Don’t be used to disrupt peace in Niger Delta, NYCN tells Nigerians

The National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has urged youths in the Niger Delta not to allow themselves to be used to disrupt the developmental projects and peace being enjoyed in the region.

The Council made the call in a communique signed on Sunday by its president, Mr Solomon Adodo, after a three-week tour and assessment of the state of affairs in the Niger Delta region.

The on-the-spot assessment was necessitated by the outcry in some quarters that the region is restive and volatile.

The communique stated “the peace being enjoyed in the Niger Delta region and the developmental projects being executed are products of the Forensic Audit of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), which was ordered by the Federal Government.”

According to the communique, many contractors who abandoned their contracts after payment have returned to execute the projects.

It therefore urged youths in the area to resist tricks by mischievous politicians to derail the peace and development in the region.

“Every naira of the Federal Government being spent can now be accounted for with matching projects that have directly impacted the masses.

“We have seen firsthand the massive road and bridge constructions simultaneously ongoing in the region amongst other intervention programmes.

“The pockets of criticism of the NDDC management and the forensic audit were sponsored by a few politicians who had converted the Commission into their cash cow at the detriment of the masses.

“It is very surprising to note amongst other things that due to the direct developmental interventions of the Federal Government, the region looks onto the future with greater hope, while appreciating the works being sincerely done.

“The ordinary citizens of the Niger-Delta, who are over 99 per cent of the population, welcome the Forensic Audit of the NDDC as ordered by President Muhammadu Buhari.

“So, any form of blackmail against the present administration must be met with stiff resistance on account of the several sincere developmental strides of the government in the region,” the communique stated.

The NYCN further appealed to governments at all levels in the region, as well as traditional and religious leaders to consolidate on the feat already achieved by the Federal Government in ensuring that the region got its rightful place in the national developmental equation.