 The South-South Senators disagree with moves to include Lagos or Gung. Balchi in the Niger Delta Development Commission and over-centralization of power-breeding agitation Southern Governors tell President Mohamed Abu Hari, for this is cross-politics. I am Mary Anna Fong. South-South geopolitical zone have kicked against moves by the Senate to include Lagos or Gung. And Balchi, even other states that have attained status of all producing states into the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC. Now the amendment to the NDDC Act was sponsored by Senator Olami Lekon at Deola of the APC in Lagos West. Now Deputy President of the Senate, Ovié Omoagége of the APC in Delta Central, Matthew Uroguide of the PDP de Dos Souths and George Sekibor in the PDP Rivers East, disagreed stating that the NDDC was created to address environmental degradation caused by all exploration in the region. Now Omoagége went on to tell Adiola to intensify efforts for the creation of Southwest Development Commission. However, despite the opposition to the proposed amendments, the bill still scaled its second reading. Well joining us to discuss this is Ken Robinson. He is a National Publicity Secretary of PANDEF. We have Barituka Longhe. He is the Chairman of Coalition of Rivers, Oil and Gas Hosts Communities. Thank you very much, gentlemen, for joining us. I'm sure you can hear me. Again, it's a pleasure. Great. Thank you very much. I'm glad to be on your program this evening. I'm going to start with you, Mr. Robinson. Just as Senator Ovié Omoagége had mentioned, the NDDC's sole mandate, when we look at, you know, when it was created and the purpose for which it was created, the sole mandate of the NDDC is to develop the oil-rich Niger Delta region. And of course, it goes ahead to talk about developing the young people in those areas, addressing the oil spills and of course, making sure that the host communities have access to better amenities. Even though if we go into, you know, what the NDDC has done over the years, we don't know if they have really addressed that issue. But now, bringing in Lagos and other states that may not necessarily be part of the Niger Delta into the NDDC, I'm trying to understand how that works. It's ridiculous. We gradually begin to see a situation where our national legislators are becoming legislators of Anaki. A few weeks or months ago, we got to know about an attempt by 59 status, I mean, out of reprimand from the northern part of the country, trying to put in the bill to delete section 2, and subsection 2, section 162 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Now, we are seeing the signature from South Wales, the prison that Baishi could be and legal state and other states, perhaps Annabelle state and perhaps even Benwood state, anywhere oil is found, should be added to the NDDC commission. It's ridiculous. And it makes no sense of who we are and what we stand for. And we commend the senators of South South, particularly the deputy senate president, Senator Joseph Boe and the other senator, for standing firmly against that, that of motions and taxation of being. It is an attempt to continue to take for granted the people of the Niger Delta region. The NDDC was specifically created to address issues of degradation, issues of environmental pollution, issues of poverty in the Niger Delta. When oil has been driven and extracted from our backyards and making billionaires and multi-millennials across Nigeria, except in the Niger Delta, and they thought that something should be created to address the social, economic and infrastructure decay in the area. And of course, whether that has been done over the past 21 years or there about is a different discussion altogether. But it's provocative that somebody would get up to say that could this state should be added to the Niger Delta? Niger Delta has a definite definition where Nigeria Delta is. In fact, the truth is that ongoing, Abia and Emo, we are even added to the Niger Delta development commission for political reasons that we know. And perhaps they want to play further politics with it. Let's let them argue of Nigeria to become Niger Delta. That would be interesting. I'm curious because the name and the people or the communities that are now included, just as you mentioned, the Niger Delta, if we look at the map, obviously is the states in that, the Delta part of Nigeria, which is Delta states, rivers. I mean, I don't have to call the names of those states. But if it's a development commission of that region, and then we have other regions because of the status that they have acquired or attained as all producing communities, shouldn't we be having maybe something else created for the all producing states of the country? I'm curious because, I mean, we have the PIB and some of the things that have been kicked against in the PIB were still asking for certain amendments. If this should be something that they're pushing for, shouldn't we be pushing for an all producing states development commission of sorts instead of the Niger Delta the development commission? Again, could there be something that the NDDC is doing right, hence all these states seeking to be part of it? Maybe the NDDC is doing something right. The NDDC has been a cash cow. And what the senator from the Southwest is with due respect, is doing is to broaden the national market. The NDDC has served the world of Nigeria. More persons from outside the Niger Delta benefited from contracts in the NDDC than even the Niger Delta people. Most of the contracts the Niger Delta people get are clearing of water extent in waterways and those people get up to 100 million, 15 million, 120 million. The bulk of the jobs go to people outside the Niger Delta. And most of the Niger Delta people serve as funds for those persons. And it's unfortunate that we will continue to have persons who will play those obnoxious dreams for other Nigerians. But the fact of the matter is that your curiosity is right. People should be talking about higher morale, perhaps reducing areas in the development commission. Maybe they want us to go back to our party. But the Niger Delta people will perhaps be pushed to ask for a separate development commission for the Niger Delta. Don't forget that four states in the Niger Delta are by El Sa Delta reverse and acquired of state. Produce about 40, 90 percent, I beg your pardon, about 90 percent of the crude oil extractions, oil and gas extractions of Nigeria. We account for that number. When we see people who produce 0.00 percent or 0.1 percent begin to claim that they're also oil producing states. The other question that Senegal Magigal and the other outlets in which it was brought up was these states are listing. Are they actually producing command in commercial quantity? Are they adding to the federation account resources coming from those states adding to the federation account? If so, then they can benefit from the technique of state derivation based on resources produced from their states. But to say that this included in NDDC is an insult. And I'm sure that the Niger Delta people are deliberately being pushed to the world and they want us to act as history or with that issue. Let me come to you Tuka. Tuka, you represent these oil producing host communities. And just as Mr. Robinson says that it's an insult, I'm trying to get what your take is on this issue. I know that we're still dealing with the issue of high prep and the Ogoni cleanup. And it's not just Ogoni that's dealing with issues of oil spills and environmental degradation. The world today is talking about the environmental hazards that climate change has cost. And yet, we're talking about the politics of oil producing communities. Now, could they also have a case? Because some of them made cases about the fact that, for example, Gombe is fast becoming a host community. Bauchi and some other states are also gradually becoming oil communities or host communities for oil companies. But there are also those who say that the issue of the 13% derivation might be one of the things that is attracting these other states into the NDDC. What's your take? Okay, thank you very much. Quite unfortunate that I got this information very late. But considering the timing I had to switch into action and see how I can contribute my quarter and give the position of my own coalition on this issue. See, talking about you, I heard you made mention about the Ogoni cleanup and high prep and the rest of it. See, what we should also know is that these very government has made no pretensions about their own interests when it comes to issues that concerns the people of the Niger Delta. It has been very clear. Now, it created the cases of bureaucracy where you have a minister, a board of trustee, governing council or struggling for the control of high prep handling the sensitive cleanup like you're going to clean up. So at what point that this cleanup can be too popularly handled when all these two interest groups are trying to be in charge of a very sensitive scientific project like this? That is that. Now, on the issues of including Ogoni, Lagos and Bauchi as oil producing in Nigeria, there is a clear manipulations right from the time of the PII. I remember I did a presentation when the South Coast couples about a representative met in New York and I did a presentation on that issue. Nigeria is an oil producing country today because we produce oil, not post-community. They started to do the definition of this oil producing and post-community trying to conflict and cause this confusion. Now, they make us believe that we are just close that this pipe is just passing through that we are just close to an oil coming from somewhere that we are just close. But when we come to solid minerals, they make it very clear in the solid minerals 2007 and 2007 as amended that solid minerals belongs to the corner of the land and they make no pretensions about this thing. So why would the case of oil be different? Now, you're telling us we have not East Development Commission. Bauchi is in the North, Ogoni is in the West, Lagos is in the West. So what stops them from adding those people to Ogoni? South is not East Development Commission. Why the Niger Delta? If they don't have ill intentions... Well, the North East Development Commission does not necessarily produce oil, does it? We don't know about that. The reason why NDRC was created, like my comment in this video on the program stated, NDRC was created to address politically the issues that concern environmental concerns and the over-years of degradation of the peoples of the Niger Delta. So many communities can no longer have potable drinks in water to drink. They claim what they are doing in Ogoni today. It was stated in the reports that gave back to that cleanup that the two points is okay in Ogoni in LME drinks 900% above the WHO standard that human being can consume that they should provide alternative source of livelihood. That was included in an emergency measures. Optimal, nothing has been done and over $360 million has been released so far for that project. And nothing to ensure that something like that is going on and more, you're including people from Bauchi what do they know about the agitations and the sufferings of the people from the Niger Delta. Did I see these things as just PM, grandstander and political topinism? What they are trying to do is to make us feel because some set of people in the country feel they have the political will. They take the advantage to surprise the people of the few that the people of the Niger Delta do not have the political will to address those issues or to challenge these things they are doing. They did that in the case of the PIB that it was horribly passed and they feel that they can just do these things and go away with it. But these are more people with you who wish can do is to embark on a mass action where we will resist these things totally in all totality because the issues of... Sorry, you raised a concern. I just wanted to quickly put it in. You raised the issues of the fact that the NDDC and I think Mr Robinson raised it too. I just want to quickly put it in. Now that we're talking about the NDDC and what it's been created for has the NDDC been able to in the many years that it has been created I think it was created in 2000 if I'm not mistaken and in 2021 how many issues as related to the reason why the NDDC was created has the NDDC been able to address in the Niger Delta and I'm talking about everything holistically whether it's be the young people in those host communities whether it be environmental degradation has the NDDC been able to do anything? On this issue, on this issue the NDDC it has to show you the ill intention that the reason the NDDC was created was to address holistically the issues of environmental issues and the developmental issues of the people of the Niger Delta but as you and I can see it is the common knowledge that the NDDC is now a pure political petrolmage where they give this thing they put people look at the case of that you have an administrator which is purely illegal it is not known by law you have is a pure political petrolmage where some people in power field they will put their own persons in fact there are certain amount of control being awarded in NDDC that you don't do in here at the office if you thought I call it's been done in Abuja so at what point do our people participate at what point do you say you did this to affect our people? But what has been what has been because it's one thing to complain about an issue it's another thing to act and push for those who have the power to act on an issue to act on it what has the what have the people in the Niger Delta done I mean if you do not see that a particular parastatal because the NDDC is now a parastatal under the ministry of Niger Delta okay if the NDDC has not been fulfilling its duties so far what have the Niger Delta people done about it other than going there to look for a job or handouts? Okay you know you know what they do is that they take advantage of the the security of our people that if I call these people and give them some money these people will be quiet and that's but the people take the money don't they take the money if you if you feel aggrieved about how things are going and you know that those things one way or the other at the end of the day will have a detrimental effect on your people and your environment you shouldn't be taking those monies that you're saying allegedly are being given to you to keep quiet one thing you should understand is the act clearly states that the supervision the direct activities in NDDC is under the direct supervision of the president So our people don't have the powers over NDDC that's one thing you should know the act clearly states that is under the direct subscriptions of the president so whatever happens in the NDDC is under the direct supervision of the president so our people cannot be completely blamed the president should be blamed and the President should be blamed because the NDDC under the arrest provision of the president. Interesting. Mr. Robinson, here, this is where you come in. PANDEF obviously is a body that is non-nation-wide and you have advocated for so many things and pushed for so many things. You've sat on boards and committees. All of these things and the allegations about the fact that the NDDC is not doing its job, it's become a cash cow. Like I said, complaining is one thing. Pushing for a change to take place is another. And I did mention at the beginning, the Niger Delta is bedeviled by all kinds of environmental degradation. I mean, talk less of what's happening in Oguni land. It's almost everywhere in the Niger Delta, especially these host communities. What can be done, apart from the politics of all of this, the fact that whether we like the people that have been imposed on us or not, if you're not getting the dividends of the NDDC, should it be scrapped? Should you advocate for a change in the modus operandi for the betterment of the Niger Delta people? Or are you just gonna keep quiet and hope that some miracle happens? The truth of the matter is that NDDC, as Pari Kuta said, faces a ministry or an agency of the federal government under the direct position of the president of the federal republic of Nigeria. Today, he has delegated those powers to the minister of Niger Delta first. We see a drama that has played out in the last two, three years or so. Now, the Niger Delta people are underprivileged in the Nigerian state. Go ahead, Mr. Robinson. Oh, I think that we have lost that connection with Robinson. But Ken Robinson is of Pandef, and let's quickly see if we can get Tuka. Tuka, are you still there? Tuka, are you still there? Well, we apologize for that disconnection. Ken Robinson is of Pandef, and Tuka is of the all-producing-communities coalition, thanking them for being part of this conversation. We'll have to take a quick break. And when we come back, southern governors blame the president over the centralization of power in the federal government. And they're saying, this is the cost of agitations across the country. We'll talk more after this break.