*** Isoko Must Support Power Rotation, Itsekiri To Dislodge The Ijaw
Isoko Monitoring Group, (IMG), a pressure group in Isoko of Delta state, Nigeria, has accused governor Ifeanyi Okowa and President Muhammadu Buhari of abandoning the people of oil rich Isoko nation of the Niger Delta region to their own fate.
Expressing his displeasure Sunday, in Warri, over what he termed marginalization and gross neglect of his people by the state and federal governments, President of the Isoko Monitoring Group, (IMG), Sebastine Agbefe, noted that “The Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa led administration, has totally abandoned the Isoko people to their fate. State owned institutions in Isoko area are not being funded.
“Recently, all 100 level students of faculty of Engineering in Oleh campus, Isoko South LGA, were relocated to the mother campus in Abraka for lack of adequate funding. This movement, however, is contrary to the law that established the Delta State University with provision for three campuses to be sited in the three senatorial district of the State.
“The internal and access roads in our land are deathtrap, our healthcare centers are completely moribund, our basic and secondary schools are homes for snakes and other wild animals because they have been abandoned. Honestly, talking about these injustice is getting me agitated and provoked.
“The Isoko people are known to be part of the major contributors to the national treasury through the large presence of natural gas and crude oil that are being extracted daily by the federal government. With the presence of crude oil and oil fields in virtually all Isoko communities and a production capacity of about 73,000 barrels per day from about 60 oil wells, Isoko ought to be a major stakeholder in Delta State and in Nigeria.
“Unfortunately, we have been grossly marginalized by the state and federal government. It is alarming to note that the Isokos are inadequately considered in terms of project allocation in Delta State and Nigeria. Our land is as toxic as poison itself and this has consistently reduced the average lifespan of our people. Gas flaring and other oil exploration activities are on the rise in our territory.
“It is a verifiable fact that despite being a rich home of natural gas, Isoko is in total darkness in terms of electricity power supply. so, each time we hear about how power has improved in the country, we begin to wonder if Isoko is still in Nigeria. It will even surprise you that the Isokos are not considered worthy enough to have good roads. Just take a drive from Warri through Ughelli and down to Isoko land, you will understand what nature of hell the Isoko people are made to go through. In Delta State for example, the Isokos have never fared badly like the case is under the current government.
“Not too long ago, we led a protest against the State government on how it allocated a little over 2% to Isoko land in its 2018 budget. A very ugly experience. The Federal government have not done any better. For decades now, the only federal government presence in Isoko land is the police stations. Can you imagine that? All federal roads linking Isoko to other parts of the State are a total eyesore. We have been cut off from our own country.
“The President Buhari led government promised that it is investing some billions of dollars in the Niger Delta but till date, we cannot see any manifestation in our area. There are no signs of Modular Refineries to be established in Isoko land neither is the government considering to build a standard hospital for the people. Recall that we have always cried that the oil exploration activities have caused our people terrible ailments that requires special medical care.
“It is worrisome that our people travel to urban centers like Benin, Warri and Ibadan to seek medical attention. These are all signs of the injustices we suffer despite our contributions to the Nation. In terms of appointments, there’s absolutely nothing to write home about. We are worse than we have always been in Delta State. For instance, where other ethnic groups got appointments like “Secretary to State Government, Chief of Staffs, Commissioner for Works, Information, Economic Planning, Health, Transport etc.
“The Isokos were penciled for the most insignificant portfolios. To us in Isoko, we do not have any appointees in the government of Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa and this is seriously provocative. At the federal level, there is absolutely nothing tangible to point at. We were thinking that President Muhammadu Buhari will bring justice to the marginalised ethnic groups across the country but we were wrong..” Agbefe stated.
According to the group’s leader, the call for Isoko nation to produce a Minister and other appointments that reflects their economic contribution to the nations coffers is still un-answered.
Meanwhile, Isoko Monitoring Group, (IMG), has expressed sadness over what it described as the “continuous” stay of Senator James Manager, an Ijaw, representing the Delta South Senatorial district in the national Assembly without any atom of respect for power rotation among other ethnic nationalities in the district.
According to the group, the Isoko people have decided to take their destiny into their own hands this time around by throwing weights behind the Itsekiris to displace Senator James Manager, an Ijaw man, who the group said has turned Mugabe in the seat as if its his father’s property.
President of the Isoko Monitoring Group, (IMG), Mr. Sebastine Agbefe, said “The Isoko nation are fully ready to join forces with the Itsekiris to make sure Senator James Manager, an Ijaw, is voted out massively because as a people, we will not continue to fold our hands; we will have to fight for it. The Ijaw man, occupying the position now in the person of James Manager, has turned Mugabe to the detriment of other ethnic nations in the district. It is the turn of the Itsekiris to occupy the seat, and Isokos are solidly behind the Itsekiris come 2019.”
