Delineation of the

Delineation of the Niger Delta Problems and Proffered Solutions

Professor Dennis O. Balogu**

Pine Bluff, Arkansas, U.S.A.

ABSTRACT

In fact, the fundamental cause of the Niger Delta crisis represents a microcosm of the general problems facing Nigeria and they are identifiable in different parts of Nigeria. Whether, it is the Tiv versus Jukun or Tiv versus Fulani crisis in North Central, the Ife versus Modakeke crisis in the South West, the Aguleri versus Umuleri crisis in the South-East or the frequent ethnic or religious crashes in other regions, the fundamental and underlying issues rest on the fact that a group of citizens claim rights which they believe that others do not have within their communities.

INTRODUCTION:

If the Federal Government of Nigeria surrenders all the oil funds (proceeds) to the state governments of the Niger Delta today, Nigeria can expect to experience far more problems because of the complex and deep-rooted caused of the problems there. There are apparently, strong dislike and mistrust (that predates independence) between and among the several ethnic groups and communities that make up the Niger Delta region which is primarily, a result of stiff competition for resources, land-use, farming and fishing rights in the past. Currently, these communities could still express the tendency to aggressively compete for greater share of the dividends and royalties from the oil and gas, as well as farmland. In fact, the fundamental cause of the Niger Delta crisis represents a microcosm of the general problems facing Nigeria and they are identifiable in different parts of Nigeria. Whether, it is the Tiv versus Jukun or Tiv versus Fulani crisis in North Central, the Ife versus Modakeke crisis in the South West, the Aguleri versus Umuleri crisis in the South-East or the frequent ethnic or religious crashes in other regions, the fundamental and underlying issues rest on the fact that a group of citizens claim rights which they believe that others do not have within their communities. While oil drilling or exploitation, environmental degradation, and inadequate compensation for the indigenous population of Niger Delta form the bone of contention, the problem is very complex and pre-dates the colonial era. The agitation for greater share of the oil revenues happens to be a case in which the communities need to cooperate for a common interest and their apparent unity seems at most, illusionary. The fundamental factors that contribute to the crisis needed to be identified and are presented as follows:

(1) Delta State Issue: Over 200 years prior to the colonization of Nigeria, the Benin Empire had expanded eastwards to include the areas occupied by both the Ijaws and Itsekiris. Like any other empire, economic exploitation was part of the driving force of the expansionist Benin Empire. In order to ensure total loyalty to the Empire, Ijaws were translocated to an Itsekiri environment for the purposes of farming. Hence, the Itsekiris regarded the Delta Ijaws as “settlers” that should not have had rights to owning land or taking part in the leadership of the community. But the Delta Ijaws had been resisting the label “settlers”, “foreigners” or “second class citizens”. However, the problem exacerbated when the colonialists gave title of (all) Itsekiri land (including area inhabited by the Ijaws) to the Olu of Itsekiri. The Itsekiris did not really mind that the Ijaws were living on Itsekiri land until the advent of oil exploration. The recent finding of crude oil rekindled the competition between the Ijaws and Itsekiris for landownership and subsequent beneficiary of the oil royalties.

(2) Discontent in parts of Niger Delta after Nigeria’s Independence: Prior to independence in 1960, the Ijaws had always felt neglected and cheated in the Nigerian Federation. By June 1966, a group led by Isaac Adaka Boro had declared an independent Republic of the Niger Delta. He was captured, tried, convicted for treason, and sentenced to death. But he was later released by the former Nigerian Head of State, General Yakubu Gowon to fight on the Federal side during the Nigerian Civil War. Although, General Gowon created states, the fundamental issues of discontent among the ethnic groups were not fully addressed.

(3) The Indigenization Decree: The indigenization decree which was promulgated by General Gowon after the war appeared to have resolved one issue while creating another problem for Nigeria. While the major objectives of the decree included increasing the number of indigenous population in the hierarchy of expatriate and manufacturing companies, it became apparent that several communities interpreted the decree to highlight the differences between indigenous citizens and the so-called “settler” citizens. Several group-related skirmishes and crisis that occur in Nigeria today are mostly rooted on the ‘indigene’ versus ‘settler’ citizens.

(4) Excesses of Multi-National Oil Corporations: Without effective independent environmental regulatory mechanism to regulate the interaction of the oil drilling companies and the environment, the multi-national oil corporations operated in a manner that disrespected the Niger Delta environment and its citizens. The reckless spilling of crude oil on the sea and land of the Niger Delta, destroyed breeding grounds of aquatic animals, killed fish and other aquatic animals, and rendered soil infertile for farming purposes. Also, through unfair employment practices, the oil companies’ employed proportionately fewer Niger Delta indigenes.

(5) Overzealous Youth Demand for Oil Royalty and Employment: Excessive number of unemployed youth roaming the streets of the Niger Delta became disenchanted with life. They became angry that the bulk of the revenue used in administering and developing many parts of Nigeria was generated in the Niger Delta and yet the region was neglected. The youth nursed the belief that the oil was their property and that royalty must be paid to them. Hence, the youth’s adoption militancy and confrontational methods of achieving their objectives led to the disruption of oil drilling and peace in the area.

(6) Federal Government Mishandling of the Issues: One striking observation is that the Federal Government of Nigeria had always tried to address the Niger Delta issues only in response to agitations and militancy by either increasing the rate of royalty to the oil producing states or establishing programs that benefit the Niger Delta indigenes. Hence, it becomes a pattern that has been fully recognized by the militants that a prolonged agitation and increased militancy would always be rewarded by the Federal Government. It was through continuous agitation and militant actions that the royalty that is given to the oil producing states was increased to 13%. It was through agitation and acts of militancy that the Federal Government established the Niger Delta Development Corporation (NDDC). Recently, the relentless militancy forced the Federal Government to create the Federal Ministry of the Niger Delta. With the mindset that more protests and increased militancy would produce more concessions from the government, it becomes difficult to stop the trend without law enforcement and active measures. On the other hand, this issue has the potential of creating greater problems to the Federal Government if other neglected communities would become envious of the special attention paid to the Niger Delta and resort to militancy in order to squeeze out similar concessions from the Federal Government.

(7) Apparent Corrupt Practices in Government: People in the leadership positions have been known to live luxurious and flamboyant lifestyles in the mist of poverty. State political elites and top public servants in the Niger Delta and elsewhere have been living higher than their salaries. The Nigerian citizens have observed that the flamboyant lifestyles of government officials and their friends are maintained by ill-acquired wealth. As a result, there have been increased cases of “kidnapping for ransom” of wealthy individuals and their relatives. Incessant kidnapping in the Niger Delta and its environs has further created anxiety and distorts peace in the environment.

(8) Environmental Degradation: There appeared to have been total negligence of the environment and needed infrastructure such as roads, waterways, educational and health facilities. The farm land, adjoining Atlantic creeks and rivers in the Niger Delta were polluted with spilled crude oil which destroyed that farming opportunities, killed fish and other aquatic animals. This results to the destruction of the fisheries industries which provided employment for the residents of the Niger Delta communities. Also, the fish breeding habitat is also destroyed by pollution and negligence.

(9) Government Responsibility: The federal and state governments failed to carryout their responsibilities to act, regulate or monitor the following: (a) The federal government of Nigeria (FGN) failed to control environmental destruction by the multi-national corporations. The regulation and protection of the environment fall into the public domain and the federal government should not have reneged on this responsibility by allowing international profit-making companies to destroy the environment; (b) State governments’ in the Niger Delta either neglected or over-looked the swampy areas in their development programs. States governments and the FGN must show equity and fairness when dealing with development and infrastructural issues; (c) The federal government gives the impression that it can do everything for all people. The Nigerian people should be given a part to play in their lives. While there are things that the government should do for the people, there are also things that the people can do for themselves, their communities and the nation. Shared responsibilities in the leadership of the local, state and federal levels would ultimately serve Nigeria well; (d) The current educational system, environment and academic settings in Nigeria do not augur well with responsible academics and sensitive experience for students. Most students are subjected to extreme hardship that they graduate with deep resentment of the environment that trained them. All segments of the administrative structure of higher institutions in Nigeria should be restructured to provide sensitivity toward the plight of students and create programs that would attempt to resolve them. Primary, secondary and tertiary educational curricula should be reviewed and enhanced to teach students the sense of duty to self, environment, the nation, and above all, the student must be equipped with the knowledge required to provide the needed services in the area of the student’s expertise. Current reports indicate that some university graduates appear to lack the general knowledge needed to be productive in their chosen fields of study.

Implications:

The implications from the above neglects and shortcomings for the Nigerian nation and the Niger Delta region in particular include the following: (1) There is general frustration of the entire poor masses in Nigeria and very stiff resentment of the leadership elites who live robustly at the expense of the poor masses. (2) Because of this profound neglect, militancy and lawlessness of the Nigerian youths therefore, appeared justified to the extent that many Nigerians started sympathizing with the cause of militancy. (3) Leaders and politicians in and out the Niger Delta region become incapable or unable to risk the repercussions of condemning militancy. In the Niger Delta, the militants were unquestionably viewed as controlling the communities and were able to create and enforce their own laws. Life in general for the innocent citizens and leaders became very insecure. (4) Hence the leaders of Nigeria, especially, those from the Niger Delta were quiet and could not condemn the militancy either because of insecurity or political expediency. Unfortunately, the silence of leaders was recognized by the militants as an ‘approval of their conducts’. Even community leaders that felt that militancy should not be the best option could not say so because of an apparent legal security vacuum in the area. (5) As a result, states and local authorities acquiesced to militants: Most of the state authorities and politicians, in words and deeds appeared to support the militancy and in some cases, are said to have employed militants as state and community vigilantes. (6) Excesses of the militants appeared to be tolerated by authorities in the Niger Delta. So, the killing of policemen on duty by criminals in disguise as militants appeared ‘Acceptable’. Politicians and community leaders were not always seen condemning these hideous crimes. On the other hand, both Niger Delta states and the federal government, by their actions, appeared to be negotiating with criminals and in some cases, state governments were reported to have paid ransom for the release of government officials or expatriates kidnapped by the militants.

Result of Inactions by Leaders:

As a result of complaisance and inaction by the states’ governments and FGN, militancy ‘ruled’ the Niger Delta leading to the following climax in the crises: (a) The multi-national corporations became targets of bombing and kidnapping by the militants. In return, the corporations decide not to invest on long-term basis. They reduced their level of investments and targeted only ‘very soft’ investments or products. (b) Oil pipe lines were either destroyed and oil stolen from them or bombed. Nigeria’s oil revenue plummeted and the scarcity of petroleum products within Nigeria was rife. (c) The militants were emboldened and heavily equipped to the point that they could even attack the Nigerian military positions.

Economic Losses Due to the Crisis:

The economic losses due to militancy were enormous and affected several facets of Nigeria’s domestic and international economy, including the following: There was loss of fishing and fisheries industries which rendered many indigenes of the Niger Delta unemployed. Without the fishing, the fishermen were left, poor and destitute and without any form of livelihood. Also, Nigeria’s foreign reserve was used in purchasing fish and other protein sources from other countries to supplement the losses in local fish production. The oil spilling and smearing of the land meant that farmers could not farm, resulting to decreased employment for current and future farmers. Nigeria spent funds in increasing security for guarding oil wells and rigs, expatriate oil drillers, and government officials which ultimately increased the cost of drilling oil. Activities of the militants resulted in reduced oil production and loss of revenue for Nigeria.

Proffered Solutions:

The solutions proffered can be divided into three categories namely (1) primary solution, (2) secondary solution and (3) tertiary solution: Details of the categories are as follows:

Primary Solutions:

The federal and state governments should work to stop the current criminal activities in the Niger Delta and elsewhere in the nation. The government must secure and retain the territories that have been claimed by the criminals. It is the responsibility of the government to ensure that law and order returns to the affected parts of the country. The government should not appear to be negotiating with criminals who kill Nigerian policemen and soldiers in order to discourage others with criminal intents from doing same. While negotiating from the position of strength, efforts should be made by the government for peaceful settlement of the crisis. The government should encourage all aggrieved Nigerians to use their rights provided in the Nigerian constitution to protest and make demands from the government. Efforts by the government to address the several years of neglect of the Niger Delta areas could be done quietly. A media-driven over-emphasis on the development of the Niger Delta as a reward from the conflict may send the wrong message to other distressed groups and copy cats who may adopt the same militant methods to extract concessions from the government.

Secondary Solutions:

The states and federal governments should rehabilitate all the citizens affected by the Niger Delta crisis. They should be granted the opportunity to earn a living through legal means. A sense of belonging should be imbibed in all of them through psychological rehabilitation and showing concern about their plights.

The federal legislature should pass legislation that ensures the state governments serve those that voted for them. There are increasingly, vocal protests from the masses, condemning the wanton neglect of the masses by state government leaders throughout the federation. Accountability by state governments should be encouraged for purposes of letting peace to reigns. There should be legislation to ensure that public funds are judiciously used to perform public tasks and that punitive reprimand are legislated for corrupt practices of individuals using government funds for personal aggrandizements. If the federal government should give states funds (states’ federal (budget) allocation), then the federal government should be able to monitor how the funds are spent. Somehow, the state governors should be accountable for federal allocation funds they receive on behalf of their respective states.

Tertiary Solutions:

There is the need to restructure the educational system in the country in order to graduate a productive workforce. It is unacceptable for Nigeria to have thousands of graduates and still need foreign trained graduates to work in the oil industry. There is the need to find ways to minimize workers’ strikes or ‘work-to-rule’ culture in universities through policy changes. This type of behavior has negative impact on the quality of graduates from Nigerian universities.

The federal government must take active role in environmental protection/enforcement. A situation where a multi-national corporation operates in a manner that destroys the Nigerian environment without repercussion should not be allowed to continue.

There is the need to re-train the unemployed graduates to become productive workers. Nigerian graduates who lack the knowledge in areas of specialties needed by the country could be required to undergo short-term training programs in order to become productive.

Also, policemen should be re-trained to become responsive to new and violent crimes. s. Armed robbery and incessant kidnapping-for-ransom which is ongoing in the Niger Delta unabated can be reduced by imparting the knowledge of community policing to regular Nigerian policemen through retraining programs. The creation of community policing in addition to the existing Police Force will help to alleviate some of the notable crimes taking place in Nigerian communities. A short-cut of achieving this without a constitutional amendment (which will take too long to achieve) will be for the Nigeria Police to award charters to communities to establish a policing and security services.

Important Areas of Improvement:

Generally, the following areas need to be improved to fully rehabilitate both the Niger Delta and other communities which may have similar cases: (1) Efforts should be made to adopt policies and regulations for decreasing pollution of the waters that killed fish and destroyed the breeding habitat of aquatic animals. Rivers and sea water and farmland which are polluted with crude oil should be cleaned. Fish and other aquatic animals should be re-introduced in the cleaned water. This activity would help to restore the fishing industry and reduce unemployment as jobless fishermen may go back to the fishing business. (2) The federal government should find ways of solving the indigene/settler issues because most community-based violence witnessed in Nigeria have been directly or indirectly related to some people who share the belief that they have a right that other Nigerians do not in a chosen community. The issue of indigenes versus non-indigenes in Nigeria must be resolved for Nigeria to develop a competitive economy based on harnessing the enormous human resources potential of its citizens. A Nigerian should be indigenous to Nigeria and should be empowered to make contribution to the community where he happens to live. (3) The adoption of new technologies poses new opportunities, new challenges and new threats especially, to the security forces and manufacturing industries. Nigeria should plan properly before adopting new technologies. One issue that arises with the adoption of cell phone technology is that it lent itself to armed robbers and kidnapping criminals to coordinate their activities more efficiently and elusively escape police detection and subsequent apprehension. On the other hand, the police and security services can also use the cell phone communication to their advantage in fighting crimes. For example, the registration of cell phones and their owners with verifiable names and addresses would be very helpful in fighting crime. (4) The government should address the productivity issue, both in junior and senior service cadre. The administrative system in public services appears aimed at stifling progress because it takes too long to accomplish a task or serve a customer/client. Employment and retention of public servants should be based on qualification and productivity. While redundancy should be stamped out, the government should endeavor to create more productive employment opportunities and provide enabling environment for productive business. (5) The gap between the rich and the poor, especially, with regards to ill-acquired wealth must be reduced. There are observable evidences within the Nigerian polity that suggest that the wide gap between the rich and poor Nigerians is widening and creating steeper resentment of the rich by the poor masses. (6) The federal government should, as a matter of urgency, address the anger of the youths who are disenfranchised because of the lack of employment opportunities, bribery and corruption in high places, and overt display of wealth by leaders and politicians. The government should device instruments of collecting information of discontents among the youth. The charges laid on the door steps of most of the state governors by the youths are: (a) No Jobs; (b) Neglected social and infrastructural issues such as (i) No electricity, (ii) No drinking water, (iii) No health care, (iv) No food; (c) State Governments’ efforts are too little and that state governments must be made to be responsible and accountable for state development.

Conclusion:

The Niger Delta crisis represents a microcosm of the general form of discontent and dissatisfaction expressed from different sections of Nigeria, especially by the youths. Its fundamental causes are similar to the causes of most of the militancy or riots experienced in other communities in Nigeria – the fact that the indigenes believe that they have rights and privileges in a community which other citizens living in the same community cannot share because they are non-indigenes. The Niger Delta crisis exacerbated because the community was neglected for so long and that oil drilling and pollution destroyed farming and fisheries industry in which the Niger Delta citizens depended. The government should make fervent arrangements to rehabilitate all the Niger Delta citizens involved or affected by the crisis. Employment should be created to absolve many of the participants in the crisis. Generally, the government should invest on infrastructure, human resource development through well planned education and re-training of graduates to be productive in their chosen field. Through these efforts, the government can expect to elicit positive attitudinal changes in Nigerians.

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** Dennis O. Balogu, Ph.D., M.P.A. is Professor of Agriculture and International Affairs Officer at the University of Arkansas, Pine Bluff, Arkansas 71601 USA. E-mail: dbalogu7@yahoo.com