Bankole To Niger Delta: Your Leaders Failed You

House of Representatives Speaker Dimeji Bankole yesterday hit Niger Delta leaders hard, saying they should carry the can for the crisis in the region, which he said they failed to develop inspite of the huge funds they got in the last 10 years.

He spoke at a national summit on Post Amnesty Confidence Building in Kaduna.

To Bankole, it is true that Nigerians were not fair to the Niger Delta before the advent of the current democratic dispensation, but events in the last 10 years have changed the course of action in the region.

"If we are to be honest with ourselves, we have not been fair to the Niger Delta. We have been unfair to the Niger Delta. The Niger Delta has been producing the funds with which we’ve been running this country for so many years.

"The funds we used to build Abuja where I came from this morning, those lovely roads and bridges and offices came from the funds from the Niger Delta. I have not seen such bridges and roads in the Niger Delta. I haven’t. Until those roads and infrastructure come to the Niger Delta, well, we’ll continue to put the request on the front burner of Nigerian politics," he said.

But, the Speaker argued that state governments in the Niger Delta collect much more from the Federation Account than all the northern states put together, pointing out that Bayelsa State, for example, collects almost 10 times more than Lagos State. Development in Lagos State has shown that good governance pays after all, said the Speaker.

He said the past neglect of the Niger Delta was changing for good, adding: "In the last 10 years, there has been tremendous improvement in the governance, financing of the Niger Delta. In the last 10 years, indigenes of the Niger Delta have been operating at the top level of governance in Nigeria.

"Today, the Vice President is of Niger Delta origin. Today, the head of service that is the engine room of the government is from the Niger Delta. Should I go on? The Chief of Defence Staff is also from the Niger Delta. I should carry on? Until a few months ago, even the Inspector General of Police was from the Niger Delta. Even when it comes to economic, security and politics, Niger Delta is at the top.

"For some of you who have been to Lagos in the past one year, I’m sure you’ll notice the difference. And I’m not shy to appreciate that there is a difference in Lagos. It’s good governance.

"Like I said, there are differences in Nigerian government today. But I’ll tell you, His Excellency, the governor of Bayelsa State collects 9.2 times more money than Lagos State from the Federal Allocation. That’s a recent development. Don’t compare it with 20 years ago.

"I know that Rivers State collects more money than the entire North Eastern part of Nigeria, today. I know that Akwa Ibom State collects more money than the entire North Western part of Nigeria today. I know that Bayelsa State collets more money than the entire North Central states of Nigeria…

"Nigeria’s budget for this year was around N3trillion. However, by the time you add the budget of the Niger Delta states alone, it is over N1.5trillion. There are may be over 140 to 150milion people in Nigeria. Niger Delta as about 17million; the remaining 130million is outside the Niger Delta.

"Those are the facts that 10 to 20 years from now, people are going to ask me, people are going to ask the governor of Bayelsa, people are going to ask all of us here that what did we do when these facts were being put on the table, "

Bankole, who said that the Niger Delta people should begin to ask their leaders how the resources accruing to them are being spent, added: "When they start abusing me on the headlines tomorrow, just remember what I said here. Now, we have an opportunity. With these funds, there must be a difference because the people of the Niger Delta would begin to ask questions of their leaders on how these monies were spent.

"We may have excuses in the past that we were unfair to the Niger Delta. But those are no longer excuses today. Because we will ask you. When they ask me, I’ll say ‘go and ask them’. What did they do with that money?

"Nobody’s going to come from Abeokuta to tell you what you do with your money in the creeks. If anybody is telling you that, he’s lying. You should ask yourselves about how your money was spent.

"And when they ask those questions, we better have answers for them. Not only have we been unfair to the Niger Delta, we have been unfair to the North East; we have been unfair to the North West; we’ve been unfair to the North Central, we have been unfair to the South East. We have been unfair to Anambra."

Bankole’s view is that what is happening in the Niger Delta is not different from what is happening in the other parts of the country, "except that when the young people of the Niger Delta feel the thing directly, they react."

"It didn’t just start today, they have been reacting gradually for so many years," he added.

To the Speaker, there is no solution to the Nigerian issue, Niger Delta or otherwise, in oil.

His words: "Oil will not produce the solution. It’s very simple. The technology involved in the development of oil cannot employ Nigerians. If it cannot employ Nigerians, it cannot solve the Nigerian problem."


http://thenationonlineng.net/web2/articles/21869/1/Bankole-to-Niger-Delta-your-leaders-failed-you/Page1.html

Please, read the article in full before commenting.

In as much as Federal Govt need to do something in Niger Delta, the Governors should as well help them selves too

"The funds we used to build Abuja, Lagos and  North,Yoruba's land

And The flowers in Lagos are very edible one. The Displaced traders are doing well too,The classrooms that have their roofs designed by storms are very conducive. Bankole is also a "Graduate of one of the well equipped University in Nigeria" so he can talk better about Nigeria. They should all keep shut and stop blaming it on theories,we dont want them to tell us anything again until there is good change ,which can only be seen in the well being of the masses. No Development is measured by the spray starch in their Garments or how well they can Manipulate Oxford Dictionary to make the Publisher of any newspaper smile home. No more news,its only corruption we read everyday,even in the "House of the  Lord"

even if every state controls its resources, there will still be acute poverty in Niger Delta and in nigeria as a whole. I dare to say worse poverty in Niger Delta than they are witnessing now unless those corrupt leaders in Niger Delta such as James Ibori ( there are thousand Iboris  among the Niger Delta leaders and millions in the country as a whole). Bankole himself is not a saint, but a problem told is a problem half solved
Nice talk Banky. The guy combines intellectualism with good politics. It is good.

according to nairaland, the problem is those evil hausa/fulani people

@@@@

becomerich

does it occur to u Bankole is one of your kinsmen;

so how could u avoid trading that line

Its clearly obvious u are on your own as a lot of oduduwa aint down for yall stinking propaganda

u could only wish they switch side but guess what it aint gona happen as history have demonstrated the yorubas could be two face sometimes

when the igbos were butchered like chicken in the north the oduduwa couldnt careless but as soon as Abiola RIP saga erupted Half of nigeria was called southern nigeria by the oduduwa

so question num 1; right; when the hausa were killing igbos, how come there wasnt no southern nigeria; whyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?

num; so when abiola came up; the oduduwa came up with southern nigeria

now, u  could laugh at the hausa as much as u can, but belieeeeeeeeeeeeve me when i say so; the yoruba cannot govern themselve cuz thy ve got too much agberos

and mind u; u will be mistaken to believe the yorubas in Benin rep are the same as the ones in Nigeria; u are bloody joking; they dnt want u


be warn

^^

u are right

i think becomeich fit the bill

Why is it dat becomrich must use maps 2analyse every bloody political, thieving, racist, marginalised, oppressive, religious, tribalistic, ethnical situation this bloody country has 2offer/answer to?

I think Bankole is right but he should also go to his house and tell them some truths to stop wastin time chasing the past but instead they should start looking forward cos that is what the president is doing. The niger delta governors have been given an opportunity to etch their names in gold history will always judge all of them its a clean slate this is time to start putting money in the right place and not for building hotels in Abuja for their indigenes and transparency plazas but instead in making life better for d people of d niger delta

^^^Shebi na Beef, we all know say the bobo no dey make sense,

interim premier minister ft fela

mapomeji has another hit

ikeyman do you know any yorubaman, edo, delta or bayelsa man who is ready to allow us to cut off his head, that if the UN conduct a vote. that  they would find 20% of yorubaman, edo, delta or bayelsa man that would say yes, the want to remain in nigeria.  let the man his name.

An I am throwing the challenge to any yorubaman, edo, delta or bayelsa man on the earth, who is ready to allow us to cut of his head, if the UN can find 20% of yorubaman, edo, delta or bayelsa man that says they want to remain in nigeria.

Udezue, you are showing the world, you are an idiot. Why do that.
Only an idiot would do  what you do.


There are only 5 states where there is ijaws people not 6 as believe.
You would notice , my map already

western region  , 95% Ijaw live in the western region.

Bayelsa  (  western region some part in the eastern)
delta   (  western region)
Ondo  (  western region)
Edo    (  western region))

Eastern region

river  (  Eastern region) very few small villages.


Bayelsa state has the largest numbers of ijaw people. followed by delta state. And not river state that most people belive. looking at the satellite picture.

Bonny is not an Ijaw town as some has claim. Bonny people are a different people. They are call Ibani people. the language is different from ijaw. The Ibani people are more related with the Opobo people.

the Opobo people are not Ijaws, as some have believed, The Opobo people are More related with the people of Ikot Abasi people in akwa ibom. Even the former name of Opobo town was Ikot Abassi.

Andoni people are also more related to Akwa Ibom people. In andoni they call God by the name  Abassi. The deputy governor of river state is an andoni man and you can verify this. 

Coming back to the Ijaws.

There are not many ijaws living in river state as widely believe. Some of this other people are different ethnics group different from Ijaw.

Even in Bonny according to my internet seach on a bonny website. The second spoken language after Ibani, is not Ijaw. but mix pingin Igbo Ibani.  the igbos used to use bonny to ship slave.

Hypocrites!

Whoever nigerians decide to hate, they will hate no matter where you are coming from. Otherwise, how do an average niger deltan blame or even deal with their leaders who are being protected by the same FG and her top officials? Why wont the current ND leaders loot when the government is protecting the likes of Ibori and co?

Whose call is it to prosecute the corrupt ND leaders if not the FG who is surprisingly doing everything within its power to shield them from justice?

Bankole is either a bad lier or an educated moron!

Damn it!