An Ijaw Elegers Group from the central zone in Bayelsa
says it is working to end factions in two umbrella groups the Ijaw Youth
Council (IYC) and Ijaw National Congress (INC).
The Elders under the auspices of Ijaw Elders Consultative
Forum pledged to unify Ijaws to collaborate to overcome the unique development
challenges faced by th.e predominantly coastal dwellers.
Chairman of the group Chef T. K. Ogoriba who spoke to
newsmen at the weekend in Yenagoa noted that disunity amongst the Ijaw youths
and elders had often retarded the progress in the quest for improved life for
the Ijaws.
He said that the elders were already working on mobilizing
stakeholders to have an acceptable and rancor free elections into the IYC and
will afterwards do the same to the INC and revive the body from its comatose
state.
Ogoriba who traced the history of the struggle for identity
and recognition for the Ijaw ethnic nationality to the formative years of INC
and IYC noted that the pioneering efforts of the founding fathers were finally
yielding fruits.
He explained that the emergence of Senator Douye Diri, a
pioneer National Organizing Secretary of INC on Jan. 12, 1995 as Bayelsa
governor was a well deserved reward for the Ijaw struggle.
“We have come a long way from advocacy for a place for
the Ijaws with the Bayelsa Forum, INC, MOSIEND and other youth organizations, culminating
in the creation of Bayelsa State.
“And today we have one of us who was in the struggle for
creation of Bayelsa state as governor with executive powers and we have no
doubt about his ability to turn things around.
““He knows what the problems are and has the capacity to
solve them so he needs no further propping to be on the positive side of
history.
“This is the time we want all and sundry to come together
in solidarity and support this new administration and give it the benefit of
the doubt and already the first steps are encouraging.
“At the 2020 Isaac Boro day memorial, the governor
announced that the welfare of surviving contemporaries of Isaac Boro has been resuscitated
and that raised their morale and hope of the people on the new government,” Ogoriba
said.
Ogoriba said that the Governor further stated that this
is the time for all Ijaws to come together to resuscitate the INC to work in
synergy with the IYC to bring about stability in Ijaw land.
The Ijaw leader however observed that the COVID-19
pandemic had dealt a blow on the administration’s plan to hit the ground
running and made it extremely difficult to embark on development projects.
He noted that the global lockdown occasioned by the
COVID-19 pandemic had adversely affected the oil prices leading to a nosedive
of oil revenue accruable to the Bayelsa government.
Ogoriba noted that in view of increased wage bill and
dwindling revenue accruable to the state, the state government was experiencing
hard times and appealed to the people to be patient with the Diri
administration.
He noted that the elders were encouraged by the call by
Gov Diri on Ijaws to shun divisive tendencies and show love towards each other
to achieve Ijaw cohesion.
He said that the interest shown by governor of Bayelsa on
the Ijaw affairs will reshape and reposition the Ijaws in their quest for the
development of the Niger Delta region.
It would be recalled that Gov Diri who took the oath of
office on Feb. 14, 2020 has spent his first 100 days in office.
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