Niger Delta
Bayelsa Wants Budgets To Address Basic Needs
Participants at a one-day town hall meeting in Yenagoa agreed that Bayelsa State Government should address the basic necessities of life which include shelter, education, health, agriculture and electricity.
The meeting which was organised by a civil society organisation called Niger Delta Citizens and Budget Platform (NDCBP) was at the instance of reviewing Bayelsa State budget of N161.2billion for 2011 and the need for the state government to implement rights-based budgets with priority on education and health sectors.
The stakeholders, after an analysis of the state budget for the 2011 fiscal year, were unanimous that capital projects allocations of N6.4billion (2.5 percent) and N3.9billion (1.9 percent) to the education and health sectors from the overall budget were too meagre for the realisation of government’s objectives for the sectors.
The participants regretted that agriculture was not allocated any capital funds even when the state government expressed its interest in diversifying its economy.
They equally observed that contrary to frequent denials that Bayelsa did not operate security vote, the 2011 budget, under ‘Overhead Costs’,provided for ‘General Security’ and ‘Security and Government House Operations’totalling N5.7billion without specific details.
The analysis also showed that general overhead costs gulped a whopping N30.3billion with Government House alone getting N10.6billion, being a sharp rise of nearly 100 percent from N5.6billion allocated in 2010.
Among others, that items listed under ‘General Administration received 28 percent of the 2011 recurrent expenditure and 17 percent of the capital expenditures, which the participants pointed out was at the expense of key sectors of education and health.
The participants noted that while the education sector recorded reduced allocation of N5billion between 2009 and 2011 with share of 4 percent in 2011, the health sector recorded geometrical reduction of not less than N600million each year during the period with 2 percent in 2011.
In his presentation titled, “A Human Rights Perspective to the Analyses of the 2011 Budgets of 5 Niger Delta States”, co-ordinator of NDCBP, Ken Henshaw, said government has constitutional obligations to work towards the fundamental rights of citizens “especially under the directive principles of state policy”.
Henshaw, who decried government officials’ interpretation of directive principles of state policy as “prescriptive”, argued that besides the 1999 constitution, Nigeria had ratified other international conventions such as United Nations Declaration on Human Rights, the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights and the International Convention on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which obligated it to ensure rights of citizens to quality education and health care.
“The budget is a fundamental tool with which a government can realise its rights commitment to citizens. These rights and obligation of governments are sometimes enshrined in the constitution as fundamental human rights, but most times as directive principles of state policy”, Henshaw emphasised.
Henshaw stated that Bayelsa had no reason to remain an educationally less developed state with poor access to health care at all levels.
In his remark, country representative of New York-based Revenue Watch Institute (RWI), sponsors of the budget monitoring and evaluation in the Niger Delta states, Dauda Garuba, called for synergy between civil society groups and citizens to make government accountable.
Garuba expressed the hope that the move by Governor Seriake Dickson’s administration to run a transparent government would be sustained while ensuring proper implementation of yearly budgets.
History was made on Wednesday 17th June, 2026 when the Okey Onuchuku Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies building was handed over to Ignatius Ajuru University of Education (IAUE).
Speaking during the hand over ceremony, which attracted an array of personalities from various works of life, the 13th Pro-Chancellor and Governing Council Chairman of IAUE, Chief Chinyere Igwe, commended the Vice Chancellor of IAUE, Professor Okechuku Onuchuku, for giving back to the University with the institute’s building project.
While affirming that Government cannot do it all, he encouraged individuals, corporate organizations, institutional partners to ensure the growth of University education in Nigeria.
He praised Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) for sustaining University Education in Nigeria, and called for good initiatives and support “that will not only benefit the University, but put IAUE on the map of academic excellence in Nigeria and beyond.”
Earlier, the Vice Chancellor, Professor Onuchuku, expressed gratitude to his wife, Mrs. Chika Onuchuku, and family for all the support given for the vision achieved.
He also thanked his close associates, political friends, well-wishers, and others who donated generously towards the building project.
“The growth of Universities all over the world”, Professor Onuchuku said, “comes from personal efforts of individuals, alumni associations and others.”
He noted that donations as being witnessed is the best way to go and called on all to invest in the Nigerian education system and immortalize their names with worthwhile donations and contributions..
The Okey Onuchuku Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies building, he further stated, “is donated as a Professorial Chair with the Dean of Postgraduate School, Professor Chibuzor Chile Nwobueze, also a Professor of Peace Studies, as the occupant of the Professorial Chair.
Giving his address, the Director, Okey Onuchuku Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, Professor Kingdom Elendu Ohia Nwaenyi, lauded Professor Okechuku Onuchuku for sacrificing his hard earned salaries, allowances and funds raised from two volumes of textbooks in his honour and titled “Perspectives on Nigeria’s Development”, launched on his 60th birthday.
He noted that the project is the first legacy to be accomplished by any serving Vice Chancellor in the institution.
Professor Nwaenyi stated that the Institute mounted five programmes: Peace and Conflict Studies; Peace Building and Development; Peace Building and Security Studies; Peace Building and Conflict Management; and Peace Education.
The institute, he explained, has birthed over fifty students running programmes in Postgraduate Diploma, M.A, M.Sc, M. Phil, and PhD.
Thirty students are in the PhD programme, fifteen are admitted into the Masters and M.Phil, and eight in Postgraduate Diploma Programme.
He expressed hoped that the Institute would check litigation and provide alternative dispute resolution.
In a vote of thanks, the Chairman, Okey Onuchuku Peace and Conflict Studies and Dean of Postgraduate School, Professor Chibuzor Chile Nwobueze, thanked God for His grace and enablement.
He prayed for the donor and Vice Chancellor of IAUE, Professor Okechuku Onuchuku, and further expressed his gratitude to Professor Isaac Olawale Albert, the third most cited Peace Scholar in the world, for his collaboration in developing a world class curriculum.
While thanking all who supported and celebrated with the University in this regard, Professor Nwobueze assured the public that the Okey Onuchuku institute of Peace and Conflict Studies will emerge as a centre of excellence, contributing meaningfully to scholarship, policy formulation, community engagement and the promotion of peaceful coexistence within Nigeria, Africa and the global Community.
The Institute, he stated, is willing to partner with the Society for Peace Studies and Practice (SPSP) in line with its mandate to promote peace studies, Peace building, Conflict Management and sustainable development.
The institute has over four lecture halls with sixty to one hundred and twenty capacity, a befitting conference hall, offices for staff and a library.
A donation of one million naira was made during the event for the best two graduating students of the institute by Barrister Nyema Wagbara, the Leader of Dynamic Development Club of Port Harcourt based in Rumuolumeni.
Each of the two best graduating students will get the sum of five hundred thousand naira.
The event featured goodwill messages from Professor Isaac Albert, Professor Alwell Nteegah, the Chairman of Society for Peace Studies and Practice, Rivers State Chapter, Dr. Benjamin Ibietonye.
Dr. Emem Nyewene presented the goodwill message of the Society for Peace Studies and Practice National.
Others who gave goodwill messages are Ambassador Green Isaac, the Country Director, Relief International Africa, and Comrade Levi Zachariah George, Chairman Postgraduate Students Association.
The event also featured rendition for Professor Okechuku Onuchuku by Dr Maria Abidiak.
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