By Samuel Akpobome Orovwuje
The great hopes of a leap forward to a new era that came with the appointments of two Niger Delta sons to head the Ministry of the Niger Delta have now been dispelled. The anticipated prosperity and authenticdevelopment that is being expected after the forensicaudit by President Mohammadu Buhari has still not materialized. The continuing politics of the government to deal with the challenges of winning the peace in the area and the overbearing influence of Abuja spoilers and local overlords raises new apprehension for the region.
Karl Maier in his smash hit book titled: This House Has Fallen: Crisis in Nigeria, reminds me of the tall order before the overexcited Minister of The Niger- Delta, the twosome of the Deputy Minister (Minister of State), the interim board of the NDDC and its waifs and strays brother – Office of the Special Adviser to The President on the Niger Delta to the delicatedevelopmental challenges of a region enmeshed inpolitics of similar story with different song and often described as The ‘paradox of plenty’ and ‘resource curse’ and the lives of bondage for Deltans.
Indeed, for over 60 years of oil and gas exploration, theNiger – Delta landscape is littered, with troubles of underdevelopment, environmental injustice, poor infrastructure, contract scam and corruption, lives of bondage, and existential wealth without good reputation and life continues to be hard for the vast majority of people and political competition is intense due to limited economic opportunity within the region.
How then can we drive development and progress in the midst of the high and soft power political bickering?
Undeniably, the Niger- Delta is well-known for reaching political settlements under duress, teeteringover the abyss and then pulling back to strike individual deals. Are the new appointments of the Niger- Delta sons to drive the ministry another instance of old – style political space to hoodwink the people? However, some campaigners and critics agree that it is a sweet- smelling savor and an important step forward to diffuse tensions and set the stage for futuredevelopment.
As laudable as the forensic audit and the call for a new board appears, the key questions remains: Does the government at the centre and the ministry of the Niger –Delta have the budgetary strength and indeed thecapability to resolve the fundamental issues of oil exploration and exploitation that drove the region into over six decades of under–development, environmental degradation? Does the delay in constituting a new board and unearthing the vague and over- invoiced contract through the nebulous forensic audit signal the beginnings of the fulfillment of hope and promise of dividends of democracy in the Niger Delta?
Indeed, it is perhaps too early to say. Fulfilling economic and social justice of equality will likely prove most challenging. In my view, the promise of development for the Niger- Delta remains largely aspirational where deep social inequalities and inequities persist. While the Ministry of the Niger – Delta is conceived as part of a bridge – building process to leapfrog the region away from the deeply divided past to a future founded on sustainable developmentand progress. Nevertheless, its operationalisation and reality on the ground is still mirage.
Crucially, the Niger- Delta serves as a host community to Nigeria’s vast oil and gas infrastructure of over 30 oil fields, 5,284 wells, and 7,000 kilometers of pipeline, 10 export terminals, 275 flow stations, 10 gas plants, 4 leprous refineries and a massive liquefied natural gas, LPG sector. This perhaps underscores the strategic importance of the region to national development.
The political sociology of the Niger delta region has often been read, as an inevitable outcome of traditionally warring people or portrayed as militants, agitators, extremists, secessionists, and more recently economic terrorist and criminal groups in disagreement with the Nigerian State. The Niger Delta struggle initially tried to address its grievances through constitutional and political means. However, the killing of the Ogoni 13 and the hanging of Ken Saro-Wiwa bythe treacherous military regime of Sanni Abacha, the government failed to pacify majority of Niger Deltans, and instead a feeling of disillusionment and lack of trust in the political leadership grew and the resultant effect is mutual suspicions.
Frankly, no dialogue on the development of the region is complete without adequate consideration of security, political economy, strategy, energy, resources justice,and community – to – community development, citizen’s partnership and transparent governance architecture and above all, inclusive platforms and investment in thought- leadership beyond the divide – and – rule politics of the oligarchic centre. The demands placed on the oil wealth of the region have been associated with repression and suffering particularly from the clientelistic mechanisms of the buccaneers in government and their opaque collaborators.
The proposal going forward is the core issues of authentic reconciliation of the leadership and the political standoff by the federal government in line with international practice of conflict management with a view to avoiding further collateral damage andbreach of peace and underdevelopment in the region.
For an understanding of the developmental challenge and indeed the forensic audit politics versus the issues of a new board for the NDDC, it is useful to start with July 30 1958, the Willinks Commission report of the British Colonial administration, which inquire into the fears of Nigerian minorities with a view to assuaging them. One of the major recommendations of Sir Henry Willink Commission amongst others includes, ‘We suggest that constitutionally it would be necessary to place on concurrent list a new subject which might be ‘The Development of Special Areas’. It would be open to the Federal Government to announce in the Gazette that certain area has classified as Special and from that moment, special plan for its development would become a Federal as well as a Regional responsibility….’
Therefore, it is imperative on the part of Mr. President and other critical stakeholders to put in place a conflict resolution mechanism that necessitates all options including making the forensic audit report publicwithout undue political colourations and the overbearing negative elite sentiment. A facility tour of the nine states by Mr. President will provide a firsthand knowledge of the issues and developmental challenges of the region.
Pointedly, the real strategic options in addition to the forensic by the federal government should be a sustained peace process, which should be done to accommodate the demand for social-economic justice particularly through the mechanism of deliberate development plan and projects of the region in a holistic manner.
Interestingly, the intervention agencies like the NDDClook good in the short run; nonetheless, it is expedienton the state and the federal government to draw critical lessons from other parts of the world where institutionalised community development fund for priority projects is the practice and norm. The Alaska (USA) Permanent Trust is one of the oldest natural resource funds. Established in 1976, it has grown to 25 billion US dollar with direct citizens’ engagement and consultation, each year they receive dividends. The system ensures that the Government does not misuse the oil wealth.
Furthermore, the Nunavut Trust in Canada established in 1993 is another best practice that runs independently of any government and it is a community – based managed fund on how revenues can be shared, and how communities are compensated for negative consequences of oil exploration and exploitation and on other hand, the United Arab Emirate(UAE), which is the fourth largest producer of oil in the Organization Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) with an estimate reserves of 98 billion barrels, put in place a twenty –year diversification plan with an allocation of 24 billion US dollar to develop the non – oil revenue to achieving regional economic comparative advantage and reducing the dependence on hydrocarbons and to boost private sector initiative for development.
The NDDC and the ministry of the Niger Delta in my view are political sedative. These agencies of government have failed to incorporate the interests andaspirations of the people. Moreover, there has been no development dividend for the communities, high levels of unemployment prevalent especially among youth and women and remain mired in multidimensional poverty, without proper housing.
Finally, it is hoped that the faithful implementation of the forensic audit report and a new board devoid of further acrimony will be a sweet-smelling savour for healing broken minds and a foundation stone for restorative justice and authentic reconciliation mechanism for the Niger Delta. In addition, the implementation of the Niger Delta master plan and closer integration into the national development plans and goals, not least to help improve social protection programmes and address unemployment and a legislative framework is urgently needed to enforce socio- economic rights, beyond the NDDC and the Ministry of the Niger Delta political soporific.
Orovwuje is the founder, Humanitarian care for Displaced Persons, Lagos. Nigeria.