The Niger Delta Progressives Alliance (NDPA) has endorsed President Bola Tinubu for a second term, demanding an increase in the oil derivation fund from 13 per cent to 25 per cent.
The group announced its position on Saturday at a stakeholders’ meeting in Yenagoa, tagged ‘Nigeria at 66: The Legacy of Bold Reforms’.
The meeting’s theme was ‘Evaluative Overview of the Tinubu Reforms in Three Years in Relation to the Quest for Sustainable Development for Niger Deltans’.
Victor Udoh, the group’s convener, said the Tinubu administration had delivered more tangible benefits to the Niger Delta than to any other region in its first three years.
Mr Udoh said Nigeria’s history was intertwined with oil exploration in the Niger Delta, but the region had yet to maximise the benefits of its natural resources.
“Two years before Nigeria’s independence, oil was struck in commercial quantities, and it became the driving force that took this country into independence,” he said.
He lamented that, despite the region’s contribution to national development, its people had not fully benefited from the resources extracted from their land.
Mr Udoh said the era of violent militancy should give way to constructive engagement and drew inspiration from South-South governors’ efforts to secure the region’s derivation entitlements.
He recalled the legal dispute over the offshore-onshore dichotomy, saying the governors challenged the Supreme Court’s position and secured a reversal that paved the way for the current 13 per cent derivation allocation.
Mr Udoh also cited the establishment of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) as an important milestone in efforts to address the region’s developmental challenges.
Jator Abido, national coordinator of the Niger Delta Youth Council Worldwide, said Nigeria must make bold decisions to address longstanding economic and governance challenges.
“At 66, Nigeria is no longer a young nation making excuses. We are a mature nation that must make bold choices,” he said.
Mr Abido said the Tinubu administration’s removal of the fuel subsidy and unification of the foreign exchange market were difficult but necessary structural reforms.
He acknowledged that the policies had increased inflation and worsened living costs in Port Harcourt, Warri and Yenagoa.
However, he argued that the reforms had helped restore investor confidence, stem economic losses and increase federal allocations to states, including those in the Niger Delta, by more than 60 per cent.
Mr Abido said Nigeria’s crude oil production had risen from about 1.4 million barrels per day to approximately 1.8 million barrels per day through collaboration between security agencies and private security firms.
He also welcomed the establishment of the Presidential Committee on Ogoni Consultations and the reconstitution of the relevant board to accelerate the Ogoni clean-up process.
Lucky Micheal, president of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Bayelsa Chapter, commended Tinubu for introducing the student loan scheme.
He urged Nigerian students to support the president’s re-election bid, saying the initiative would help advance their educational opportunities.
Ubong Akpan also praised the administration’s efforts in the Niger Delta and urged Nigerians to re-elect Mr Tinubu to complete the work he had started.
(NAN)