faulker002

By   Chris O.O. Biose The basic issue in the Niger Delta is that since the promulgation of Petroleum Decree No. 51, 1969, the Off Shore Oil Revenue Decree (No. 9), 1971 and other obnoxious military decrees by which military dictators dispossessed the Niger Delta of the benefits of its oil and gas resources, successive Federal administrations have been extracting the oil and gas in the Niger Delta and using the proceeds to develop other Regions in the country to the exclusion of the Niger Delta. The activities of the oil companies were reflected in permanent gas flares, massive coastal marine pollution and unprecedented levels of environmental degradation without parallel anywhere in the world. They promoted intra and inter-community strife by means of selective favours. Regrettably, some youth resorted to militancy although the vast majority remained law-abiding. All these engendered tendency towards breakdown in traditional values and confusion among the oppressed people of the Ni...

By   Lexzy Ochibejivwie Warri, a one-time beautiful and bustling city, has become a laughing stock. The city has been severely scoffed at several fora as a place where people appreciate talk more than physical development. Some social media freaks have recently used its state of roads as raw probative data for articulating what is not right about Delta State . The city has so much promise. *Gov Okowa It has all the potentials to be Africa’s  Dubai . Many of its indigenes are very talented. Warri, it was, groomed and ignited the first spark of inspiration to famous professional stand-up comics like AY, I Go Dye, Gordons, and many others, who brought thrill to stage comedy and modern live theatre in  Nigeria . A large chunk of its population are young, ebullient and enterprising. Several businesses have also found a conducive atmosphere in the city. Warri is host to some of the biggest and most successful companies in Delta state, if not in Nigeria . One of the four recogn...

By   Hope Eghagha    Early in 2018 when Mallam Atiku Abubakar began to reference restructuring the nation’s polity as one of his cardinal goals, I thought I should take him seriously. As a man from the Niger Delta whose region has been fundamentally shortchanged by the current quasi-federal arrangement I naturally took interest in this core northern leader who had decided to make restructuring a campaign issue.  *Atiku Abubakar  Middle of last year I tried through some of his aides to reach him. No luck. He was either too busy or the aides I reached did not have the clout to arrange a meeting. So I let it rest. Once Atiku Abubakar secured the PDP’s nomination as presidential candidate I thought I should use this medium to broach some of the issues I would have presented to him. Let me state from the outset that we do not need a prophet to tell us that President Muhammadu Buhari is not interested in the restructuring matter. This is clear from the way he handled ...