A motion asking President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to reverse the decision to rename the Ministry of Niger Delta Development to the Ministry of Regional Development has been placed on hold by the House of Representatives.
Oboku Oforji (PDP, Bayelsa), the motion’s sponsor, resigned because it was “overtaken by events.”
According to Speaker Abbas Tajudeen, President Tinubu promised him that he would accept the South-South Development Commission Bill, which would address particular problems in the Niger Delta.
He said that this development made the motion redundant because the region’s demands will be met by the bill’s passage.
While making the motion, Oforji stated that the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua created the Ministry of Niger Delta Development on September 10, 2008, with the goal of advancing security, peace, unity, and development in the Niger Delta Region.
Citing years of oil spills, a shortage of arable land, and a dearth of social amenities, Oforji voiced concerns about the hardship, unrest, and neglect in the area. He claimed that the late President Yar’Adua established the ministry to deal with these problems with good intentions.
He stated, “The Amnesty Program, which has brought relative calm to the oil-rich Niger Delta Region, was the result of dialogue with militants and significant stakeholders in the region during the brief tenure of the late President Yar’Adua from Katsina State.
These served as a precursor to the establishment of the ministry, which was focused on environmental preservation, youth empowerment, and infrastructure development in the oil-rich Niger Delta region.
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“Are we there yet? The answer is no, but the people of the Niger Delta support the establishment of the Ministry of Niger Delta Development because they think that the region’s founding fathers’ grand goals and aspirations would one day come true.
He voiced his worries. There was noticeable tension in the oil-rich area on October 24, 2024, after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced that the Ministry of Niger Delta Development will be abolished.
“This is not a good omen for a region that has enjoyed some relative peace and has made significant contributions to our nation’s economic development.”
House Leader Julius Ihonvbere (APC, Edo) promised that the ministry’s name will expand its reach to encompass other regions rather than deprive the Niger Delta region the development it deserves.
