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The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has advocated sustainable peace in the Niger Delta region through the sensitisation of critical stakeholders on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR). The commission at a one-day capacity building workshop for Niger Delta stakeholders on ADR and Inclusive Peace and Sustainable Development, emphasised the importance of peace in engendering the much needed development in the region.
The workshop themed, “Fostering Lasting Peace Through ADR: Lessons From The Past, Building Future Opportunities To Advance The Renewed Hope Agenda,” was declared open by the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the NDDC, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, who stated that development is an elusive concept if not built on existing peace.
The MD was represented by his Chief of Staff, Rev. Julius Oworibo. He stated that the commission under his watch prefers dialogue over threats and intimidation, urging the participants to spread the NDDC mantra of peace to all nooks and crannies of the region.
“Today, we are here gathered in this capacity building workshop for stakeholders in the region on how we can manage ourselves to be peaceful because without peace, development will not come our way.
“Recently, the NDDC has been commissioning projects in different states of the region and this is possible because of peace being observed among different youths, women and elders in our communities. Without peace, things will not go forward, so we are here to reinforce the saying that peace must be present for development to be achieved.
“I’m impressed with the array of leaders gathered here to find out how we can go about keeping peace that has come to us. The days of ‘we no go gree’ are over. Here in the NDDC, we now prefer people who dialogue to those who threaten us.
“As leaders in your own right, my appeal to you this morning is to take the message from here back to your various communities, clans and see that peace continues reigning,” Ogbuku added.
Also speaking at the event, the acting Director, Department of Dispute and Conflict Resolution, NDDC, Godwin Ayewumi Ogbedegbe, said the essence of the workshop is to enhance the potentials of ADR, as a critical instrument for sustaining peace.
He added that the aim of the programme is also to leverage on ADR in achieving intangible peaceful and prosperous outcomes for communities that have borne the brunt of conflict for too long.
“Today, we gather with a shared commitment to enhance the power of ADR, as a critical instrument for sustaining peace, unlocking development and advancing the renewed hope agenda and economic reform agenda of Mr. President across the Niger Delta and beyond.
“We stand at a consequential moment in our national journey. The theme before us, “Fostering Lasting Peace Through ADR: Lessons From The Past, Building Future Opportunities To Advance The Renewed Hope Agenda,” calls us to reflect deeply on what has worked, what must be reinforced and how we can leverage ADR to translate policy intentions into intangible peaceful and prosperous outcomes for communities that have borne the brunt of conflict for too long.
“I intend to reflect my MD/CEO’s quote that anchors our discourse today, that the renewed hope and economic reform agenda of Mr. President, Bola Tinubu, is a social contract in the form of induction we entered in the NDDC with the commitment of ensuring the vision of the renewed hope agenda is being transformed into reality in the Niger Delta region with infrastructure and human capital developments.”
However, former Labour Party (LP) governorship candidate in Bayelsa State, Udengs Eradiri, said the current practice of sending the subsidy funds to the governors had not achieved the desired impact.
He argued that the development agencies were set up by the President to carry out some of the functions of the governors in the region and deserved to utilize the subsidy funds.
Eradiri, a Fellow of the Nigeria Society of Engineers (NSE) suggested that if all the subsidy funds could not be sent to the development agencies, it should be split into two with half disbursed to states and local government areas while the remaining half should be sent to the agencies.
“I call on President Tinubu, as part of actualising the Renewed Hope Agenda, to, as a matter of urgency, redirect the excess money from the subsidy removal to the development agencies covering the entire stretch of the country in all the geopolitical zones.
“The Presidency can now supervise them to ensure that the subsidy gains get to the masses and solve their problems. When this excess subsidy is sent to the governors as is being done now, the President does not have control over how it is spent.
“The President cannot monitor whether this money is being used judiciously and that is why we are having many conflicts all over the country and the people are complaining that they have not seen the dividends of democracy.
“If the President cannot redirect all the money, he can divide the money into two. He can send 50 percent to the governors and local government chairmen and the rest to the development agencies.
“These agencies were set up to carry out some parts of the duties of the governors. If the subsidy windfall is redirected to the agencies, they will use them according to the dictates of the President. They can be supervised by the President to ensure the money gets to the grassroots. If the Federal government does that, there will be less complaints from the people,” Eradiri said.
