The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) has said the South-South geopolitical zone was “grossly shortchanged” in the Federal Executive Council’s (FEC) approval of N3.9 trillion for road infrastructure projects across the country.
Speaking at a briefing in Abuja on Friday, PANDEF National Chairman, Ambassador Godknows Igali, expressed disappointment over what it described as the exclusion of the Niger Delta from the list of major projects.
He said the sub-region received little attention despite its strategic contribution to Nigeria’s economy through oil and gas production.
Igali noted that of the 26 major road projects approved across 15 states, the only one linked to the South-South is the Benue-Cross River road project. He said it was troubling for the Niger Deltans that there is no allocation for any other road traversing major parts of the region.
Igali said the development had further deepened infrastructure deficits in the Niger Delta, making movement within the region difficult and hampering economic activities.
The PANDEF also lamented the slow pace of work on the East-West Road, describing the project as a symbol of failed infrastructure delivery despite repeated assurances by the Federal Ministry of Works that it would be completed speedily.
The group further decried the condition of major ports in the region, including those in Calabar, Onne, Port Harcourt and Warri, saying they had been neglected without any clear plan for rehabilitation, modernisation or expansion.
Describing the situation as unfair, Igali said continued neglect of the Niger Delta fueled feelings of alienation among its people. He appealed to President Tinubu to review the road project allocations to ensure fairness and equitable distribution.
“The Board of Trustees and the National Executive Committee of PANDEF have noted the outcome of the recent Federal Executive Council meeting where the sum of N3.9 trillion was approved for road infrastructure projects across the country.
“While commending President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his cabinet on this commitment towards the physical infrastructure of the country, we in the South-South lament the fact that our region has again been grossly short-changed with a very insignificant allocation of projects from this humongous sum,” the statement said.
“The people of the Niger Delta therefore, call on Mr President to look into this matter with a view to reversing the situation, bearing in mind that the Niger Delta region is the revenue base of the country,” Igali stated.
PANDEF further decried what it described as the neglect of key maritime infrastructure in the region, noting that the ports in Calabar, Onne, Port Harcourt and Warri remain largely abandoned without any clear programme for rehabilitation, modernisation or expansion.
Describing the situation as “starving the goose that lays the golden egg,” the forum warned that the continued neglect of the Niger Delta fuels feelings of alienation among the people.
PANDEF however, reaffirmed the region’s commitment to supporting Nigeria’s economic growth through increased oil and gas production, while urging the Federal Government to demonstrate greater fairness, equity and justice in the distribution of national infrastructure projects.
