Group Demands State Of Emergency On N’Delta

A group known as Patriotic Forum of Niger Delta (PAFOND), has urged the Federal Government to declare  a state of emergency on the development of the Niger Delta  to address the age-long development neglect in the area.
The group said the people of the Niger Delta should be fully mobilised through the right incentives to participate in functional economic activities that will enhance the economic livelihood of the citizenry.
The group, in a statement made available to The Tide, also called on the Federal Government and other stakeholders to put a check on the activities of multinationals operating  in the Niger Delta and make them to operate according to international standards.
The statement commended President Muhammadu Buhari over his plans to reposition the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to live up to its statutory mandate of developing the Niger Delta region.
The statement which was signed by the National chairman of the forum, Comrade Owo Udoh and National Secretary, Comrade Daniel Wilson, stated that the Niger Delta had continued to suffer development neglect despite its huge contributions to the nation’s economy.
The forum urged the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, to commence the construction of roads in the Niger Delta and embark on other projects that will create meaningful impact on the lives of the people.
The group also called on other Niger Delta indigenes serving in the present Federal Executive Council, particularly the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, to attract developmental projects to the region.
The group which expressed regrets over the, “infrastructural decay” in the Niger Delta said development potentials in the oil rich region can be properly harnessed if the budgetary allocations for the development of the region are not diverted into personal coffers.

By: Taneh Beemene