₦airaland Forum

The problem with Chxta is that he talks[b] too much[/b]. Two things are evident in his write up:

1.0 Ignorance and its effect on the Nigerian masses.
2.0 The folly inherent in advocating for a break up of the Nigerian State.

These are purely his opinions - the way he sees issues within the larger Nigerian society. And thank God they're not binding on all of us. We all have our views about Nigeria, shaped largely by what experience we all have in one part of the country or the other.

Attitudinal change will not go far to help bring about the needed reforms we so much crave in Nigeria. At best it will only scratch the surface. What we need is leadership change and the earlier we have this the better for this country of ours. We need credible, forthright, sincere and visionary leaders to take us to the next level in all facets of human endeavour in Nigeria. Soludo has been doing a lot in that regards in Economics; same with Akinyuli in drugs administration. We need more people of this calibre to move on.

Well, I expected a soft touch from you on this topic, if you are truly a[b] lady[/b]. But with the way you come up with your entries, I'll wager one's dealing with an elderly man.

All I know is that if EFCC is after corrupt people, they should start with all the big fishes. If I cast my fishnet into a river during any fishing operation, my net normally brings up the big fishes first before the small ones.

EFCC case has defied natural order of events.

@grafikdon,
Na wah o!

@Laudate,
I must say you're a toughie. And if you truly are a lady, you have earned my respect. Impressive.

Yeah. God dey.

Well, I didn't know Laudate is a lady.

1. I don't know what you mean by this constant referral to an 'enclave', any location to host an LNG plant will have to undergo massive infrastructural development to accomodate the plant, be it in the Delta or elsewhere. Olokola is a bit farther from the 'core' ND shoreline, making it less susceptible to the malaise of ocean pirates and rebels in the creeks - more succinctly, it  is a safer location for both the plant workers and the ships to carry the gas. In addition, there is an existing Jetty in the location that is being upgraded to accomodate larger vessels and support the increased traffic. moreso, the location- that is Olokola created an environment suitable for such an investment by creating a free trade zone and beginning to provide supportive and conducive environment for the project

2. The power plant comment has been answered many times over, but let me repeat for emphasis - the 9 NIPP power plants being built in the Delta will supply power to the villages and settlements in the immediate 5km radius before serving power to the grid, this is the new paradigm for all new power stations including the Papalanto one, so to try to paint a picture of a dichotomy between an ND project and one elsewhere is inaccurate. Furthermore - NLNG has a scholarship program EXCLUSIVE to Rivers state/gas gathering communities, no others benefit, so it is not always a 'come and chop' scenario as you painted, local indigenes are always given preference in such cases, another example is the reserved quota for Rivers state indigenes in the recent LNG recruitment drive

3. Can you show one shred of evidence supporting this claim that it was supposed to be sited in Escravos? Even if it was, given the political and other disturbances that are going on in the delta, the 'Niger Delta Premium' being factored now into the construction and other costs due to kidnappings and work closures by community protests  may have led a more neutral location being a more cost effective option. again I point to the Free Trade Zone and other local incentives given to make Olokola a more attractive choice. and as I mentioned earlier, why do you think that this LNG plant would be the magic wand to 'soothe the pains' or 'create the needed employment' in the Delta? There is the EGTL construction going on in Escravos at the moment, not to mention the EGP that has been completed and the export terminal, is that not enough in a single location? and wouldn't it make more sense to locate an new asset away from the current problems in the Delta?

4. The points above that I have given should suffice in that regard, Olokola is suitable due to economic factors surrounding the Free Trade Zone, the existing Jetty and the willingness of the state governments to assist the project take off smoothly with few interruptions from the community. In addition, Oil and Gas Royalties are not paid based on the point of export, but rather on the source of extraction, if not only Escravos, Brass, Bonny and QIT would receive any money for crude oil production, since they are the only export terminals. One more point, there is no crude oil production at all on Bonny Island, it was chosen as a good location for export of products, that was the final determinant. Olokola's proximity to Chevron's large Agbami offshore field and subsequent deep offshore discoveries also increase its appeal as a good technical location for the project.

@debosky,
Well, I just finished reading up all these.

1.0 Like I said sometimes ago, I don't have any beef against Olokola as long as the gas fields that will supply that plant with the needed gas will be at Ogun and Ondo state. Since, as you put it, ocean pirates might attack the pipeline that will take gas from the Niger Delta to Olokola. So, I suggest that plant should be built for the gas fields in the said states.

I did not know that a hitherto sparsely populated area can create an enabling environment suitable for a free trade zone. Please educate me for I know very little about these things.

2.0 I need the stats about these 9 Independent Power Plants (IPPs) in the Delta. But I should let you know that most times, when government change hands in Nigeria, laudable project set up by a prevoius administration often turns to white elephant projects. The contract for the dualisation of the East-West Road has been awarded several times - since the early 80s. It wasn't until of late that we've seen some progress of work on that road. I just hope they will complete it.

3.0 Most times, political moves don't come out as publications and facts. That Escravos was the place meant for the gas plant cannot be disputed. The disagreement between Ondo and Delta states government over the location of the gas plant generated so much heat two years ago. They were on the pages of most newspapers for all to see. If OBJ at the time wanted a neutral location, I guess a town in Abia or Imo states which share a common boundary with Rivers and Delta states would have been appropriate for that plant. Why choose a place hundreds of kilometres away from the raw material site to locate a plant.

I guess the planners and designers of the Ewekoro Cement factory at Sagamu should have built the plant at Ijebu-Ode instead of Shagamu. It wouldn't have made any difference, abi?

4.0 Those points of yours don't hold water anywhere. From this picture http://www.rigzone.com/news/image_detail.asp?img_id=3774&a_id=44560 of the location of Chevron's Agbami field, please tell me if it's economically justifiable to site a plant so huge as OKLNG in Olokola or in Escravos. Obviously, Olokola is a bad deal. It should not be allowed to fly.

Planner:
I suggest that Batu, Ono, and other like minds should be banned. But leave out Dimka, he/she could be a child trying out his writing and understanding skills.

I have been a member of this forum since 2005. I have never been banned by the Obantalapipi of NL himself - Seun for any misdeed(s). Your suggestion may not hold water.

@Xris74,
Ok. Apology. Truly my name wasn't in that your list. But, could you please put a stop to this hate-spreading threads? Can we concentrate on something much interesting for once?

I have observed, with dismay, the unprovoked attacks on my person in some of the threads on this politics board.. But I remember doing all I can to calm frayed nerves on the Biafran thread. And I went to bed with the hope that all misunderstandings as regards that particular topic (Biafran War) has been resolved. But with this new thread, opened by no other person than the perennial illiterate called Xris74, I'm beginning to doubt if that's truly the case.

Well, if Ndigbos on Nairaland cannot tame a wayward son of theirs, in the person of Xris74, then may I suggest they send him to me for proper training in the art of addressing issues.

I hereby request, formally, the approval of Ndigbo Nairaland members to hand over Xris74 to me for formal training in an undisclosed location in the creeks of the Niger Delta.

My beef with Naija people and govt alike is that we don't like taking action. We're very good at making endless conferences and meetings with ''stakeholders''. We can book all the rooms at Nicon Hilton, bring girlfriends and party friends, attend these so-called meetings resulting to (ironically) fruitful points from our deliberations but, at the end of the day still go cap in hand to beg the FG for our ''dues'' from the proceeds from crude oil sales!

We have been talking about human capital development since the country gained independence from Britain in the sixties. Aside from the considerable efforts made in that direction by Awolowo and Azikiwe, all the other adminstrations in the country have contributed little or nothing in terms of human capital development. As a matter of fact, at some point during IBB's administration, Nigerians started leaving the country in droves looking for greener pasture elsewhere.

Should we continue talking, suggesting and calling meetings without taking the much needed steps to address the problems? Is it not because there's cheap oil proceeds to spend frivolously that's making government and people put up a lackadaisical attitude towards this burning issue? And is it not because our government people are ill advised (by our people, who are most often ethnically biased) that they are losing focus and direction? Well, for me sha, I'm tired of talking about these things all the time. I want to see concrete steps taken to address them.

I completely share the views of all who believe Nigeria should diversify her economy. But, this diversification slogan have been on since the days of Buhari - 1983/84. No administration in this country has taken the challenge to diversify head-on. It's all about oil and gas in the Delta. How are we going to diversify if people at the top continue like this?

Xris74:
When the oil finishes in the present 9 oil-producing states, Anambra and Enugu will take over. Then Ono and Dimka will be in deep economic shit since their lives depend on oil.

Did you read what's written in the link posted in my last entry? The Niger Delta was once reffered to as the ''Oil Rivers Protectorates'' by the Brits. This is not because of crude oil, but palm oil. Fisheries potential in the Delta is easily the highest in the country - go figure out. This is not to talk of the gas resources in there, which is in the order of trillions of standard cubic feet (Tscf) and is adjudged to be number 10 in the world. And from what I gathered, the Niger Delta gas reserves can sustain us for the next 150 years. You, Xris74, should be resting with you ancestors by the time we exhaust that. Sedimentary minerals for making glass exhist in abundance in the delta. There is rubber, timber and other export yielding crops in there. Surely the delta is self sustainable.

You don't want to mess with the delta region in terms of mineral resources.

Xris74,

Let me ask you a counter question:

Saudi Arabia is an oil producing country. Saudi Arabia is believed to host some of the largest crude oil reserves in the world. The country is the largest exporter of crude in the world.

Will it be right to say that since the Nile delta is closeby to the country, Saudi Arabia is a part of the Nile Delta?.

You need to know the word ''Delta'' to fully appreciate which area could be classed as a deltaic region or not. Let me help you with a link from Wikipedia. These days children don't browse sites where they can learn and apply knowledge. Everything must be spoon fed to them. They prefer chatting online and wasting precious time on useless sites that will do them no good.

Did you do Geography in your secondary school days at all?

The links: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/River_delta;http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger_Delta

You will see from up there that the areas which make up a deltaic region are those that lie close to where the mouth of a river flows into an ocean, sea, desert, estuary or lake.

You will aslo see from the second link that the Niger Delta historically and carthographically consist of present day Bayelsa, Delta and Rivers States. It was only in year 2000 that OBJ decided to expand it's definition to include Abia State, Akwa Ibom State, Cross River State, Edo State, Imo State and Ondo State. That should answer your question.

@ Denex and Xris74,
I believe doyin13 has answered your question - in a way I think I won't have been able to.

doyin 13,
Hmm, so you read that interesting book: Ogboju Ode Ninu Igbo Irunmale. No wonder. Awon ti won k' awe re, awon t'opolo won pe.

Did you read Igbo Olodumare too?

ebos:
I feel confident that Nigeria must join the group of these happy exceptions if we are to have political stability, economic progress, integrated development, social justice, contentment and be the epicenter of African solidarity. Since the end of the civil war, Nigeria has made considerable progress in all these areas.

To me sha, since the end of that war, it seems people just went back to their drawing board, mapped out plans to punish the Niger Delta people and then implement it.

How can one explain the kind of injustice the Delta people are facing in the present day Nigeria?

And since when did Xris74 become the yardstick for measuring Niger Delta's people response to burning issues?

denex:
@ono

don't you mean with a Niger-Delta Republic DOWN there?

If I take you up, you go forget where you dey come from.

ebos,
So much for history, what can we glean from the mistakes of the past?

Willywilly,
For your information, my wife is from Akwaibom. She's from Oron.

doyin13:
The question is not how the resources be distributed between the various subcommunities of the Niger Delta.

I am pretty certain that conflict will arise between these communities should the OWNERSHIP of these oil properties be handed back to the communities.

But tell me how the possibility of conflict justifies these areas getting only a minority stake in the proceeds of the oil.

It is quite condescending to these communities for the rest of us to feel that we can act as some sort of trustee to these oil because apparently they cannot do it themselves.

ARE THEY KIDS

My goodness!! I have never seen such a brilliant reply. No. Not in Nairaland. May God in his infinite mercies bless you with the blessings from above. Blessings that transcends proceeds from oil sales - peace of mind, success, good health and a sound mind.

I generally don't believe in rankings - so many things are dynamic these days that it's difficult to put a tab on anything.

That said, this stats only helps to expose the truth about Naija -  that there are several people feeding from the few oil deposits in the Delta and contributing little or nothing elsewhere.

Do you think that with a Niger Delta Republic up there, their HDI will be like that of Nigeria?

Ono has come again with his arguments against Olokola - is it the only LNG plant under construction?

Brass LNG located in the heart of the delta is also being started, so what is the beef with this 'resources being piped out to an 'enclave' between Ogun and Ondo'?

NLNG is in the delta, Brass LNG will be in the delta as well, just today NNPC has announced that they are going to build 2 greenfield refineries in the delta as well - one in Okrika and the other elsewhere, not to mention the Escravos Gas to Liquids project also cited in the delta.

Must each and every project be sited in the areas immediately in the delta? Ondo state itself is Oil Producing, and that is not in contention, LNG plants in general are built in locations suitable for ease of export of the product, as well as suitable construction ground for the plant, If Olokola meets these requirements, I do not see what the fuss is all about by Ono

he wants to see the project as something ethnically motivated and being 'taken away' from the ND, which is patently false.

while you are blowing up pipelines, blow up the ones to NLNG, Brass NLNG and EGTL too will you?

its stupid people like these that continue to cause problems for the delta people - they stupidly bombed the Chanomi crude pipeline supplying crude to the Warri Refinery, now adulterated Kerosine is killing people there due to no local production. Bravo ono, at this rate, you will exterminate yourselves without any external assistance

@debosky,
I did not read all these in details before. Let me reply you.

1.0 Olokola is an enclave. I know the FG will spend huge billions (if they're not doing that already) to try and bring the area up to the standard needed for an export port. That place does not meet minimum requirement for an export port.

2.0 The headquarters of NLNG, Bonny is in Lagos. Operational base in Bonny. But this OKLNG's headquarters will be in the state where the plant is located. Just like OBJ said, during the commissioning of the Papalanto plant, that the plant will feed immediate surrounding first, before any leftover will be channelled to the National Grid at Oshogbo. As we speak, the people of Afam in Rivers state are not connected directly to the mega power plant built in that area. That might explain why not so many industries site their plants there, and also why the place is still a village with sparsely populated areas.

So, when a project is sited in the Niger delta, it's a national project. And everyone is invited to ''come and chop''. But when it's somewhere else, the indigenes of the area benefit the most. We are not deceived. We know better.

3.0 Are you now going to claim the OKLNG is not an ethnically motivated project? I should remind you that the plant was originally planned to be sited at Escravos, until your brother decided to move it to his state.

4.0 If you give any technically feasible argument to prove that the OKLNG is not a politically and ethnically motivated project, I might reason with you sensibly.

Correct me if I'm wrong, is it Joe Achuzia, Secretary General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo you're talking about here or someone else?

I didn't know the man is from Asaba. Same with Emeka Ezeogwu, the arrow head of the first coup plot of 1966.

There's something about Asaba and their people. Are they truly Igbos or they are a stand alone group? They seem to be the thorn in the side of the Igbos in the South East. Just my observation. No harm intended.

All these people peddling rumours. Rumour mongers go and sleep. There is crisis in every other part of this country. Why should the one in Portharcourt attract so much attention?

I live in Portharcourt. So far, all the stuff about gunshots and others are concentrated in some parts of the city - Iwofe, DLine, Ada George, Lagos street, Eleme junction etc. These places together accounts for just some 5% or less of the size of Portharcourt. Why on earth are you all killing yourself over nothing.

Where I live, I have never heard any single gunshot fired - talkless of sporadic gunshots. The place is densely populated too.

Make una leave the Delta alone! Face other pressing issues about Nigeria - Corruption has eaten deep into the fabric of society, let us deal decisively with ingrained problems rather than scratching the surface!

No more Biafran talk. Time to pull out.

Well, I'm Isoko - for those who care to know.

Interesting! But, of a truth, Ono is not Urhobo. And like Laudate said earlier, I will not allow the relative peace we have now to deteriorate to another Igbo Vs ?? bashing - and please I'm not Itsekiri either!

If you guys are still interested in talking about the Biafran War, make una carry go!

I'm not from Rivers State.

No comments

babyosisi:
ono,I only responded to you cajoling my people.
I lived in PH and I know the stereotypes about Ijaws and heard the stereotypes Ijaws have about Igbos.
Do I hate Ijaws,absolutely not!!

Any time you or any Nigerian make a mockery of the Biafran war,you are ridiculing tens of thousands of people who fought for what they called a just cause.
That  Igbos are still constantly slaughterd in Nigeria similar to the time preceeding the war makes this an ongoing issue up till today.
And for you,a nigerdeltan (as you prefer to call yourself) to speak ill of Igbos in the venomous manner you've done,a people you live very closely with tells me the same hatred and resentment within Ijaws that caused them to rejoice and gladly confiscate Igbo properties still lives in the offsprings of the Ijaws and other Rivers state indigenes[b] that partook in this grand korokoro theft.[/b]
Igbos who fled northern and South western Nigeria went back after the war and got their houses back but not in Port Harcourt,a land formerly called "igwe ocha" inhabited and owned mostly by Igbos at a tiime,a next door neighbor,those who eventually recovered their properties did so after years in housing courts.
How can a group of people label properties left in time of war abandoned so that they could happily share stolen goods?

I believe in God and God is a God of justice.
You and your people will reap everything your forefathers have sown on your behalf.
If it was a good seed,you'll enjoy it and if it wasn't,you'll get it too.

The summary of my post is that I treat people as individuals not as a group,telling me Asari was released and Uwazurike is still in jail as a sort of victory shout over Igbos sounded so juvenile,I couldn't believe it.
Do I know any of these people?
and do you think it's all Igbos that support the new Biafran movements?
Do you think Igbos were drinking coke and celebrating the killing of saro wiwa or maman vatsa because they were non Igbos?

Let's talk outside of this place. Come online. I've got 30 minutes though. Going to shutdown soon.

babyosisi,
At this point I must drop the bombshell that definitely would cause an earthquake.

Ono is not Ijaw.

Ndigbo,
Abeg make una help me talk to Afam.

I'm tired of using foul words on people on this thread. Make una help me hold am, biko.


And lest I forget, Kanto also jabbed badly at me and my people. He should apologise too.