A member representing Ovia federal constituency of Edo State in the House of Representatives, Dennis Idahosa, speaks on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and problem of insecurity, among other sundry issues, in this interview with Mudiaga Affe
Following the recent spate of the kidnapping of schoolchildren by bandits, especially in the northern states, what does this portend for the development of education in the country?
Insecurity is one of our biggest enemies at the moment in the country. No investor would want to invest in a country where there is insecurity. I recently got a message from the government of Canada warning its citizens to avoid Nigeria due to insecurity and for me that was very disturbing. Although we do not yet have school children kidnap in the southern part of the country, I do not think we should wait until we start having such a scenario. I would encourage governors in the south to intensify the use of local vigilance groups to reduce the spate of insecurity in the zone.
I want to use this medium to counsel our leader, Muhammadu Buhari, who as president has the military at his disposal. The military is being paid with tax-payers money and they are not doing much to show for that. When there is insecurity in any region, you declare a state of emergency in that region to flush out the bandits and criminals. If the president is not doing that, then something is wrong.
With due respect, Buhari is the leader of my party, (the All Progressives Congress) but it is disheartening to note that we have a leader that has the military at his disposal and we are still having this level of insecurity in the country. We are not happy and we want him to step up as the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. This is not just a title, you must be seen to exhibit that power to protect your people.
Some persons have linked the lingering insecurity to compromise, do you agree with that thinking?
Obviously. I strongly believe that there is a connivance between certain persons and those in authority, I do not want to mention names, but we know that when our former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, was confronted with similar situations in the South-South when he was in power, he mobilised the military and they brought the system under control within a short time. Obasanjo is from the southern part of the country, but he did not care if the criminal elements were his relations, he flushed them out.
You cannot be harbouring kidnappers, bandits, killer herdsmen because they are from the Fulani tribe, they should be flushed out to normalise the system. As a lawmaker in this country, if the system fails, I am also part of it. The military we once knew, if they are given instructions to carry out a task they carry it out. Insecurity in the country is escalating because they have not been truly instructed to check it. At the moment, we are referring to the damage it is doing to the education sector in the north, it has also affected other sectors. People no longer travel from one state to another for fear of insecurity and we cannot continue like this as a nation.
A lot of probes have been instituted in the past to examine the happenings in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), yet nothing special has been accomplished, as a House Committee member of the commission, what is your take on this?
I am of the view that the operations of the commission should be taken back to the Presidency from the ministry. Having a minister controlling NDDC is an error. With due respect to the minister involved, it is not directed at him, but I feel so pained because I see NDDC as a cash cow.
The nine oil-producing states in the south cannot continue this way. When our ranking members in the National Assembly came up with the Act governing NDDC, it was for the development of the region. But has there been any development in the region? No. All we are seeing are abandoned projects everywhere because the commission is used as a conduit for siphoning funds. I will advocate that they should return the commission to the Presidency. By so doing, it would have been eliminated from being under the control of one person.
The Act governing the commission gives the governors from the region the power to have an input in the development of the area, but so far, I do not think the governors have been carried along. So, let us not bring partisan politics into this. The six governors in the South-South states are all members of the Peoples Democratic Party but it is not a yardstick for them not to be involved in critical decisions that have to do with NDDC.
The governors in collaboration with stakeholders of the region should meet to come up with a template that would work because whatever they have been doing has failed. As it is, NDDC money is going to individual pockets and I do not think that is the reason why the commission was established. Let us take partisan politics out of it and come up with a template that will work for the region.
The political fight between Governor Godwin Obaseki and his predecessor, Adams Oshiomhole, took a twist the other day when the governor alleged that a N30bn stormwater project initiated in 2010 by Oshiomhole was to defraud the state, as a cabinet member then what is your reaction to this?
I have tremendous respect for Obaseki and Oshiomhole. I have always advocated settlement among these two great leaders and I will continue to press for peace because the Bible says that blessed are the peacemakers. Obaseki is in the PDP at the moment, while Oshiomhole is in the APC, I believe there is room for peace. I call on Obaseki not to allow sycophants cause the end of relationship with his friend, Oshiomhole. He should look at when Oshiomhole was there for him against all odds. Elections have come and gone and I think they should sheathe their swords.
On the issue of the N30bn stormwater project, they know the details. I was a commissioner for Investment and Public-Private-Partnership during that administration, and Obaseki was then the chairman of the Economic Team when Oshiomhole was at the helm of affairs in the state. I have a fair knowledge of what transpired but I think we should move away from the past for Edo to move forward.
The campaign for who becomes president in 2023 has begun. Some persons believe that the North should retain it, while others want it zoned to the south. Even at that, there is the debate on whether it should be the turn of the South-west or South-east to produce the next president, where do you stand?
What I want is what God wants for this nation, it is not about my interest but the interest of God. In the situation, we have found ourselves now, unless God intervenes Nigerian will soon be a failed state. In terms of equity, I do not think northerners should expect the presidency in 2023 because from inception, it has always been about rotation. Coming to the south, I am not particular about who should get it but I will support anyone that God has given His blessings to have it. I will appeal to our spiritual leaders in the country to throw away sentiments and seek the face of God for guidance and direction so that we will not miss it this time. As a youth, I am advocating a young, eloquent, proactive, and dogged leader that will listen to the yearnings of Nigerians and not someone with tribal sentiments.
You were recently sighted monitoring a project in your constituency, what do you hope to achieve with the project?
The budget circle for the 2020 budget will elapse at the end of March. At the moment, there are 25 projects across the Ovia federal constituency. They include the construction of 18 schools that are 80 per cent completed. For me, it is not just giving the job to contractors, but to ensure that they are monitored to meet the maximum standard for the projects.
There is also one healthcare centre, two skills acquisition centres, street light projects in seven communities, industrial borehole projects, and ultra-modern town hall building, which are at their various advanced level of completion. Due to time constraints, they are being monitored to work both day and night to meet with the March 31 deadline.
How often do you feel the pulse of the people?
Before I was elected, I was a grassroots man. Now that I am representing them at the federal level, I cannot be effective without having the input of our people. For that reason, I get in touch with them to give me the projects that they will appreciate. All the ongoing projects in the constituency have their inputs. It is a bottom-top approach and this will continue.
