PDP Chieftain Lists Impendiments To Nigeria’s Growth

The governorship aspirant of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the last governorship primary elections in Rivers state, Nimi Walson-Jack, says incompetent leadership and poor governance remained the key challenges to the exploitation of the country’s full potentials to economic and democratic growth.
Walson-Jack said this yesterday in Port Harcourt, while presenting a paper titled: “Increasing Citizen Engagement In development of Niger Delta region” at Niger Delta Civic Engagement Forum.
According to him, Nigeria ranks poorly on global transparency and corruption indices, stressing that corruption remains significant barriers to Nigeria achieving its development objectives.
He called on both the government and civil society to contribute their required roles to strengthening transparency and accountability for Niger Delta region to develop.
He said, the region would still be facing challenges of even development and democracy if there was no pressure from citizens and civil society against bad leaderships in the country, and the region in particular.
In his remarks, the Chief of Party, Strengthening Advocacy and Civic Engagement (SACE), Mr. Charles Abani, said strengthening advocacy and civil engagement project was the major issue for the forum to discuss.
According to him, the Niger Delta region has the lowest inclusive economic growth despite several policies and programmes of Federal Government, multinational oil and gas companies and development partners to develop the region.
He blamed development institutions in the region like NDDC, OMPADEC and state governments for the underdevelopment and poverty in the area.
Also speaking, Dr. Mabel Ogbanga, a resource person at the forum, said the greatest challenge in the region today was that of human capacity development.
Mrs Ogbanga also said, that unless the right people were elected or appointed to manage the affairs of government, development and democracy of the country would continue to suffer.
She called on Nigerians to play their roles by advocating for transparency and accountability, and not to be compromised by  the governments.