Monarchs Canvass 25% Revenue For N’Delta

The Association of Chris
tian Traditional Rulers of Niger Delta (ACTRUND), has described the region as the least developed and most deprived area in Nigeria.
The national chairman of the Association HRM King Nnamdi Ofoegbu, told newsmen recently in Port Harcourt that the amount of money coming to the region as revenue was not enough to develop the region.
The royal father said that the 13 per cent derivation was like a little drop of water in a mighty ocean, contending that was why the traditional rulers were calling for an upward review of the derivation fund from 13 per cent to 25 per cent.
“The region is the Financial nerve centre of this country, but it is going backward. The traditional rulers are being neglected and things are not working the way it should work,” he said.
He further decried the continuous neglect of traditional rulers in the region both by the state and federal government, stressing that the ancestors were angry and thus had given rise to increasing insecurity in the region.
“The traditional rulers have a work to do to protect the people of the region, but we are not happy the way things are going.”
“Traditionally, the royal fathers are not programmed to leave their domains in search of extra business concern. Today, the policy of the government which has not given the royal fathers and the traditional institutions the power to operate, has necessitated such diversion. “They are not involved in security matters which is why it has been difficult to check crime,” he said.
King Ofoegbu said that the Association was founded in 2004 by God’s command, stressing that part of the objective was to inculcate the culture of prayer as a tonic for the growth of the region as well as revive our youths with positive norms that would enhance their quest for self-reliance and prosperity.
He said periodic prayers and crusade and seminars that would address the yearnings of the people in the nine states, would be held.