By Mike ALADENIKA.
Youths, numbering hundreds, Friday, stormed and shut the Benin office of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) over what they said is a deliberate marginalisation of Edo state from its activities just as they condemned the continued running of the interventionist agency with a sole administrator after the dissolution of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) which they said is unconstitutional.
The youths under the aegis, Edo Restoration Movement (ERM) threatened to close down the East-West Road and all major roads connecting Edo state to other parts of the country, if President Muhammadu Buhari does not sack the sole administrator employed by the Minister of Niger Delta, Sen Godswill Akpabio.
The group also called for the removal of the Commission from the ministry of Niger Delta with a view to restoring the Commission's Independence as provided for by the law establishing it.
The group accused the management of NDDC of policies designed to marginalise Edo state from works and operations of the Commission, saying "more than 95 per cent of NDDC contracts being executed in Edo state are executed by contractors from other states yet no Edo contractor is given contracts in other states captured by the NDDC operations."
The group then Called for the immediate constitution of a Board to run the Commission in line with its establishing law, Secretary of the group, Comrade Ben Bowei said “Edo State has been marginalised by NDDC and this must not be allowed to continue. We are here to put a stop to this injustice, We are part of the Niger Delta. Edo State is the 5th oil producing state and has the largest deposit of gas in Nigeria".
"What about the board? Till now, Edo State has not produced the Chairman nor Managing Director of the board. Edo should be considered for the position of the MD of the board."
Comrade Ben Bowei said "recently, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs went round the Niger Delta states but he did not come to Edo State. We are giving Godswill Akpabio 72 hours to visit Edo and talk to us or resign, if he fails to resign we will shut the East- West Road."
In the same vein, the Publicity Officer of the group, Arc Thaddeus Irabor said the group was there to send a signal to the authority on what they would do if their plight is not addressed,
He said "We are here to send a signal, we are giving Akpabio 72 hours ultimatum to resign so that a legally constituted board can take over the management of the NDDC, the peace loving people of Edo State have been taken for granted for too long. We want him to resign, not because we have anything personal against him, but because Edo has been marginalised. We want to say that we can bite and even crack bones. We will not only shut the East-West Road, we will shut all oil installations in Edo State. We are calling on Akpabio to stop using the NDDC fund for his personal use."
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