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Henry Akubuiro
An alumnus of the Westminster Harrow Business School and a former staff of City of London Telecommunication, Henry Nwawuba represents Mbaitoli Ikeduru Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Abuja. He is the Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Niger Delta Ministry.
Widely seen as a strong south Eastern voice in the House, having played a big role in initiating the passage of the South East Development Commission Bill in the 8th Assembly and being instrumental to the pushback of the $22 billion Chinese loan that excluded the South East with a petition, among others, the articulate parliamentarian, in this interview, addresses the NDDC brouhaha, the inevitability of Chinese loans, the quest for an Igbo president, the forthcoming Edo governorship election, insecurity in South East, the fortunes of the PDP in Imo, and sundry issues.
NDDC has come under severe attacks recently against the backdrop of corruption scandals, leading to some Nigerians calling for its scrap. As the Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Niger Delta Ministry, don’t you think NDDC has overstayed its welcome?
The NDDC was conceived as an intervention agency with a strategic long term objective of turning around the fortunes of the Niger Delta Region. From 2001 till date, about N2.165 trillion has gone into the agency. The current brouhaha surrounding the NDDC is a direct reaction to the disconnect between the amount spent over the years and the corresponding projects on ground. On top of that, we have reports that about 23 per cent of the projects of NDDC are abandoned —and by abandoned, I don’t mean uncompleted projects alone but some projects which have been 100 per cent completed but not been put to productive use, probably because there was no “needs” analysis conducted before such projects were awarded.
NDDC is said to have abandoned so many projects, including a mortuary project. So, they have not only abandoned the living but the dead also. It is clear, from findings, that much disappointment surrounds the operations of the agency. Personally, I think it is a bad idea to deploy government funds where private sector funds can be used. Government should be a social planner such that, where markets fail, then the government can come in. There is an urgent need to reduce the politicisation in the creation of government agencies. I concede that political considerations can be accommodated while creating them, but, certainly, not in their management. The NDDC has to act with technical competencies to guard against the poor implementation we see in the various development projects.
NDDC is currently perceived as a procurement agency which has only empowered a small group of people. The model of development by way of contract award alone has not worked anywhere in the world. I think that a minimum of 25 per cent of NDDC funds should have gone into direct human investment. I am of the view that NDDC should remain intact but needs to become more inclusive in the regional development agenda of the Niger Delta. We need more stakeholder participation. Legislation alone and policy statements cannot resolve our problems. Niger Deltans are disappointed with recent revelations around the NDDC, and look forward to the reactions of our anti corruption agencies. Their silence is no longer golden.
Some Nigerians think the National Assembly shouldn’t be approving every Chinese loan tabled before it due to unfavorable conditions attached to them and the tendency to mortgage Nigeria’s future, can Nigeria do without these loans?
It depends on what the conditions are. I do not have details off hand this very minute, but, generally, no nation can embark on a massive infrastructure drive without seeking access to the pool of resources around the world earmarked for it. I understand the cynicism of some Nigerians, which is based on past experiences where loans procured were not judiciously applied for the purposes they were meant. To such people, loans are just a conduit for embezzlement, while the burden of repayment is wickedly shifted to future generations. However, it is my considered view that loans are necessary provided they are applied to regenerative projects. It will interest you to know that the biggest economies in the world are run by credit. The most advanced country in the world, the USA, is also the most indebted. At the last count, they owe over $23 trillion.
There are genuine fears that the country may be heading into a debt trap, but statistics show that Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio is still at 21 per cent, which is below the average for developing countries, which stands at 40 per cent. A country like the UK has a debt-to-GDP ratio of 89 per cent. So, to answer your question directly, the National Assembly welcomes efforts at improving infrastructure, but is very conscious of its oversight responsibility to ensure that every penny is applied to the letter. I am aware that the interest rates from Chinese loans are comparatively better than those from other lending institutions in other parts of the world. That said, I’d like to raise a caution that, as a nation, we must also keep a keen watch over our population growth and put aside resources to sustain the generations coming behind us. My optimism on the debt to-GDP-ratio at the National level cannot be said to be the same for the states who are already groaning under the huge debts foisted on them by the managers of their common wealth. Our population as a country is predicted to surpass that of the United States in the next 40 years.
The recent COVID-19 pandemic has exposed almost all aspects of our national economy to serious gaps and challenges. It has been reported that 90 per cent of our 2020 Q1 earnings went to debt servicing. This should be of great concern to us all. This is the time to recalibrate and align ourselves to a progressive national thinking. With the expiration of the FSS202020, which sought to place Nigeria as one of the top 20 economies by the year 2020, there is a great and an urgent need to develop a new national long term strategic outlook to guide our future borrowings and spending.
There have been discordant tunes among Igbo people regarding the 2023 presidency, especially from groups either supporting an Igbo president and others canvassing for a separate statehood, why are the Igbo not speaking with one voice?
If you are conversant with the sociopolitical events in Igboland, you will realise that we are a very independent minded and egalitarian society. The Igbo cannot be railroaded into a straight jacket like a headless herd. We believe in a robust interface of contending views but are all united in the overall objective of uplifting our communities and the country in general. I can tell you straight away that Igbo people are well entrenched in the Nigerian project, and that is why, in every part of Nigeria, we are the second largest ethnic group behind only the host communities. The issue of an Igbo president is premised on the quest for equity and justice. We see ourselves as coequal stakeholders in the Nigerian enterprise, and we deserve the dividends of nationhood having been an integral part of birthing the nation. It is, therefore, not out of place to agitate for the presidency of Nigeria to be occupied by a Nigerian of Igbo extraction.
Mike Ahamba, SAN, in a recent Sun interview, said that an Igbo president would assure Nigeria’s unity in 2023, do you share this view?
There is no doubt that a president emerging from the South East will complete the final puzzle of the tripod upon which Nigeria is erected. In 2023, we have the opportunity to fulfill our quest for justice and fairness. The concluding verse of the second stanza of the National Anthem says …”to build a nation where peace and justice shall reign” . A nation where a significant part is crying of neglect and marginalisation does not augur well for the rest of the country. Since 1999, we have had a Yoruba president from the South West, two Hausa-Fulani presidents from the North and an Ijaw president from the South-south. It is only fair and reasonable to have a democratically elected South Easterner this time around. I agree with Chief Ahamba to this extent.
How do South East politicians integrate themselves to get an Igbo president in 2023, given their usual penchant to run enmasse?
As I said earlier, the South East is blessed with an abundance of qualified personalities who are poised to provide the best service in whatever capacity. It is not as if it is only in Igboland that multiple people scramble for positions. At the last PDP National Convention in Port Harcourt, the majority of the contestants, if not all, came from the North. At the end of the day, the one who networks the most carries the day. The presidency of Nigeria cannot be gotten with only Igbo votes. Every aspirant must build a vast network to guarantee the rest of the country that he or she will be fair to all. That is why I use every opportunity to appeal to my fellow Igbo to guide their statements so that only positive signals that unite us are sent to the rest of the country.
As a two-term Reps member for Mbaitoli Ikeduru Federal Constituency, what legacies are you leaving behind?
I am currently into the first year of my second tenure. In the 5 years that I’ve been in the House of Representatives, I have been a strong voice for the people of Mbaitoli/Ikeduru in the green chamber and often speak strongly on not just their local interests but for matters that are of interest to the South East of Nigeria. You will recall the role I played in pushing for the passage of the South East Development Commission Bill in the 8th assembly, and I am happy to report that we have reintroduced the same bill in this 9th assembly for reconsideration by the Committee of the Whole, having scaled both first and second readings in the last parliament by the two chambers. God willing, it will successfully complete the Bill cycle in parliament and be signed into Law by president Muhammadu Buhari. I was also instrumental to the pushback from parliament in the $22 billion loan that excluded projects from the South East vide a petition I submitted on the floor of the green chamber forcing a stall in the process. Though that loan was eventually passed weeks later by parliament, I remain committed to nation building as an ambassador for the South East region in matters of national importance.
