CITING the need for unity and peaceful co-existence, the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), has called on President-elect, Major-Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd), to implement the recommendations of the National Conference and sustain existing structures set up to develop the Niger Delta in order to accelerate the economic development of the region.
Meanwhile, the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has urged Buhari to implement what it tagged a ‘five–point’ programme against corruption to ensure improved governance in the country.
Also, stakeholders in the pension sector have urged Buhari to tackle the cabal involved in the looting of pension funds in the country, and return sanity to the sector.
Executive Secretary of the Legislative Watch, and a member of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team (PRTT), Ngozika Ihuoma, made the call on behalf of the group yesterday in Abuja at a press conference.
President of the IYC, Udengs Eradiri, who addressed a press conference in Abuja yesterday, noted that the Ijaw youths, at the congress held in Tuomo community in Delta State on April 5, resolved that Ijaw and Niger Delta youths should be calm, maintain the existing peace and give the in-coming government time to prove its intention for the region and for Nigeria.
According to him, the youths have decided to take this stand despite noticing some “deliberate efforts by the core North and a section of the south west to frustrate the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan and force him out of power through false media propaganda and insurgency in the North in connivance with some foreign countries who displayed obvious bias during the electoral process.”
The IYC, however, commended Jonathan for the peaceful manner in which he handled the situation by conceding victory.
Eradiri noted that the Congress and people of Niger Delta will welcome home the President from national service. The youths, however, noted, with sadness, that when Buhari lost the elections in 2003, 2007 and 2011, he refused to congratulate the victors.
“This act of statesmanship by President Jonathan shows the level of patriotism of Niger Deltans towards the survival and unity of Nigeria. We note with satisfaction Jonathan’s achievements while in office despite the fact that he worked in the most difficult environment,” Eradiri said.
He then called on Buhari, to sustain the amnesty programme as he promised in his manifesto, in order to ensure continued peace in the region.
He further stressed: “The existing federal structures set up to develop the Niger Delta region such as the Niger-Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Niger-Delta Ministry and other schemes should be strengthened and properly funded to rapidly develop the region by the incoming administration; address problems of environmental degradation in the Niger-Delta region including implementation of the UNEP report on Ogoni and general environmental remediation in other parts of the region which are affected by environmental degradation.”
Eradiri also called for the implementation of the recommendations of the National Conference by the incoming government to deepen the federal system of government where the federating units would develop at their own pace.
“This would address some of the imbalances responsible for political instability in Nigeria and the desperation to control government at the centre. Congress calls on the incoming Federal Government to start the process of national integration and run an all-inclusive government to address the polarisation and disunity arising from the outcome of the Presidential elections,” he further said.
SERAP’s Executive Director, Mr. Adetokunbo Mumuni in statement yesterday, charged Buhari to take concrete action to combat the problem of corruption in the country by implementing its five-point programme.
He said the biggest obstacle to reconstruction and development in Nigeria is corruption, noting that for many years, systemic corruption had distorted incentives, undermined critical institutions of governance, slowed economic progress and redistributed wealth and power to the undeserving.
According to him: “Today the level of confidence in Nigeria is low but there is clearly public enthusiasm that the incoming government will be able to bring about a society that serves its people’s interests.
“Nigerians have heard plenty of rhetoric about corruption and now is the time to take concrete action to combat the problem.
SERAP urges the president-elect to consider and implement the following five-point programme against corruption to make sure that Nigeria does not drop deeper into a pattern of corruption and impunity of perpetrators.
The programme suggested by the SERAP are: “First, the President-elect should demonstrate the political will to prevent and combat corruption not only within his presidency but also at all levels of governance. His strategy should reflect the importance of transparency, accountability and participation.
“As a first step, the president-elect should immediately after May 29, 2015 demonstrate his total rejection of corruption by publicly declaring his assets and publicly instructing all members of his government to do the same.
“Second, to break through a culture of corruption, the president-elect should not shy away from “frying big fish” including members of the National Assembly and regardless of the political party they may belong. The President-elect should promote and ensure the naming and punishment of big corrupt politicians so that a cynical citizenry can believe that his anti-corruption drive is more than words. Such prosecutions can send a powerful signal of change.
“All unresolved cases of corruption including in the aviation, oil subsidy scandal, alleged mismanagement of trillions of Naira by the Nigerian Security and Exchange Commission, missing N300 billion in the Petroleum Ministry since 2011; and others should be urgently and satisfactorily addressed.
“Nothing will kill public confidence quicker than the belief that the anti-corruption drive is directed only at those below a certain level in society. But it is also important that a campaign to combat corruption is not confused with a campaign against the opposition.
“Third, the president-elect should also prioritise prevention of corruption by carrying out reforms of institutions of governance including the judiciary, the police, anti-corruption agencies, and the regulatory authorities on electricity. To build momentum, the president-elect should begin his anti-corruption campaign where citizens perceive it to be most evident, among others.
Ihuoma noted that since Buhari is a pensioner, he should ensure that the senior citizens are not denied the right to enjoy the fruits of their labour.
Source: Guardian
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