PANDEF Chief Tasks FG On 16-Point Agenda

The Federal Government has been called upon  to implement the 16-point agneda presented by the Pan Niger Delta Elders Forum (PANDEF).
Taking the stance,while speaking at a public event in Port Harcourt, last Tuesday, a member of PANDEF, Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe, lamented that some persons in the country were playing politics with the development of the Niger Delta region.
“It does not take the government a long time to see how they would develop the North East, and nobody is quarrelling with that because they are Nigerians and it is their right”, he said.
He emphasised that Niger Deltans also have the right for their problems to be addressed.
Sara-Igbe alleged that the National Assembly members do not allow the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) projects to be given to qualified contractors.
According to him, the lawmakers would rather grab such contracts, collect mobilization and yet nothing comes out of it.
The PANDEF chieftain maintained that, the forum owes it as a duty to the people to hold all tiers of government accountable.
“The whole of the Niger Delta region put together can not come up under one of the 100 economies in Africa”, he said.
He emphasized, that the focus should be on how to develop the region in a manner that would improve the economy of the Niger Delta region and create employment, drive and boost the economy as well as create a sense of belonging.
“Under focus, is how to reposition the Niger Delta in such a manner that our economy will improve, in such a manner that we will create employment and drive infrastructure.
“We will boost the economy so that the Nigerian State will not see us only as Niger Delta, but see it as the industrial hub of the country.”