From last week, continues the  narrative of how the minority question gave birth to the appointment of the Willinks Minority Commission and its relevance to the Niger Delta which has always been considered a special area in Nigeria. 

(g) To render annual returns to the President, Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces and copy the State and Local Governments on all matters relating. to the special fund; 

(h) to advise the Federal, State and Local Governments on all matters relating to the special fund; (i) to liaise with the oil producing companies regarding the proper number, location and other relevant data regarding oil mineral producing areas; and (j) to execute other works and perform such other functions which in the opinion of the Commission is geared towards the development of the oil mineral producing areas

(2) The sums received by the Commission under subsection (1) (a) of this section shall – 

(a) be used for the rehabilitation and development of the oil mineral producing areas on the basis of the ratio of the oil produced in the particular State, Local Government Area or community and not on the basis of the dichotomy of on-shore or off-shore oil production and

(b) constitute a special fund which shall be maintained in an account with the branch of the Central Bank of Nigeria at Moscow Road, Port Harcourt

(1) The Commission shall consist of—(a) a Chairman;(b) one member to represent each of the oil mineral producing States, that is – (i) Rivers State, (ii) Delta State, (iii) Akwa-Ibom State, (iv) Imo State, (v) Edo State, (vi) Ondo State, (vii) Abia State and (viii) Cross River State.

On October 1, 1996, General Sani Abacha GCFR (20 September 1943 – 8 June 1998) created Bayelsa state out of Rivers state and named Yenagoa as the state capital. He also named my friend, Captain Phillip Oladipo Ayeni (1949-April 21, 2017) from Oke-Imesi in Ekiti state as the pioneer governor. On June 5, 2000, President Olusegun Obasanjo (87) GCFR established the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). 

The NDDC mandate is Formulation of policies and guidelines for the development of the Niger Delta area, conception, planning and implementation, in accordance with set rules and regulations, of projects and programs for sustainable development of the Niger Delta area in the field of transportation including roads, jetties and waterways, health, employment, industrialization, agriculture and fisheries, housing and urban development, water supply, electricity and telecommunications, Surveying the Niger Delta in order to ascertain measures necessary to promote its physical and socio-economic development, Preparing master plans and schemes designed to promote the physical development of the Niger Delta region and the estimation of the member states of the commission.

It also mandates the Implementation of all the measures approved for the development of the Niger Delta region by the Federal Government and the states of the commission, Identify factors inhibiting the development of the Niger Delta region and assisting the member states in the formulation and implementation of policies to ensure sound and efficient management of the resources of the Niger Delta region, Assessing and reporting on any project being funded or carried out in the region by oil and gas companies and any other company, including non-governmental organizations, as well as ensuring that funds released for such projects are properly utilized.

NDDC also has mandate in Tackling ecological and environmental problems that arise from the exploration of oil mineral in the Niger Delta region and advising the Federal Government and the member states on the prevention and control of oil spillages, gas flaring and environmental pollution, Liaising with the various oil mineral and gas prospecting and producing companies on all matters of pollution, prevention and control and Executing such other works and performing such other functions, which in the option of the commission are required for the sustainable development of the Niger Delta region and its people.

The people of that region owe a great debt of gratitude to President Umaru Musa Yar’adua GCFR who on June 25, 2009 established the Amnesty Programme to militants who directly or indirectly participated in militancy. President Yar’adua also sustained the NNDC and in addition as earlier mentioned created the Ministry of Niger Delta.