Rochas blasts NDDC's Imo work as Apga says 2000 of nation's 2017 millionaires are Igbo

IMO State governor Rochas Okorocha has asked the Senate Committee supervising the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to address the alleged marginalisation of the state when it comes to building infrastructure in the area.

 

Nigeria's NDDC was an agency established to enhance infrastructural development across the country's 10 oil-producing states. Imo and the other nine states - Abia, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Edo, Cross River, Bayelsa, Edo, Rivers and Ondo - all fall within its remit.

 

Speaking yesterday when the members committee, led by its chairman Senator Peter Nwaoboshi paid him a courtesy call at the Government House, Owerri, Governor Okorocha stated that the NDDC had not done well in Imo State. Of late, there has been widespread unrest across Igboland including Imo State over poor infrastructural facilities and the high unemployment rate.

 

Governor Okorocha said: “If there is any state that has not benefited from NDDC programme, it is Imo State. We are worst for it as there is no single project completed by the NDDC in Imo State, except boreholes and the renovation of classrooms.

 

“Something has to be done and urgently too in Imo by the commission to give the state a sense of belonging. There must be change of attitude on the part of NDDC. Irrespective of political parties as we are one when it comes to governance."

 

He added that governance is key because the essence of democracy is to produce for people and good leaders provide the dividends of democracy for the people. According to the governor, where this is lacking, the democratic structure has failed.

 

“It is only in the NDDC that one kilometre of road is awarded for N500m and in Imo, we do it for N70m, yet the NDDC contractors wouldn’t do the job. The Senate should ask the contractors to come and do the job as we are not interested in recovering the money, we just want the job done,” Governor Okorocha added.

 

Senator Nwaoboshi told the governor that they were in the state on a fact-finding mission to enable them carry out total evaluation of NDDC jobs from 2000 till date. He added that they also wanted to find out whether the performance of the commission had actually affected the lives of the people in NDDC states.

 

Meanwhile, Chief Victor Oye the national chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (Apga), has stated that only the Igbos have the solution to Nigeria’s nagging economic and political woes. He added that until an Ndigbo mounts the throne of leadership, Nigeria will continue to have economic hiccups.

 

Chief Oye said:  “Igbo, by their nature are not vindictive, not petty and are very enterprising. We have the people, we have what it takes, out of the 2,017 millionaires in the country, 2,000 are Igbo.”