The Buhari administration is promoting a new way of thinking and engagement that will secure the development of the Niger Delta and the entire country, according to Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.
That new approach, which he restated as the New Vision, according to him involves an active and effective collaboration between the government, the private sector and the communities. This approach he stated ensures that “we finish whatever we start.”
Prof. Osinbajo spoke earlier today while meeting with members of a delegation from Bayelsa State regarding the $3.6B Brass Fertilizer & Petro-Chemical Company that is expected to come on steam soon. The delegation which included executives of the company was led by Governor Seriake Dickson.
He lamented that only 12% completion rate was recorded in many projects undertaken by the Niger Delta Development Commission in the past years, while the rest were abandoned
Osinbajo said: “sometimes projects are designed not to succeed, but just for some people to make money.”
He however noted that “a new way of thinking is emerging,” pointing to effective collaboration with the private sector and citing the example of the NLNG as one instance of such effective collaborations.
“The Buhari administration, this government is committed to finishing whatever we start. At the end of the day, we shall ensure that,” he affirmed, adding that the oil-producing communities have tremendous potentials.
While commending the Bayelsa State Governor for his proactive efforts, the Acting President commended the collaboration that is ongoing regarding the Brass company. Said he: “this is what we describe as the New Vision: partnership between the Federal Government, the States, the communities and the private sector. This is the new way of thinking that is emerging, the New Vision.”
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu described the idea of the Brass Fertilizer & Petro-Chemical firm as “a game changer that we need to encourage, “ adding that such ideas have the potential to change the economic model in the Niger Delta.
The Acting President also received a delegation from the Seed Entrepreneurs Association of Nigeria, SEEDAN led by its President Mr. Richard Olafare and the Director-General of the National Agricultural Seed Council, Dr. P.O.Ojo.
In his remarks, Prof. Osinbajo assured the delegation that the Federal Government would do much more in the area of Agriculture, stressing that fertilizer and seed inputs are vital for the “agricultural revolution” that the Buhari administration is delivering.
He told members of the association, “your visit and contributions are very important to us. The President has said we must grow what we eat. We must be able to grow everything we eat. This is very important to us, we are very committed to food security. It is important to hear your views as we shape policy.”
Buhari’s Uncomfortable Relationship with The Niger Delta
The Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government has struggled with relations with the people of the South South, the home of the Niger Delta, the owners of the oil and gas resources in the country.
President Buhari cast the tone for his relationship with the troubled oil region when a few weeks after his inauguration on May 29, 2015 he said that areas that gave him 5% votes (the South East and the South South), should not expected to be treated the same as areas that gave him 97% of the votes (North East and North West).
He has followed through his policy of marginalisation by attacking leaders – political, business, and traditional – from the Niger Delta. One of his early presidential orders was that the stipends to former Niger Delta militants who were under the Amnesty Programme be stopped.
Traditional rulers from the region have been hounded and harassed, their homes and shrines ransacked by agents of the country’s secret police. Soldiers have arrested a traditional ruler in Ogoniland.
The first president of Nigeria from the Niger Delta, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, has been unfairly attacked by the Buhari regime in several forms under the guise of “anti-corruption” war. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has illegally clamped down on the bank accounts of former first lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, and those of leading businessmen and women from the region.
Because of the president’s anti-Niger Delta posture and policies, there has been a renewed restiveness in the region. The leading militant group in the region, the Niger Delta Avengers, successfully cut the oil production in the country from 2.2 million barrels a day to less than 600,000 barrels a day following a chain of attacks on oil installations.
