From Tony Osauzo, Benin
The Ijaw community of Gelegele in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of Edo State, has called on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), to revisit the Udo-Ufunoma-Enikura-Gwilebu road project abandoned over 11 years ago.
The people said no fewer than 100 communities have been cut off over non-completion of the road project.
The community called out the NDDC for leaving out oil producing communities, particularly Gelegele, from its several intervention projects.
The Chairman, Gelegele Executive Council, Mr Omaghomi Olu-Derimon, who made the appeal at a breakfast meeting with select media practitioners in Benin, lamented that the communities that lay the “golden egg” were being neglected in favour of those without crude oil.
He stressed that the neglect has almost destroyed the reason that birthed the interventionist agency but, however, commended the present board of the NDDC for taking the right step to correct these abnormalities.
“I think over time, before the NDDC, we had the OMPADEC. We’ve been having some form of intervention agencies who are meant to probably give the government some kind of support, you know, to develop the oil communities and oil producing states.
“I think the NDDC has not actually met its major target, its major aim of developing, or in the overall development of the Niger Delta
or of the South-South states.
“Because if you compare the amount of money that have come into this region via NDDC, I think the gap is just too wide.
“But from what I see from the current administration of the NDDC, there is a kind of difference. I think, we can see a kind of step up from what we’ve seen before.
“We can see a focus in the NDDC.
But the area where I really want to bare my mind in the present NDDC
is for them to bring development
down to the oil producing communities, not just the states, the communities, not just the local government, the communities.
“If you find out why we had restiveness in Niger Delta was because the communities that produce the oil were abandoned and that is exactly what is happening to our community, Gelegele community.
“As we speak, we don’t have
the direct impact of NDDC in our community but you will find same in abundance in areas that do not have direct bearing with the agency.
On the abandoned road project, Olu-Derimon said, “Udo-Ufunoma-Enikura-Gwilebu road, that road has been abandoned since 2015-2014 by the NDDC.
“That road is a gateway to the Riverine communities from Ovia to West, and over 100 communities have been impacted negatively by its non- completion.
“The people of these communities go through harrowing experience during raining season and we appeal to the NDDC and the state government to see to its completion”, he said.