A Niger Delta group, Anioma Youth Forum, AYF, Worldwide has appealed to President Bola Tinubu to appoint former Governor Nyesom Wike as Niger Delta Affairs Minister.
Wike, the immediate past governor of River state was recently cleared by the Nigerian Senate to become a minister of the federal republic.
He was among the 48 minister designates appointed by President Tinubu and is now waiting to designated to various ministries.
According to a statement signed by AYF National President, Comrade Nnamdi Ofonye, the group said the former governor will bring his wealth of experience to bear in developing the oil producing states.
The Niger Delta, the group stated is in a dire need of development, saying Wike will be around peg in a round hole to achieve the objectives of President Tinubu for the region.
AYF made “a passionate appeal to the President and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu GCFR to saddle the immediate past Governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike with the responsibility of re-calibrating the Niger Delta region by appointing him as the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.”
According to the group, “The Niger Delta region has long been plagued by numerous challenges, including environmental degradation, youth unemployment, and lack of basic infrastructure. These issues have hindered the progress and development of the region, affecting the lives of millions of it’s citizens in particular and Nigerians at large
“This appeal to Mr. President has become necessary for so many reasons and above those reasons, the President has shown that he is in a hurry to deliver and leave an indelible mark across all sectors of the Nigerian state and across all zones of the country.
“While we are aware that nominations and assigning of portfolios to all Senate-cleared nominees is the prerogative of the President and Commander in Chief, we are expectant that our appeal will get the attention of the President who has shown to have a listening ear to the plights and demands of the people. This is a plight for us that requires his express attention.
“Consequently, the saddling of responsibilities and ministries to the incoming ministers is one that must be done based on capacity, competence and will-Power to deliver without any form of excuse.
“Furthermore, our conviction is strongly anchored on the fact that Gov. Wike can not be bullied, intimidated, harassed or blackmailed into submission by anybody or group both within and outside the region as we have identified this ugly misnomer as one of the banes of the Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC by some forces which has led to the underdevelopment bedeviling the oil rich yet impoverished zone.
“During his time as Governor of Rivers state, H.E Nyesom Wike demonstrated exceptional courage and the very rare political will-power to face headlong several issues that confronted his state. Under his administration, Rivers State experienced significant growth and development in various sectors especially infrastructure.
“If appointed as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, which supervises the NDDC, we believe that Governor Wike will bring his wealth of experience, passion, and dedication to bear in fast-tracking development. He will be able to effectively address the challenges faced by the region. As the supervising Minister of the corrupted NDDC, he will be able to ensure that the interventionist agency gets back on track in fulfilment of its core mandate to the people.
“From records, while the federal government has sunk trillions of tax payers money into the region through the NDDC, the zone and its people are unfortunately among the most deprived and poorest people in the country owing to the pilfering, looting and diversion of the allocated funds by those appointed in the past thereby leaving the zone with multitude of shabby, irrelevant and abandoned projects littered everywhere.
“In conclusion, we want to thank Mr. President in advance for hearkening to this SOS call for the sake of the development, prosperity and sustainable peace in the Niger Delta region by appointing H. E Nyesom Wike who we are convinced will leave a mark just as he did in Rivers state,” the statement said.
Speaking during his appearance before the senate last week, the former governor said he built more infrastructure than his predecessors.
His signature projects are the many bridges which now dotted the states, his supporters said.
