Bayelsa State governor, Senator Douye Diri, is a man of many parts. One of such parts is being in the trenches for the Ijaw struggle.
Having served the Ijaw nation as National Organising Secretary of the foremost Ijaw National Congress (INC), he knows the needs of the long-suffering people, and he is focused on translating the dreams of the founding fathers of Bayelsa into reality with the magical history he is creating with infrastructural development in the state.
From the Yenagoa-Oporoma-Ukubie road to the historic Nembe- Brass and Sagbama-Ekeremor- Agge road to the Yenagoa Ring road connecting the Glorydrive to Igbogene-AIT/Elebele road through Onopa, Onuegbum – Otuoke road and Akaba-Okodi road, to astonishing strides in healthcare delivery, education, security, and power generation, Diri is building breathtaking developmental monuments to be celebrated by generations.
The Yenagoa- Oporoma-Ukubie road that links the rest of Bayelsa to its largest local government area, Southern Ijaw in Bayelsa central, has been on the drawing board of successive administrations in Nigeria for over six decades.
The people of the area had long resigned to fate on the belief that they would use speed boats forever to reach their various communities.
However, Diri has rekindled hope that many of them in their lifetime would see cars drive to their communities.
Diri, who fulfilled the promise that the people would drive to Angiama in his first term, is on the brink of delivering the road to Oporoma.
The tears of joy shed by the people of Oporoma recently when the convoy of the leader of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, Hon Monday Obolo Bubou, drove to the area for the first time in their history, is a manifestation that nothing is impossible for a visionary leader.
The Nembe-Brass Road and the Ekeremor- Agge road had suffered a similar fate in the hands of past Nigerian governments. But again, Diri has changed the narrative.
He is determined to get the Ekeremor- Agge road to Ndoro with a spur to Peretorugbene and ultimately open up the area and pave the way for the much-awaited Agge seaport.
Diri’s foresight with the construction of the Nembe-Brass Road, which, from all indications, will provide easy access to one of the most beautiful islands in the world, is poised to unlock the goldmine that the blue economy holds in Bayelsa.
Already, in recognition of Diri’s vision and to be part of the beautiful history being unveiled in Bayelsa, the Federal Government is collaborating with the state government on the second phase of the project.
One of the areas where Bayelsans have suffered is the quality of healthcare, especially accessibility to drugs for the people in the rural areas, because of the difficult terrain.
To address the problem, the Diri administration has deployed drones powered by Zipline to take drugs to remote communities that hitherto had suffered from a lack of access to quality drugs.
This, in addition to the health infrastructures, including the new dialysis centre, has combined to unleash a silent revolution in healthcare delivery in Bayelsa state.
The high premium Governor Diri has embraced technology in the fight against crime and criminality. The installation of Closed-Circuit Television Camera (CCTV) has not only sent a strong signal to criminals that there is no longer a hiding place for them in Yenagoa and its environs, but it is also gradually elevating Yenagoa to the status of a modern city.
In the area of education, Governor Diri has also not taken a backseat in innovation. His dream to create a qualified and skilled manpower is taking shape through the establishment and construction of science, technical and vocational colleges across the eight LGAs.
The hands-on skills they receive along with their formal education would be more than ready to drive the robust economy in Bayelsa.
For the first time, since the creation of Bayelsa State, the people now nurse the hope of a steady and uninterrupted power supply.
Governor Diri is on the verge of making this happen with the procurement and installation of the 60-megawatt turbines.
That the project is going to be a reality is creating palpable excitement for business owners and other residents of the state.
Governor Diri’s trajectory as a politician is intertwined with a dose of miracle, which propelled him to the governorship in 2020.
However, his journey as a political leader and apostle of development in the Jerusalem of the Ijaw nation has been intentional.
His simplicity and peaceful mien are positive attributes that have added flair to his governance style.
For the cynics and optimists alike, Governor Diri, with a sincere and focused leadership, is writing his name in the sands of time and walking tall in the long list of Ijaw heroes who, through sheer hard work and determination, took a leap of faith and deep conviction to make a difference.
Truly, Senator Diri stands out as a landmark governor!
