to be stronger for me than any other thing. Materialism will continue to appeal to me and I will use any means available to pursue it. In the creeks, materialism will remain the lord and I will remain a child of pain to my father, except he plays the role of a father indeed.

    • A book by the wife of the Ekiti State Governor, Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi, “Speaking above whispers”, gave this column its name.

     

     

     

  • ‘Southsouth ‘ll fight for Jonathan in 2015’

    Former Rivers State governor, Sir Celestine Omehia, has said the South-South people would support President Goodluck Jonathan in 2015.

    He said it would be disrespectful and unreasonable for any region to think of taking power from the South-South in 2015.

    The former governor spoke yesterday during a visit by one of his political formations, the Rivers State Redemption Vanguard, in his home resident in Port Harcourt.

    He said the South-South had paid its dues by supporting other regions to grab power, adding that it would be an act of betrayal for any part of the country to refuse to support the South-South in 2015.

  • ‘The problem with Southsouth’s local govts’

    ‘The problem with Southsouth’s local govts’

    It was the drama that said it all. The audience watched students of history at the Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island as they demonstrated the rots in various local government areas in the Southsouth. One theme stood out from the literary piece: Local government areas have betrayed their constitutional responsibilities.

    The venue was the Banquet Hall, Yenagoa. The event was the first Southsouth Zonal Conference of the Historical Society of Nigeria (HSN).

    Worried about lack of development in the grassroots despite huge revenue allocations accruing to local government areas, HSN chose ‘Local Government Administration and Development in the Southsouth: Landmark, problems and prospects’, as the theme of its maiden zonal conference. A renowned Professor of History, Joe Alagoa, was the chairman of the event.

    An Associate Professor of History and International Relations and Diplomacy, at the University of Benin, Dr. Eddy Erhagbe, who delivered the keynote address, used the occasion to highlight the functions of local government areas as spelt out in the Fourth Schedule Section 7 of the 1999 Constitution.

    He observed that the local government system in the region was guilty of violating one of the major democratic principles. He said most of the operators of local government councils were not elected.

    “Like in most parts of Nigeria, the local government councils were or are being run by appointed care-taker committees, even some states have not held elections for their local councils for as long as eight years”, he said.

    Identifying dangers in imposing leaders on the people at the grassroots, he said: “The fact remains therefore that abinitio these unelected council administrations are un-democratic, since their operators have been answerable more to those that appointed them than those they were expected to serve.

    “The direct implication of this has been that accountability couldn’t be expected or pursued. Closely tied to the failure to hold elections has been the manner of the dissolution of council administrations, especially the removal of council chairmen.”

    The lecturer also took a swipe at the conducts of local government leaders. He accused some of the leaders of financial recklessness, noting that in some local councils, such leaders were only seen in their offices when it was time to share the revenue allocated to their councils.

    He referred to such leaders as the chairmen of “share the money” and “carry go” adding that their attitude had endorsed absenteeism among workers in the councils.

    He was also angry that most local councils in the region had failed to discharge their smaller statutory responsibilities. He said: “In most areas while projects were declared to have been executed they were only done on paper.

    “Roads, boreholes, health centers and classrooms were built and constructed on paper and in the media but definitely not on ground. It has been argued that but for the first line charge for primary school teachers’ salaries from the local councils allocations many would have been without salaries.

    “Thus the local government councils have not been the veritable instrument for the transformation and development of the local communities/ rural areas that they were envisaged to be.”

    He recalled that the abysmal nature of local councils compelled the former President Olusegun Obasanjo to tinker with the idea of abolishing the system. But he said the idea was dropped after series of arguments that even states and federal government were to some extent guilty of the sins of local government areas.

    The don kicked against total autonomy for local governments, stressing that allowing complete autonomy would promote the whims and caprices of local government administrators.

    He, however, advocated limited or controlled autonomy for local government areas. He observed that with some control of the system, local government areas in Edo, Bayelsa and Rivers states have distinguished themselves in terms of performance.

    He said: “It will be most a historical to give the impression that the performance of local governments in the Southsouth has been one of abysmal failure, and the situation has been static.

    “As a matter of fact if there is greater monitoring of the performance of governments at the other levels of governance in Nigeria, Nigerians will get to enjoy more the benefits of democracy.”

    Governor Seriake Dickson said the state believes in local government autonomy. He said the government had laid foundations to ensure that the local government areas maintained their independence within the provisions of the constitution.

    As part of steps to guarantee the autonomy, he said the government ensures that the councils receive their full monthly revenue allocations.

    He said the state government also supports the councils in the payment of the primary school teachers’ salaries.

    According to him, the government pays up to 60 per cent of the salaries adding that the culture of transparency and accountability had been entrenched in the councils.

    He said the councils were being compelled to identify with some laudable programmes of the government.

    For example, he said local councils had already keyed into the housing programme of the state adding that each local government area was expected to build 10 housing units.

    Earlier in his opening address, the Vice-President, HSN, Southsouth, Dr. Steve Olali, said the conference was aimed at identifying the problems that were inimical to the sustenance of the local government.

    Olali, who is also the Chief Historian and Archivist of Bayelsa State, said the conference was the first to be organised in the Southsouth zone of HSN.