“NDDC Must Stop Mistaking Solar-Light Installation For Development”___Comrade Freeborn Abraye Fires NDDC MD. Samuel Ogbuku, Says The Niger Delta Needs Transformative Infrastructure, Human Capital Development And Economic Opportunities Not A Parade Of Solar Lights” -

By Ebiowei Gabriel

The National Coordinator of the Niger Delta Advocates For Peace, Development And Economic Justice (NDAPDEJ), Comrade Freeborn Abraye, has launched a scathing criticism of the development priorities of the Dr. Samuel Ogbuku-led Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), declaring that the Commission must urgently raise its development standards and deliver interventions capable of producing lasting socioeconomic transformation across the Niger Delta.

Abraye said it is deeply disturbing that, at a time when the Niger Delta is crying out for major roads, bridges, electricity infrastructure, healthcare facilities, educational institutions, potable water, economic empowerment and sustainable employment opportunities, solar-light installations appear to occupy a prominent place in the Commission’s visible community interventions.

According to him, solar streetlights can be useful, but they cannot become a substitute for comprehensive regional development.

“Let nobody deceive the Niger Delta people into believing that installing solar lights from one community to another constitutes the totality of development. Solar lighting is an intervention, not a comprehensive development blueprint.”

Abraye challenged the NDDC leadership to demonstrate how its interventions are contributing to the region’s long-term economic transformation.

He said the Niger Delta requires strategic infrastructure and human-capital investments capable of changing the economic circumstances of its people, rather than interventions that merely create temporary visibility.

“WHERE ARE THE TRANSFORMATIVE PROJECTS?”

The NDAPDEJ National Coordinator asked the NDDC leadership to place before the Niger Delta public a clear and measurable development agenda showing how its projects are addressing the region’s most fundamental challenges.

“Where are the major regional road networks? Where are the strategic bridges connecting isolated communities? Where are the large-scale industrial and agricultural projects? Where are the sustainable youth employment programmes? Where are the vocational and technical institutions capable of producing the skilled workforce the Niger Delta needs? Where are the healthcare investments capable of serving our rural and riverine populations?”

Abraye argued that the Commission must think beyond projects that can be commissioned and photographed and begin concentrating on interventions whose impact can be measured years after commissioning.

He maintained that development should be measured by improved livelihoods, increased economic activity, better access to healthcare and education, employment creation, industrial capacity and sustainable community prosperity.

“NDDC MUST NOT REDUCE DEVELOPMENT TO WHAT IS EASY TO INSTALL”

Abraye further warned that the NDDC must not allow easily visible projects to overshadow the more difficult but transformational investments required by the region.

“The Niger Delta does not need development that merely looks good at commissioning ceremonies. Our people need development that works, lasts and creates opportunities.”

He also called for transparent monitoring of completed solar-light projects, including information on their installation dates, specifications, maintenance arrangements, operational status and lifespan.

“If there are claims that particular installations are failing prematurely, those claims should be independently verified through physical inspection and published project-performance data,” he said.

“NDDC HAS THE OPPORTUNITY TO DO MUCH MORE”

Abraye stressed that NDAPDEJ is not opposed to solar-energy interventions.

Rather, he said the organisation is demanding balance, scale, durability and strategic planning.

He pointed to the need for the NDDC to concentrate substantially on projects that can unlock the productive capacity of the Niger Delta.

According to him, the Commission should prioritise:

major road and bridge networks;
rural and riverine connectivity;
electricity and renewable-energy infrastructure;
healthcare facilities and medical equipment;
educational infrastructure;
technical and vocational training;
youth entrepreneurship and employment;
agriculture and aquaculture;
industrial development;
environmental and shoreline protection;
water and sanitation;
and sustainable economic-development programmes.

“We are not asking NDDC to abandon solar lighting. We are asking NDDC to stop treating solar lighting as though it is the beginning and end of development.”

NDAPDEJ DEMANDS A PUBLIC DEVELOPMENT SCORECARD

Abraye further demanded that NDDC publish a comprehensive, publicly accessible scorecard showing the status of its major projects across the nine Niger Delta states.

The scorecard, he said, should contain:

Project name.
Project location.
Contractor.
Contract value.
Amount paid.
Commencement date.
Current implementation status.
Expected completion date.
Maintenance arrangements.
And measurable community impact.

“The Niger Delta people are not asking for propaganda. They are asking for development they can see, use and measure.”

He said NDAPDEJ would continue monitoring development interventions across the region and would give credit wherever genuine development is delivered while constructively challenging shortcomings wherever they occur.

FINAL WARNING FROM NDAPDEJ

Abraye said the NDDC leadership still has an opportunity to change the narrative by adopting a broader, more ambitious and people-centred development strategy.

“Dr. Samuel Ogbuku and his team must understand that history will not judge NDDC by the number of commissioning ceremonies it holds or the number of solar lights installed. History will judge the Commission by whether it helped transform the economic and social conditions of the Niger Delta people.”

He concluded:

“The Niger Delta deserves roads that connect communities, bridges that unlock economies, electricity that powers businesses, hospitals that save lives, schools that produce future leaders, skills programmes that create livelihoods and industries that create sustainable wealth.

That is development. That is transformation. That is what NDAPDEJ demands.”

Signed:
Comrade Freeborn Abraye
National Coordinator
Niger Delta Advocates For Peace, Development And Economic Justice (NDAPDEJ).