Suffering As Jonathan Visits Rivers, 500,000 Trek

Suffering As Jonathan Visits Rivers, 500,000 Trek

THE visit of President Goodluck Jonathan to Rivers State, the capital of Nigeria's oil and gas industry, on Friday, brought more anogy to citizens than joy.

Pregnant women, school children, market women, visitors, hospital patients and workers were made to trek long distances as the police block all major roads and streets as a security measure for the visiting president.

The agony of citizens did not appear to indicate that all was well with the security situation in the volatile Niger Delta.

On the average, commuters had to trek for some 10 kil;ometers. Sopme obviously aggrieved citizens spoke aloud, saying the security forces in Nigeria are yet to master hoe to manage such a high profile visit without inflicting maximum hardship on citizens.

AkanimoReports however, reports that President Jonathan appears to be continuiong with the tradition of former President Olusegun Obasanjo. It was always a tale of woes whenever Obasanjo visited Port Harcourt, the Rivers capital during the era of Peter Odili as governor.

In spite of the suffering of citizens, Mr. Chibuike Amaechi, the state governor, had this to say at a state reception for the visiting president:

''While we understand the great personal loss you must feel at this time we urge you to be comforted by the fact that the late President was a selfless leader committed to the peace and development of our country. The love of country and determination to changing the political atmosphere of our nation are some of the visions both you and late President Yar Adua shared.

As an integral part of the administration we most sincerely commend this commitment to the greater good. We are confident that God, who has chosen you as President at this time in our nation’s quest for a new direction and accelerated development, will also keep and strengthen you in all goodness.

Your Excellency we feel privileged to have you among us especially because you have chosen to make us the first state in Nigeria you would be paying a working visit in your capacity as President and Commander in Chief. The Government of Rivers State has so much in common with the thrust of your presidency. We share with you the burden of realizing within the shortest time possible, the legitimate aspirations of our people for the basic necessities that will help us build a great, prosperous and united nation.

We therefore salute the courage and wisdom you have displayed within the period that God has elected to have you steer the Nigerian statecraft. You have truly during this period, gifted certain enduring lessons to the Nigerian political space. The enduring lessons of patriotism to one’s nation are virtues worthy to be pursued. These are lessons we hope, would enrich the minds of the principal actors in the emerging new phase of Nigeria ’s political history.

Your Excellency, your visit to our beloved state is very significant to us in so many ways especially as it offers us an opportunity to affirm the informed priorities you have set for our nation. Firstly is your commitment to electoral reforms. The period 1999-till date has clearly shown that nobody actually wins when the votes of the people do not count. Electoral crime is an ill-wind that blows nobody any good.

Secondly, Rivers State stands with you in the constructive emergency you have declared in the power sector. Rivers State , like other states in the country, faces the peculiar challenge of overseeing a local economy with so much potential yet to be fully harnessed largely because of the parlous state of power supply. This position is especially unacceptable because we have the capacity to generate more than enough electricity to meet our local power demands.

Only just now, Your Excellency commissioned 100 megawatts of electricity from our Trans Amadi power generating stations. The power project in Rives state was started by former Governor Peter Odili. Indeed former President Olusegun Obasanjo commissioned 30 megawatts of electricity which the Odili administration completed, also at this station.

Currently we are generating about 250 megawatts of electricity from our two power generating stations at Trans-Amadi, and Omoku. Our target is to hit 500 megawatts by the end of this administration in 2011. Despite these efforts, it is unfortunate that we still cannot deliver power to the homes of our people. Our power need in the state is a little under 400 megawatts but the bureaucracy and bottle necks continue to forbid us from distributing electricity directly to the people. May we most respectfully request Your Excellency, to go all the way to implement the power sector reforms and totally deregulate the sector. Our experience with the telecommunications sector shows us that this is the only reasonable way to go if our people are to experience stable power supply.

One thorny issue that continues to engage our minds is the post-amnesty situation. We trust that you will do all the right things. Not just because you have a reputation for staying true to your covenants but also because you have an insider perception of the urgent need to actively and honestly engage the rehabilitation of the population that had taken part in the past regime of violent militancy in the Niger Delta.

As Your Excellency is aware, our state was the first to kick off a rehabilitation programme for youth in the region. This for us, was a clean- up exercise, and gave opportunity to our people who were involved in the brigandage our state witnessed, to have a rethink and be reabsorbed in normal society.

While actively pursuing our rehabilitation, we have also made crime unattractive in Rivers State . Although security is the federal government’s responsibility but we believe each of us must support the centre for more effective security of lives and property. In Rivers State , our investments in provision of equipment and welfare packages for security personnel have helped to redeem and strengthen the once frail security situation within the state. We pray that our region may never experience the discomfiting insecurity that attended it in the recent past. One way to achieve this is to give the people of the region a greater sense of belonging.

It is in this light, that we wish to remind Your Excellency of the Petroleum Industry Bill, especially the provision of 10 percent equity ownership of oil wells for oil bearing communities. We request you to kindly request the relevant federal agencies to expedite this process as this is one step in the process of assuaging the pain that years of neglect have caused people of these communities. Indeed all of our federating units must feel the presence of the government at the centre.

It is indeed depressing that there is, scarcely, sufficient federal presence in a state like ours which is the nerve centre of the Nigerian economy. This state holds the largest of the nation’s gas as well as a sizeable proportion of its crude oil

May we therefore graciously appeal to Your Excellency to kindly consider the reimbursement of the N45bn already spent by the state government in rehabilitating Federal roads in the state. Notable of mention is the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt - Owerri road (N21bn) the Rumuokrusi / Eleme flyover ( N7 billion), as well as the Ada George/ East west Road end of the Port Harcourt Owerri Road, on which we are spending N17.5 bn. Having seen the top grade we are doing on these roads, we have no doubt in our minds that you would consider our pleas and grant our request.

May we also use this opportunity to request the Federal government’s assistance in the building of the new campus for the Rivers State University of Science and Technology. Such help is critical to help us achieve our vision of a world class science and technology institute that would catalyze sustainable skill development for the nation and the entire West African sub region.

Your Excellency, permit me at this point to present to you a few reasons why the Federal Government should want to become a more active partner of the Rivers State government. Ours is a purpose-driven government that came in with a full appreciation of the developmental challenges of our people. We are gratified that today. Rivers people have somehow discerned enough reasons as to reinvest their trust and confidence in organized government.

Today, the Rivers State government has not only taken over the full funding of primary education, we have also undertaken a massive rebuilding of our educational and health facilities. Presently, over 350 model primary schools, 24 model secondary schools and 160 primary health centers equitably spread throughout all the Local Government Areas of the state are either completed or nearing completion. Apart from upgrading our College of Education into a Degree awarding institution, we have committed to delivering a brand new campus of the University of Science and Technology to Rivers State before the end of the tenure of this administration.

Our road and general infrastructure, including water and power facilities, are not just receiving facelifts: they are being engaged with the honest admission that decades of criminal neglect have left the state with an outdated basic infrastructural complex that is nothing but an insult to the robust capacity of Rivers people.

While we welcome Your Excellency, we invite you to relax and enjoy the best of home. We wish that you had spent more time as two days is hardly sufficient time for us to take care of a great son and a most worthy in law.

As you know, Rivers State is the warm-bed of hospitality. This you can attest to being happily married to our lovely daughter, Her Excellency, the First Lady of Nigeria, Dame Patience Goodluck Jonathan. So please after you have spent Monday to Friday working hard in Abuja , find time to come home and relax at the weekends.

It’s our prayer that the good Lord will bless you and give you the wisdom to provide our nation with visionary leadership. You can rest assured of our support. Welcome home Mr. President''.

ENDS

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