For the Niger Delta to be peaceful, we need both development and security.
The Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr Samuel Ogbuku, has tasked the military in the Niger Delta region to be proactive in tackling the challenges of security in the region.
This as the NDDC boss has re-affirmed the commitment of the Commission to assist security agencies operating in the Niger Delta region.
Ogbuku gave the charge during a separate courtesy visits by the General Officer Commanding, 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Major General Jamal Abdussalam and the Commander of Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder, Commodore Desmond Igbo, at the NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt.
Addressing the military Chiefs, the NDDC Chief Executive Officer stressed the need for collaboration to ensure that the region remained peaceful, noting that development could only take place in an atmosphere of peace and security.
He declared: “Development and security are intertwined because without security there will be no development and where there is security and development there will be prosperity. For the Niger Delta to be peaceful, we need both development and security. Incidentally, the foundation for development is security, hence there is need for collaboration between the NDDC and security agencies.”
Ogbuku observed that since NDDC had an obligation to support security agencies, it needed a secure environment to effectively discharge its mandate as an intervention agency.
He noted: “We have always supported military formations and security agencies and we are willing to do more. Last year, we did a lot for the Nigerian Navy. Our contributions are aimed at enhancing and supporting what you are doing here in the region and also to complement what we are doing in the area of development.
“I appreciate the security agencies for the job they are doing in the Niger Delta region because the region is relatively peaceful compared to other regions in the country. I thank the Navy for doing a good job and making sacrifices for our collective well-being.”
The NDDC boss advised the Navy and other security agencies to be proactive and rely more on intelligence gathering to nip security challenges in the bud.
On supporting the security agencies, he said it also involves engaging the youths in the region in various skills by training them to ensure that they were gainfully employed.
Speaking earlier, the General Officer Commanding, 6 Division of the Nigerian Army, Maj. Gen. Abdussalam, noted that the development of the Niger Delta region could not take place without peace.
He remarked: “We need each other to succeed. We want to cement the existing relationship between NDDC and the Army.”
The GOC commended the NDDC for providing solar-power streetlights at the Army Barracks in the four states and appealed for more support in providing facilities in the barracks under the 6 Division.
He stated: “We provide security to oil and gas infrastructure in the Niger Delta region. We cover four states of Rivers, Bayelsa, Akwa Ibom and Delta States and we safeguard all oil and gas installations in the four states.”
Similarly, the Commander, NNS Pathfinder, Commodore Igbo, commended the NDDC for co-operating with security agencies working in the Niger Delta region to ensure peace, stating: “We will continue to protect the territorial integrity of the country and all its national assets.”
He said the Navy would continue to discharge its duties to the country, including maintaining peace in the Niger Delta region, which he affirmed was necessary for sustainable development to thrive.
The Commander NNS Pathfinder urged the NDDC management to continue to support security forces in the region and promised to sustain the cordial relationship between the Navy and the Commission.
