SAN FRANCISCO, August 27, (THEWILL) – The governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike has accused the Federal Government of deliberately excluding the Southeast and Southsouth regions in the appointments and the provision of basic infrastructures, stressing that both geopolitical zones are the most marginalised in the country.
He stated this at an address of welcome delivered on Sunday when governors of the Southsouth and Southeast met at the Government House in Port Harcourt where they discussed regional and economic integration to enhance the development of the area.
According to Wike: “Even in contemporary Nigeria, we still share the same or similar challenges, including insecurity, poverty and under-development despite the best of efforts by the constituent State governments. Today, the two regions are the most politically and economically marginalised within the nation, environmentally degraded and deliberated neglected by the federal government in appointments and provisions of basic development infrastructures.
“None of the airports and seaports located in the regions is reasonably functional, while the few federal roads are not in good shape, neither are the two regions linked by any rail services.
“From geo-strategic economic perspective, therefore, there is an urgent need to establish and link our cities with railways and super highways; to provide viable and affordable flight services between our cities, and to ensure that cargoes are brought into the country and the regions through our seaports, jetties and ferry services as a veritable means of stimulating economic growth and social progress across our two regions.
“Also, we are all aware that economic growth and social progress are possible only in a peaceful and secure environment. And much as we try to tackle this menace in our respective States by providing the necessary logistic support to the security agencies, perceptions of insecurity are on the rise, doing significant damage to our investment climate, thereby, preventing reasonable inflow of direct foreign and local investment into the regions.”
The Rivers governor went on to urge his colleagues to “be confident in the rightness of our course and clear in our considerations that we have been and would continue to be worse off without the will to exploit our political and economic complementarities to drive our ways into political, economic and social prosperity.
“Above all, we must continue to demand the devolution of powers and resources to the states as well as the institutionalisation of State police, now that there is national consensus on these issues.”
Aside Wike, the meeting was attended by the Akwa Ibom Governors Udom Emmanuel, Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta, Dave Umahi of Ebonyi, Rochas Okorocha of Imo, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu and Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia state.
Others were the Acting Governor of Bayelsa State, John Jonah, Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Dr Nkem Okeke, Edo State Deputy Governor, Philip Shaibu and the Cross River State Deputy Governor, Prof. Ivara Esu.
In his remark, Emmanuel who chairs the South-South and South-East Governors Forum described the meeting as a new beginning for the two geo-political zones and urged governors of both regions to form a common front for socio-economic development which would better the lives of their people.
While expressing delight that the governors set aside impediments to chart a new direction, he said: “Federal presence in the region is minimal and only seen in the presence of policemen”.
The Akwa Ibom governor called for the development of an industrial framework that will enhance development and noted that the regions were better off united than divided.
