President Bola Tinubu says plans are underway to complete the rehabilitation of the East-West Road connecting Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom.
Tinubu said this on Friday at the end of a three-day Stakeholders Summit, organised by the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) in Port Harcourt.
Represented by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, Tinubu said that his administration was supporting NDDC to deliver his Renewed Hope Agenda for the Niger Delta people.
“The NDDC board will work to deliver my Renewed Hope Agenda, ranging from food security, poverty alleviation, inclusivity, job creation, anti-corruption and rule of law, among others.
“I am aware of the many complaints about NDDC but I assure you that this time around we will change the narrative for the benefit of the Niger Delta people,” he said.
The president emphasised the need for the commission to change its approach in order to transform the region.
“Therefore, we must be committed to how the zone can be transformed in line with my agenda for sustainable development of the region.
“I am committed to ensuring the development of the region and ensure that the East-West Road would be tackled,” Tinubu said.
Akpabio, speaking as the Senate President, said that Tinubu had authorised NDDC to secure a ₦1 trillion loan to complete all abandoned projects in the region.
He said that the president had also given assurance that the Lagos to Calabar coastal highway project would commence simultaneously from both states.
“The National Assembly is satisfied with what NDDC management and board are doing, and so, we will do everything possible to ensure that the East-West Road is completed within our tenure.
“It is no longer going to be the lack of funds but a question of committing to spending NDDC funds only in the Niger Delta,” he said.
The Chairman of the summit and former President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, said that the NDDC was set up to provide infrastructure, improve the environment and enhance livelihoods.
He said that the NDDC deviated from its purpose of developing the Niger Delta after the tenure of its former Chairman of the Board, Onyema Ugochukwu, and Managing Director, Timi Alaibe.
“Politicians took over the NDDC and its progress slowed down. People no longer felt the impact of the commission.
“But since the inception of this leadership, people of the Niger Delta have seen some light.
“I encourage the political class not to overstretch the NDDC management and board so that they can perform the mandate given to them,” he said.
The former president urged the commission to focus on completing the scores of abandoned projects scattered across the nine NDDC states.
Earlier, Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa appealed to the Federal Government to act quickly to end the sufferings of commuters at the Okogbe axis of the East-West Road in Rivers.
He said the trip to Port Harcourt for the stakeholders’ summit, which was expected to take one hour by road, ended up taking about four hours.
“It is chaotic, pathetic and unbelievable that this is happening to an oil-producing area that lays the golden egg for our country.
“The National Assembly should make the issue of the uncompleted East-West Road a matter of national priority on the floor of the national legislature,” he said.
The Minister of Niger Delta, Abubakar Momoh, said that the Niger Delta region must diversify to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels.
Commenting on the condition of the East-West Road, he said that NDDC had engaged a construction firm to carry out some remedial work to reduce the hardship faced by road users.
Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong, the Chairman, Senate Committee on NDDC, assured that the committee would continue to work closely with the commission to meet the yearnings of the people.
“Things are now looking different because, for the first time in several years, NDDC will be working with a budget approved by the National Assembly,” he revealed.
The former Governor of Cross River, Donald Duke, urged collaboration between NDDC and state governors to address several issues plaguing the region.
Duke said that close collaboration between the commission and governors of the Niger Delta region would help to end the existing conflicts over project ownership and duplication.
The NDDC Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, assured participants at the summit that their recommendations would be adopted to change the fortunes of the region.
Notable dignitaries at the well-attended summit included Governors Hope Uzodimma of Imo and Dr Alex Otti of Abia, represented by their deputies.
Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom was also represented by his deputy, while the host Governor, Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers, was represented by the state Head of Service, Dr George Nwaeke.
The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, spoke on the need for sustainable peace and security in the Niger Delta region.
According to him, the Army has been working tirelessly to restore permanent peace and security in the area.