IYC Demands Declaration of Emergency on East-West Road
3 min read
Edith CHUKU
The Ijaw Youth Council ,IYC, has urged the Federal Government of Nigeria to allow Niger Delta people own and operate oil blocks in the North.
The IYC President, Peter Timothy Igbifa, said this charge in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.
He said since oil had been found in Gombe, Bauchi, Nasarawa and Kogi, Niger Delta people should be given oil blocks and unhindered access to operate businesses of oil and gas in such northern states the same way the northerners were doing in the Niger Delta.
The IYC boss stressed that allocating oil blocs in the Northern parts of Gombe, Bauchi, Nasarawa and Kogi to Niger Delta people would further enhance the unity, cooperation and economic integration in the country.
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Igbifa believes that since most oil block licences in the Niger Delta are owned by the northerners, it will only be equitable, fair and just to allow Niger Delta people own and operate oil blocs in the North.
According to him, “Since the discovery of oil in commercial quantity in the Niger Delta, northerners have owned oil bloc licences and operated oil and gas businesses in the Niger Delta enriching themselves from the proceeds of these blocks and businesses.
“It gladdens our hearts that oil has been discovered in some states in the North. Explorations for more discoveries are also going on in the North.
“We are calling on the Federal Government to also allocate the oil blocks in the North to Niger Delta. This will ensure fair, just and equitable distributions of the country’s resources. It will also help to promote unity and economic integration in the country.”
On the non-completion of the East-West Road, Igbifa lamented that sufficient attention was not being paid to the most critical road in the region despite protests from different stakeholders in the Niger Delta
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He expressed dismay that the road would soon suffer another devastation following the torrential rainfall and looming flood, which he said would again make the road impassable and cause losses in businesses.
Igbifa also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to declare a state of emergency on the East-West road and direct his Minister for Works, Babatunde Fashola, to aggressively fix the road without excuses.
He demanded that the gory East-West Road be given same attention and handled the same way issues concerning the Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos.
“We have noticed that since the East-West road project file was transferred from the Ministry of the Niger Delta to that of Works, there has been inexplicable delay in executing the project.
“While the road continues to be abandoned, similar projects in other parts of the country like the regular costly Maintenance Works on the Third Mainland Bridge are being pursued with speed. We are calling on President Buhari to fix the East-West road before bowing out of office”.
While appreciating the contributions of workers, mostly those from Ijaw ethnic extraction to the progress and development of the country, Igbifa also commended President Buhari for the 40 per cent increase in federal workers’ salaries but called on him, governors and other employers of labour to ensure improved welfare for workers.