Emma Amaize, Samuel Oyadongha, Ola Ajayi, Gabriel Enogholase and Austin Ogwuda
12 September 2008
Niger Delta leaders were sharply divided, yesterday, in their reactions to Tuesday's creation of an exclusive ministry for the region with the militant group, Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), and one-time deputy president of the former Midwest Region, Chief James Otobo, strongly objecting to its establishment.
On the other side of the divide is Ijaw leader, Chief Edwin Clark; retired Justice of the Supreme Court, Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte; Secretary to the Rivers State Government, Mr. Magnus Abe; and Rivers State warlord, Ateke Tom.
Support for the new ministry also came from the opposition Action Congress (AC); prominent lawyer, Chief Richard Akinjide; former Petroleum Resources Minister, Professor Tam David-West; and Second Republic Governor of the old Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa.
MEND calls for caution
MEND in an online statement said: "The people of the region should receive this latest dish with apprehension and not allow the over five decades of starvation to rule our emotions as this is not the first time such "palatable" offers have been served to the region from the late 50's to date.
"Creating a 'Ministry' is not the coming of the much awaited messiah. Nigeria has in existence, ministries over 40 years old which have not positively impacted on the people. It will be yet another avenue for corruption and political favoritism.
"Some examples of moribund ministries include Energy, with its epileptic power supply; Health, with hospitals that have turned to dispensing clinics such that even the president prefers to be treated in Saudi Arabia or Germany; Works and Transport, responsible for the untimely deaths and maiming of road users due to poorly maintained roads and bridges in spite of availability of funds; Education, with the elite losing confidence that their children study in foreign tertiary institutions; Special Duties, with a minister that has been made redundant that he spends his time in office watching television. The list is endless.
"MEND will know the government is sincere when it offers true federalism in all its ramifications which includes resource control. The unconditional release of all detained activists in its custody is another."
Otobo kicks
Chief Otobo reacting in an interview with Vanguard said: "As far as I am concerned, it is like creating an intermediary between the people of the Niger Delta and the Federal Government and that is not what the people of the Niger Delta are asking for.
"As one of those who fought for the independence of this country, I want to say that it is an insult that the Federal Government is creating a Ministry of Niger Delta in 2008 instead of giving us true federalism, which we asked for."
Chief Otobo said the issue at stake in the Niger Delta was not the creation of a Ministry of Niger Delta but allowing true federalism to be practised with the full components of resource control and devolution of powers.
"It is another form of colonisation by the government because they want to perpetually control the Niger Delta and its resources and when the oil is finished, they will leave it helpless and wretched," he said.
The Federal Government, according to him, explained that the one of the ministers in the ministry would take care of infrastructure and the other, youth empowerment, but, he countered the position by positing that the Federal Government had no business in providing infrastructure in the states if true federalism were in place.
His words: "Infrastructure is not the business of the Federal Government but the federating states in a true federal structure, which is what the Niger Delta people want."
He dismissed the ministry as a 'Greek gift' and wondered whether the Federal Government would also create a special ministry for the North-Central, South-West and other zones of the country the way it had done with the Ministry of the Niger Delta.
Welcome devt - Clark
But in a separate interview, Ijaw leader, Chief Clark said: "It is a welcome development. It shows the commitment of President Yar'Adua to his seven-point agenda."
He said Yar'Adua's father was the one appointed when a special ministry was created to develop the Victoria Island in Lagos, in the First Republic, and Nigerians knew what happened then, as well as what the creation of a special ministry for the development of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja has achieved.
Chief Clark said in Britain and some other countries of the world, governments created some special ministries to tackle development problems in certain areas, adding: "That is what the new Ministry of Niger Delta is going to achieve and I am happy about that."
He appealed to the youths and militant groups in the Niger Delta to give the Federal Government a chance to develop the region, now that President Yar'Adua had demonstrated that he wants to turn the region around.
Ayemi-Botu hails
Former National Chairman of the Association of Traditional Rulers of Oil Mineral Producing States of Nigeria (TROMPCON), Pere Charles Ayemi-Botu, hailed President Yar'Adua for creating the Ministry.
Ayemi-Botu, who is also the Paramount Ruler of Seimbiri Kingdom in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State implored the youths of the region to support and encourage Yar'Adua to succeed by laying down their arms and embrace peace.
He said the yearnings and aspirations of the people of the region had been realised following the creation of the ministry, adding that the much_ needed development and empowerment were on the way to the region.
"I am appealing for a ceasefire because it is almost Uhuru, no more hostage taking, no more militancy, no more pipeline vandalism because we must all cooperate with Yar'Adua to succeed. Anybody who engages in criminal act again would be seen as anti-Niger Delta," he added.
Good measure
A PDP chieftain, Chief Okotie-Eboh, said: "It is a very good measure and it shows the sincerity of President Yar'Adua to resolving the Niger Delta crisis. We should give him a chance. This ministry will get allocations like other ministries to tackle the problems of the Niger Delta. t is a good development."
David-West, Akinjide give thumbs-up
Former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Professor Tam David-West and former Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Chief Richard Akinjide (SAN), lauded the creation of the Ministry.
But Chief Akinjide who spoke in Ibadan said in as much as he would appreciate the move by the president, the quality of the person chosen to man the ministry would determine the success of the ministry.
"It is an excellent move in the right direction, but a crucial test is the content of the portfolio of the ministry. The creation of the ministry may not put a final end to the crisis in the region unless the Federal Government does the right thing," he said.
On his part, Professor David-West advised President Yar'Adua not to nominate a Niger Deltan as head of the ministry so that the issue of sentiment and corrupt practices could be taken care of.
His words: "The minister must not come from Niger Delta. The fact that the minister comes from Niger Delta does not mean such person is committed to the cause of the region. If you make a Niger Deltan a minister, he will complicate the issue. He will come with his biases and sentiments.
"So, the president must ensure a good Nigerian outside Niger Delta region is made the minister. The permanent secretary can be from the region but not the accounting officer of the ministry," said the Professor of Virology, adding: "I give kudos to Yar'Adua. Without taking out anything out of his tremendous achievements, what he has done is highly commendable. But it is one thing to create a ministry it is another thing for the ministry to work."
AC hails FG
The opposition Action Congress (AC) hailed the Federal Government for "hearkening to the voice of reason by creating the Niger Delta Ministry to propel a rapid development of the oil region.
In a statement issued in Abuja, its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, however, expressed the need to appoint time-tested individuals to take charge of the ministry, in addition to unveiling a blueprint for the accelerated development of the region.
"A Ministry of Niger Delta that is not staffed by dedicated, committed and time-tested individuals will be nothing but a hollow ritu-
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The creation of the Niger Delta Ministry is an excellent idea as it attempts a novel and creative way of tackling the intractable problems in the Niger Delta. We should give President Yar'Adua the credit and give this new approach a try. We should, however, be careful not to make it a precedent of solving such problems so that we do not, in the future, create a Ministry of the Chad Basin etc. I wish to applaud Prof. Tam David-West for supporting the idea but I also wish to make a brief comment on his idea of not appointing… [Read Full Text]