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Ben Dunno, Warri
Indigenes of over 26 communities spread across three (3) Oil Producing Council areas of Ughelli South, Ughelli North and Udu, that made up OML34, have expressed concern over alleged gross neglect of their areas by Delta state government and its interventionist agency, Delta state Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC)
Reacting under the aegis ofOML34 GMoU Community Development Board (CDB), in a statement made available to newsmen in Warri, yesterday, the indigene specifically indicted the Commissioner representing their communities on DESOPADEC board, Chief Vincent Ogheneruemu Oyibode, of alleged insensitivity to the growth of their areas.
The body also berated Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, for not placing priority on the development of oil bearing communities in the state and leaving the people on whose land the state government made chunk of its revenue to remain backward in terms of little or no social amenities commensurate to what they contribute to state coffers.
In the statement titled; “Reckless Abandonment of Our Community by Gov. Okowa and His Agents”, the body noted that it had become necessary for it to cry out on behalf of the people in the various communities under its coverage areas, as they can no longer cope with the delibrate neglect of their homeland.
The statement signed by Comrade (Dr) kehinde Prince Taiga, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the body, disclosed that it was disheartening to see that the people whose land contributes immensely to the state coffers, interms of revenue accrued from oil and gas production were being subjected to such neglect.
Consequently, he called on the Commissioner representing the OML34 communities on the board of DESOPASEC, Chief Vincent Oyibode, to render his account of stewardship to the Community Board as a matter of urgency, inorder to update them of the amount of money that had been released to him from 13 percent derivation fund entitled to the communities from the state government account.
According to him; “The need to render account of stewardship to the people through our board had become imperative at this stage, inorder to properly inform them on some of the things he had done to impact positively on their lives since he assumed office as Commissioner representing them on DESOPADEC Board”.
“A comprehensive account of stewardship would also afford the Hon. Commissioner the rare opportunity to let the people understand his constraints in bringing developmental projects to their communities despite their huge contributions to the state government revenue from the oil and gas derived on their land”.
“Failure of the OML34 Commissioner, Chief Vincent Oyibode, to render his account of stewardship within a shortest possible time would be interpreted as a cover up for his misrepresentation and that would compel the board to drag him to Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) to further explain himself on allocation received so far”, the statement warned.
Responding to the issues raised by OML34 Community Development Board (CDB), in a telephone conversation, the Commissioner representing the communities on DESOPADEC Board, Chief Vincent Oyibode, said he had done quite well within the limited resources available to him to embark on some key projects in various communities that fell within his coverage areas.
He explained that the DESOPADEC Board had to contend with the issue of Covid 19 and EndSARS which disrupted its activities for quite sometime, adding that regardless he was still able to carry out some vital projects in some of the communities”.
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