Group challenge Bayelsa Govt over lessons learnt from executive retreat

A non-governmental organization, the Bayelsa People for Awareness and Good Governance (BPAGG) has urged Governor Douye Diri and his cabinet members who went to Akwa-Ibom State for a retreat with tax payers’ money to replicate what they saw over there in Bayelsa.

The group said it shouldn’t be that the retreat was meant for the fun of it in the usual manner where government officials use public funds to sponsor their lavish lifestyles and encamp themselves and their girlfriends in choice hotels only to return to the state with no impact at all.

BPAGG, in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Amb. Winston Cotterel Amain, and Secretary General, Philip Wenibowei, regretted the poor state of development in Bayelsa, despite the huge federal allocation to the state and the never-ending retreats and extravagant foreign and local trips to all corners of the earth by successive administrations.

The group said obviously, these expensive trips in the name of equipping the cabinet with the requisite knowledge on how to govern the state, as well as trips abroad to woo investors into the state are nothing but scams because development is still far from Bayelsa State.

The group said Yenagoa, the state capital which was supposed to be the capital of the Ijaw nation worldwide, has now become the capital of darkness and underdevelopment because of the type of clueless and insensitive governments which have governed the state.

It said the people are now playing the role of government; providing basic social amenities for themselves because they don’t have a government which feels the pains of the people.

The group said, “While Governor Douye Diri and his cabinet were in Akwa-Ibom, we took a tour of the state – we visited the Secretariat Complex, Ijaw House, the Onopa end of the Government House and all other construction sites, including the forgotten Transport Terminal, and what we saw when we drove around the few roads around town was terrible.”

It said it is regrettable that Yenagoa which once held the promise of a vibrant future for Ijaw people has now been choked up by neglect.

According to BPAGG, the streets of Yenagoa are now a tapestry of potholes, garbage and insecurity – especially in places like Obele, Gwegwe and Down Yenagoa just to mention a few.

The group said, “The once-reliable public water supply has dwindled to a trickle, forcing residents to rely on expensive, unreliable private sources, thereby causing sicknesses and diseases.”

“Power outages are now our companion, leaving homes in total darkness and forcing businesses to cripple.”

“Here and there, you see merua, which is those youths pushing trucks of overloaded jerry-cans of water, struggling to take their space on the narrow roads – roads which are without drainages and parking spaces.”

“Every now and then, you see some strangely dressed youths with ‘dada hair stroll around’ stretching forth hands (some shaking) with a strange gesture of soliciting for alms – a culture that is alien to Ijaw people. Many of these guys are victims of drug addiction and bad governance – because our resources have been diverted.”

“Five years ago, small businesses were booming, but now, they are struggling to survive because their owners are overburdened by the lack of basic infrastructure such as power supply and dwindling customer base.”

“Unemployment has reached an alarming level; leaving many young people vulnerable and giving in to drugs.”

“The population of mentally ill people on the streets is increasing greatly – a stark reminder of the city’s failing social services.”

“Even hotels are not spared of this agony. The hospitality industry in Bayelsa is dying because many hotels cannot afford to run their power plants, leaving them in darkness during the day, and even sometimes, at night.”

“We cannot continue in this direction. It’s about time Governor Douye Diri and his team wake up from their slumber and insensitivity which have made our state look like an ungoverned space.”

“About a week ago, when they were in the so-called retreat, the federal government granted an approval for about six states to begin electricity distribution. What was Bayelsa State Government doing? We expected our government to have set up mercenaries to engage the power minister to see how Bayelsans can get electricity from the federal plant we have at Gbarain.”

“One is here with us, so why can’t we negotiate with the federal government so that we can be powering our state with the Gbarain plant? Why would it be locked up and then we depend on electricity coming from Ahoada? This is a shame and we must begin to ask questions, we must call on the governor to do something because we cannot continue to suffer in the midst of plenty.”

“The allocation from the federal government has increased, but what are the developmental returns we are getting?”

“Even if they take flight to Akwa-Ibom, at least, they will still drive the roads when they get there. Can’t they see the roads? What are they doing to replicate same here? They should ask questions to know how those things were done, so that they can replicate them here.”

“Honestly, we are tired. We are so tired of tax payers’ money being wasted on frivolous retreats and all that – only for them to come back and we don’t see any changes.”

“How can a state like Bayelsa which is sited on water not have water to drink? If people didn’t drill boreholes, that means we would have been drinking the River Nun water where people bathe and defecate.”

“It’s too bad, and we have people in the Water Board receiving salaries yet they don’t produce any water. The other day when we visited the water board, we saw them buying water from the merua.”

“It’s that bad. Is this the miracle? Is this the prosperity? We need to ask questions. Enough is enough,” it added.