Acting President of the Ijaw National Congress (INC), Mr. Charles Ambaiowei, in his assessment of the state of the Nigerian nation at 55, concluded that the country has little to show for its existence, which he blamed on absence of unity of purpose and lack of visionary leaders. SEYE OLUMIDE reports.
State of the nation at 55

IF I am to speak for the organization that I represent, we are not of the opinion that the Nigerian nation building is on a positive direction, which is the reason for the current malice, which has found expression in separatist agitations, corruption, un-employment, insecurity and the declining economic growth. These are the direct consequences of the fact that our path to nation building is devoid of genuine patriotism.

It was only between 1960 and early 70s that Nigeria was on the path to nation building. The INC believed that the present way of revenue sharing formula in the country is actually the fundamental basis of corruption.

When the Midwestern region was created in 1963, the new region and the old ones, they all had their own constitutions in addition to the federal constitution. Every region controlled its resources, which it exploited to its maximum benefits. You talk of groundnut pyramid in the North, cocoa in the West, palm oil in the Eastern region. Then, there was a healthy competition.

But by the military’s unification decree, the ownership of resources, among which is oil and gas, was transferred to the centre.
Consequently, the derivation principle, which was 50 per cent up till the 1963 Republican Constitution, now came to zero percent. They just appropriated resources of a people for the development of an area where nothing is produced. As at today, 74 percent of Nigeria revenue earning comes from the South-south. Between the Southwest and Southeast, you get a total of about 20 per cent.

The entire North only contributes two percent to the Federal Government coffers. These statistics are the official figure from the Nigerian Bureau of Statistics. If you now take a comparative look at the level of development in the oil producing areas and compare it with the North, you see a huge gap either in terms of infrastructure or human capital development. To us, the Ijaw, this is an institutional corruption.

Let me give you another example when the former Head of State, Gen. Murtala Muhammed was assassinated and Gen. Olusegun Obasanjo (rtd), who was next in command, became the Head of State, the late Gen. Musa Yar’Adua, who was far lower in rank to other officers from other areas of the country was promoted over and above his peers so that he could become the Chief of Staff. If that is not institutional corruption, what else is corruption?

Again, when the immediate past Comptroller General of Nigeria Custom Service, Abdullah Ndi Dikko retired, President Buhari had to go as far as bringing retired Colonel Ahmed Ali to head the Custom instead of a Niger Delta man, John Ateh, who is the next in rank to Dikko.

Colonel Ali is a former Chieftain of the Arewa Consultative Forum. He had been the Secretary-General of the forum. If I may ask you: What is ACF all about? Is it not to pursue the northern interest in the same way Ijaw National Congress is agitating and protecting interest of our people? Clearly yes! President Buhari said John Ateh, who is eminently qualified to succeed Dikko, is not qualified to head the Custom. He has seriously breached the principle of federal character.

What is even more worrisome to the Ijaw National Congress is the preponderance of the North in some influential positions in the National Assembly and the judiciary. We must sound this loud and clear; President Buhari must drive efforts to restructure Nigeria.
The 2014 national conference and issue of restructuring the country

I made bold to say that the confab did not address any fundamental issue. And that has been the position of INC. What that conference had done was to just merely ponder on what we call cosmetics instead of going to the nitty-gritty of issues that could be the solution to the problems of this country.

Instead of taking a hard look at the state structure as concerns its viability; it ended up proposing the creation of another 19 states. After the Hausa/Fulani, the Yoruba and Igbo, the Ijaw are the fourth largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria. But we are Balkanized into six states in the country. With our Balkanisation, we have only one homogeneous Ijaw state. Apart from that, the six states in the Southwest are within a particular contiguous area, so, they can do regional integration. Similarly, the five states in the Southeast are in a contiguous area and can as well do regional integration. Where and how will Ijaw, the 4th largest ethnic nationality, do its own integration?

What we are saying is: let’s go back to the drawing board and do a fundamental restructuring for the peaceful co-existence of a people. Let’s go back to regionalism. If we have South-South as a region, then we know there is strength.

When you have the Southwest as a region, there is strength. When you have Igbo as a region, there is strength. From the time immemorial, whether it was civil or military rule, all the northern states and their governors have always had their meetings. It is only when the South wants to hold meeting that they will accuse them of planning to go out of Nigeria. So, that confab did not address any fundamental issue.

Look at the Petroleum Act, which was promulgated during the Gowon era and became Act of parliament. Since after the war, they have maintained that Petroleum Act without a single amendment. Even when the issue of PIB came up, the National Assembly could not pass it into law up till today. Strangely, the Solid Mineral Act passed by the same parliament empowers the host communities, whereas, the formulators of PIB virtually made the people of oil producing areas tenants on their own land to those who are going to exploit oil and gas resources.

When the Ijaw National Congress made our own recommendations to the National Assembly with respect to the PIB, we printed out sections of Solid Mineral Act and we urged the lawmakers to carry everything wholly without any alteration and put it into the PIB because mineral is mineral whether solid or otherwise. Are we living in a country where there are two classes of citizens?

Until we address the institutional injustice and corruption entrenched in the system, this country is going nowhere. 55 years of wasted efforts does not do anybody any good. Look at where India has got to, look at where Malaysia has got to, look at where Singapore has got to, look at where Dubai has got.

Position on environmental issue in the Niger Delta
If there is any indices by which to judge how unfairly
Nigeria has treated the Niger Delta; it is the way our environment has been degraded. However, we thank President Buhari for the step he has taken concerning the cleaning of Ogoni land. It is good as a first step. But it should not end there. We are all aware that oil was first discovered in Oloibiri area of Bayelsa State in 1957. It was about 10 years after that oil was found in Ogoni area. Are we saying areas like Bayelsa have not been environmentally polluted and degraded like the
Ogoni land?

INC wants an audit to be carried out on our environment. Environmental pollution and degradation are the worst form of injustices Nigeria has done to the people of Niger Delta and, indeed, the Ijaw people.