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Ex-Agitators Tackle FG Over East/West Rd, Ogoni Clean-Up
A coalition of ex-militants group, Council for Mass Action in the Niger Delta has accused President Muhammadu Buhari of deliberatly neglecting the Niger Delta region since he came to power, saying it was paying lip service to the Clean-up of Ogoni land in Rivers State.
The group in online statement issued by its spokesman, Godswill Tamuno and tittled ‘A Clarion Call for the Redemption and Salvation of the Niger Delta’ and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, also accused the federal government of not adequately funding the presidential amnesty programme.
While alleging that the incumbent federal administration has not initiated any new project in the oil and gas rich area, the group expressed worry that previous on-going projects such as the East West Road that was nearing completion has been abandoned by the present government.
The council further alleged that over $6.4 billion had been spent on intervention programmes in the North Eastern region of Nigeria and called the attention of the international community and people of the region to ill treatment meted out to the area that produces the wealth of the nation.
The council for Mass Action in the Niger Delta stated that militant groups in the area may be compelled to renege on all previous agreements if the neglect of the region continuous.
The statement reads, “We wish to call the attention of all people of the Niger Delta, the international community and all men of goodwill, to the increasingly poor treatment that the Niger Delta and its people has been receiving from the government of President Muhammadu Buhari since his inauguration as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on May 29, 2015.
”For three whole years and counting, the government of General Muhammadu Buhari, has deliberately launched a campaign to subdue, neglect and abandon the Niger Delta.
“There has been no new project and no new vision for the Niger Delta. In fact, old projects such as the East West Road that was reaching completion stage has been recklessly abandoned.
”Old ongoing programmes such as the Presidential Amnesty Programme has been largely neglected and abandoned.
”Instead, resources from the Niger Delta are being channeled to fund interventionist programmes in North East Nigeria much to the chagrin to former militants and combatant elements in the Niger Delta.
”More than $6.4 billion has been spent on intervention programmes in the North Eastern region of Nigeria. A $2 billion Refinery project is being planned for the border town of Mashi in President Buhari’s home state of Katsina. The refinery project will also include a multi-billion dollar pipeline that will run from Katsina state to Niger Republic.
”It does not matter that the old Kaduna refinery, which was built for billions of naira sourced from the Niger Delta has today failed. Also a multi-billion dollar railway line is also being planned to run from Daura, President Buhari’s home town to Maradi in Niger State through the Nigerian – Nigerien border town of Jibia, among others. Yet, the same Federal Government continues to complain of lack of funds to prosecute the Clean-Up of Ogoni land and complete the East West Road.
”Should we therefore assume that because the people of the Niger Delta have chosen the path of dialogue and peace, the Buhari regime has turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to the development of the Niger Delta region?
”The Presidential Amnesty Programme, which was designed to cater for former agitating elements in the Niger Delta, has been completely abandoned with funding almost completely stopped. Should our people therefore reject the Amnesty Programme and declare an end to the truce with the Nigerian state?
The statement further said the continued neglect of the region has resulted in increased insecurity there and a rise in the establishment of illegal oil refineries with an attendant increase in environmental pollution.
”There is continued increased in poverty, pain, hardship and squalor. Communities who produce oil and gas are even worse hit. We therefore call on all groups in the Niger Delta to rise up to the new challenge. If the Presidential Amnesty Programme cannot be properly funded and catered for, then our people will reject it and all former combatants will renege on all existing agreements.
”If the resources of the Niger Delta cannot be used to improve the quality of life of our people, then there will be no need for fight for peace in the Niger Delta. It will amount to full blown debauchery if we sit back and allow the exploitation of the Niger Delta to continue while our people are given a cold shoulder by the Buhari government.
”The time has come for all men of goodwill to return to the drawing board. It is time to redeem, rescue and salvage the Niger Delta. We call on all former agitating groups in the Niger Delta to come together and chart a new way forward,” the statement reads.
By: Denis Nnku.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.