The Niger Delta Congress has taken note of a disturbing trend of happenings in and around the country which has so far gone unchecked, despite several warnings from the NDC. These can be said to be existential threats to the region and the people of the Niger Delta and we do not intend to fold our arms and do nothing about these developments.
On the 8th of February 2021, the NDC issued a statement warning the presidency against appointing another Northerner as IGP of police, after very reliable intelligence reports suggested that the President had finalized moves to retire a Niger Delta son, Moses Jitoboh in order to make way for another Northerner to take over as I.G of the Nigeria Police Force. In confirmation of our suspicion, on the 6th of April 2021, President Buhari appointed Usman Alkali, another Northerner, as IGP.
This blatant disregard for the principles of Federal Character and disrespect for other regions of the country, especially the Niger Delta region, has become a hallmark of the Buhari administration and sadly, nothing is being done to correct this dangerous precedent.
The NDC has at several times within the past 2 years drawn the attention of the public to the suspicious movement of Jihadist elements from the North down south, in the guise of cattle herding and pastoral activities as the case may be. This development has led to increased terrorist activities in the south, including the creation of Jihadist sleeper cells in various parts of the Niger Delta. It has also brought about incessant cases of farmer-herder clashes, which have led to the loss of several lives and made life unbearable for the farming communities of the Niger Delta.
In all of this, the federal government has failed to set up a proper security framework to check the excesses of this group of people. Instead, they come up with convenient excuses after each occurrence. If these activities continue unchecked, we might one day be chased out of our homes by these enemies of our societal advancement.
The Niger Delta region since the discovery of oil has been continuously plundered for the benefit of other less deserving regions of the country till this very day, with no regard whatsoever for the welfare of the communities from which these resources are gotten, and absolutely no care for the impact of these exploration activities on our environment.
The NDC was quite disheartened to learn that the federal government had put in place a Presidential Artisanal Gold Mining Initiative (PAGMI) for artisanal gold miners in the North, after showing total disregard for years of struggle for resource control by the people of the Niger Delta.
Following this development, the NDC issued a statement on the 22nd of July 2020 calling on the federal government to reconsider this wicked move as that will be tantamount to severe injustice to the people of the Niger Delta. Despite several moves made in this regard, the Nigerian government has refused to change its posture on the issue and has continued with this act, showing preference to the North as against the Niger Delta.
Albert Einstein said, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” Sequel to the aforementioned developments and many more which are too numerous to mention, the Niger Delta Congress has deemed it necessary to call for a stakeholders meeting of all ethnic nationalities of the Niger Delta region on Saturday the 15th of May, 2021.
This is to enable us discuss issues relating to the socio-economic and socio-political future of our region and people.
All enquiries should be forwarded to congressnigerdelta@gmail.com
STATEMENT ISSUED BY THE NDC:
ADOKIYE OYAGIRI
(ACTING SPOKESPERSON)
Wednesday 21st April, 2021
