The Secretary of the Western Zone of the Ijaw Youth Congress(IYC)Omaghomi Olu-Derimon
, while briefing the press in Benin City, Edo State on Tuesday said the
appointment of a substantive board of the NDDC is long overdue, and that the people of the Niger Delta are expecting President Buhari to do the needful.
“We want to inform the President, Muhammadu Buhari to do the needful, it is for the good of the Niger Delta people that we get a substantive board, it is appalling that the Presidential Amnesty Programme is overseen by an interim Board, the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC) is also overseen by an interim board. We are passionately appealing to our President to appoint a substantive board.
“One very bad thing is the distribution of NDDC projects. If you go to Delta, Edo, or Ondo States, you will see NDDC projects, but you will not see NDDC projects where the wealth is coming from, we are appealing to them to include those communities that produce oil while distributing the projects. If not, we will be forced to shut the NDDC, if this abnormality is not corrected, we will shut the NDDC. They arerobbing Peter to pay Paul. The fund is made to develop the areas that produce oil. When they are giving appointments they don’t consider people from that oil-producing communities.”
He also appealed to the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki to include the Ijaw people in the governance of Edo State, saying that the Ijaw Youth Congress is only asking that the Ijaws be given a political appointments as commissioners in Edo State, as they are part of the state.
“We appeal to the Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki to include the Ijaw people in the governance of Edo State, Ijaw Youth Congress is only asking that the Ijaws be given their due position.
“In EDOSPADEC, unlike in DESOPADEC where every oil-producing community is represented on the board. We want the Edo state governor to review the law that guides the constitution of EDOSPADEC. We in Gelegele have been producing oil for the past twenty years, yet nobody has considered us for political appointment.
“The Edo State House of Assembly should sit down and review the Constitution and includes everybody. When there is inclusiveness, agitations will cease.”
He said the IYC, is going to profile all oil companies operating in the three states of the Western Zone(Edo, Delta, and Ondo states to find out how many people they have empowered. “We want to find out how far they have carried out their corporate responsibility.”
