By Zik Gbemre

We have repeatedly severally, without mincing words, that majority of the Niger Delta politicians are simply wicked, inhuman, cruel and heartless for “deliberately” impoverishing their own people for years, especially right from 1999 till date.  It is sad that these Niger Delta politicians have in all these years, simply appropriated our collective wealth to satisfy their insatiable greed as well as that of their families, friends, fronts and allies. To add salt to injury, some of these Niger Delta politicians are even being praised and celebrated by majority of the people for their looting of our collective wealth, including those of them that have been and jailed for their corrupt practices. And they keep doing this without any iota of remorse or repentance. However, these Niger Delta politicians should also be reminded that “their cups will soon be full”, and it will only take one day for all of them to receive the disgraceful treatment they deserve.

Recently, there was an online short video being circulated on social media platforms, of an Elder statesman from Bayelsa State, who went on rampage and against the demands of Bayelsa State House Assembly politicians, for Life Pensions. While expressing his disgust and disappointment over this development, the said Elder statesman noted that: “Bayelsa Assembly men demanding for life pensions. These cowboy politicians! What are they asking for? In fact, it is a shame!! And they don’t even know how the State came about. These are people who are behaving like Agberos – Agbero Politicians. In the name of Assembly men. I think it is time to give and show them some lessons so that those that will come after them will respect the name Bayelsa. Look how they are messing up the name Bayelsa. They want life pensions.

“As one of the founding fathers of Bayelsa, and on behalf of all the founding fathers of Bayelsa, it is time we line up these cowboy politicians in front of Yenagoa water front and flog them. They deserve flogging. The level we are in now, these cowboy politicians, we need to line them up and strip them to their boxer shorts, and flog them like in those days. This is not the time for protesters to carry placards. Carrying placards will not solve the problem. We better line them up in Bayelsa water front and flog them. Flog them before the river and give them 12 strokes of the cane. Then we ask men of God like Bishop… to cast out the demons in their heads – they need deliverance – Bayelsa State House of Assembly members. When we start from Bayelsa State, other States House of Assembly members in the Niger Delta region who are just…they don’t even know how their States were created. They have no history in their head, they do whatever they like, they disgrace the Niger Delta before the international community… We will start from Bayelsa Assembly men, and move to others, by flogging them and casting out the demons in their heads… There are problems in the Niger Delta region. If these politicians are disgracing the Niger Delta region, and we fold our hands, what happens to our future generations?”

Truth be told, these Niger Delta politicians deserves such disgraceful and ill-treatment described above. What we see happening in Bayelsa State House of Assembly, is a typical example of what is predominant amongst the political class of the region – where these politicians only think of themselves and nothing more. How can State Assembly men be asking for life pensions, in an economy that has not been able to put food, provide employment and shelter amongst other basic needs – for its teeming population?   It is no longer news that the Niger Delta region paints a picture of a people enmeshed in poverty, and a region suffering from ‘chronic underdevelopment’ in the midst of plenty. This paradoxical situation has been widely condemned by regional elites who have persistently argued that a people whose land produces the wealth that virtually sustains the entire country should not be made to dwell in poverty. One then begins to wonder why is this? How come the Niger Delta region with its abundant natural resourcefulness in terms of the “Crude Oil and Natural Gas”, is still wallowing in such despicable state of underdevelopment? Who is to be blamed for the deplorable state of the Niger Delta region, which has elicited global attention and environmental concerns in the last three to four decades and still counting? What are really the issues that have led to the wrongs, controversies and imbroglio and crises-ridden situation in the Niger Delta region?

While there are so many answers to the above questions, the ‘root’ of the matter that has resulted to all of these questions in the first place is that, whatever level of underdevelopment and whatever we see “wrong” today in the Niger Delta region; our political leaders/public office holders at all levels are the ones responsible for it. As the custodians of the region’s oil and gas-rich wealth and resources that come from both the Federal and State levels, they are the ones to take the chunk of the blame for the Niger Delta’s present deplorable situation. In other words, we are where we are today as a people because of every decision/indecision and action/inaction of our past and present political leaders in different strata of governments in the region and the entire nation.

The Niger Delta region of Nigeria has for close to two decades now, especially in the last 16 years, witnessed all kinds of crises, conflicts, environmental degradation of high proportions and dehumanizing experiences that the place has become a “focal point” for National and International discuss and attention. Surprisingly, within the same period, the Niger Delta region, often referred to as “the goose that lays the golden eggs”, has also witnessed tremendous increase in revenue and wealth from the extractive industry and has also gotten a fair share of the “national cake” from past Federal Governments. Yet, the overwhelming poverty, disease and underdevelopment that still persist in the region cannot be comprehended. Even the space between the rich and poor, the haves and the have nots, the governed and the government; keeps increasing by the day that one begins to wonder if the oil and gas wealth from the region is actually a curse or a blessing.

The crux of the matter here is that rather than ensure that the oil and gas wealth resources from the region are judiciously used to develop the region, address every environmental issue that arises from the extractive industry and extensively improve the living standards of the people; our Niger Delta leaders as custodians of this ‘collective wealth’, including the elites, have over the eyes satisfied more of their stomachs and insatiable greed to detriment of all.

The bitter truth is that, if all the public funds ever voted/budgeted/allocated for/in the NDDC, The Federal Ministry of the Niger Delta and all the other State Intervention Development agencies, plus the State Governments revenue allocations, etc, in the region were judiciously implemented with all sincerity of purpose; we are very certain that by now, there will not be any word like “riverine and creek areas” used to describe most parts of the Niger Delta region.  If our political leaders in Government have been sincere in utilizing the funds meant for the Niger Delta region, we believe by now we would have witnessed the development of all the riverine/coastal regions/areas of the region get transformed into “tourist attraction spots” and Sea Ports like we have in Singapore, some parts of London like Maritime Greenwich and North Greenwich areas that are practically built around rivers. But are today tourist spots for foreign attraction. Even the whole of Amsterdam, as well as the Houses of Parliament in Central London are all built around rivers but when you go to these places you can hardly tell they are built on and surrounded by water. Today, most parts of the Niger Delta region are still referred to as creeks and riverine areas. And it is rather unfortunate that we can unequivocally state that no State in the Niger Delta region can honesty and transparently account for all the monies that have accrued to them as Federal allocation and internal generated revenues. A very good example of this is Delta State, which can best be described as one State in the Niger Delta region that receives amongst the highest revenue allocation yet has nothing concrete to show forth for it.

Well, it is about time the common masses of the Niger Delta region should wise up and start condemning without any reservations, their own political leaders that are known to be corrupt, for “cheating” on them and depriving them from having a taste of what should be theirs all these years. It is about time Niger Deltans start venting their anger and distaste on these obviously corrupt Niger Delta political leaders at all levels of government, rather than “blindly fighting” those who mean well for them and the overall good of the common masses.

Some few months back, there were videos being circulated on social media, of alleged corrupt politicians in Ukraine who were physically carried and dumped in dustbins by Ukrainians, whenever they are seen in the public and outside their Parliament. And we noted how that should be a food for thought, a warning of some sort, and a wakeup call to corrupt Niger Delta Politicians who have been misgoverning and mismanaging public funds meant to alleviate the sufferings, poverty and hardship daily faced by the Nigerian masses in the region. The irresponsible Niger Delta Politicians, that have been unaccountable in their stewardship in public service, should be reminded by the example in Ukraine that one day, the Nigerian people will revolt against them, and not only throw them in public dustbins, flog them, but also have them forcefully disgraced out of the public offices they have been abusing across all levels of government in the region.

This situation also reminded us of another online video that went viral last year on different social media platforms, of the Niger State Governor, being prevented from leaving an event, and nearly mobbed by his constituents’ – as they shouted “Barawo, Barawo…” (meaning Thief, Thief… in Hausa).

We believe that was just a tip of the iceberg of things to come, if our Niger Delta Politicians and Nigerian politicians at all levels continues with their bad-governance, misappropriation and mismanagement of our collective regional/national wealth meant to improve the standard of living of all and sundry in the region/country. The Niger Delta politicans might think that this sort of public action will never happen to them, but they should not be deluded or deceived to think that Nigerians in their various States of the region, are not fed-up with their lies, failed promises, gross corruption and insensitivity to the plight and sufferings of the masses. When a man or a people are pushed to the wall, especially after ‘enduring’ years of maltreatment, it is just a matter of time for them to “react” aggressively against those shortchanging their future in the corridors of political power.

Former American President, Abraham Lincoln, in one of his famous quotes, once said: “You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.” Legendary musicians like Peter Tosh and Bob Marley also repeated these lines in some of their songs. Reminding our Nigerian Politicians that, a day will come, when even those praising/celebrating and running after Politicians who have stolen their collective wealth meant to provide a better future for their children, will turn against them and publicly shame and disgrace them, just like the Political leaders in Ukraine were dumped in dustbins. Let us be reminded that Ukraine is amongst the developed countries in the world, yet they are still complaining of the wrong doings of their Political leaders, to warrant them being disgraced in public. Nigerian Politicians, who have committed more atrocities over the past decades, should then imagine what majority of the Nigerian masses will do to them when the day of reckoning is upon them.

Zik Gbemre

National Coordinator

Niger Delta Peace Coalition (NDPC)

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