A proposal to ask President Bola Tinubu to reverse his decision to rename the Ministry of Niger Delta Development to the Ministry of Regional Development was withdrawn by the House of Representatives.

Because “events have overtaken it,” the House revoked the motion that Oboku Oforji (PDP, Bayelsa) had sponsored.

In his meeting with President Tinubu last week, Speaker Abbas Tajudeen informed the House that he was in favor of receiving the South-South Development Commission Bill, which would address specific challenges facing the Niger Delta.

He advised the legislator to let the House step down the proposal because of the information and since the issues in the motion had already been overshadowed by other developments.

Additionally, House Leader Julius Ihonvbere (APC, Edo) stated that although the motion’s issues were relevant, the Niger Delta Development Ministry’s conversion to the Ministry of Regional Development will not in any way deprive the region of its proper development or lessen its influence there; rather, it will only expand its reach to include the development of other regions.

Earlier, when introducing the motion, Oforji reminded everyone that the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua established the Ministry of Niger Delta Development on September 10, 2008, and named Ufot Ekaette as its first Minister.

According to him, the ministry was established to coordinate and promote policies for the Niger Delta Region’s development, peace, unity, and security. It is also expected to develop and implement plans, programs, and other initiatives, as well as coordinate the efforts of organizations, communities, donors, and other pertinent stakeholders.

He claimed that the late President Yar’Adua had good intentions and insight when he established the ministry to address the decades-long neglect, suffering, and agitations of the region by succeeding administrations.

According to him, “discussion was started with important regional stakeholders and militants during the brief tenure of late President Yar’Adua’s leadership from Katsina State, culminating in the Amnesty Program that has brought relative peace to the oil-rich Niger Delta Region.

These served as a precursor to the establishment of the ministry, which was focused on environmental preservation, youth empowerment, and infrastructure development in the oil-rich Niger Delta region.

“Are we there yet? The answer is no, but the people of the Niger Delta support the establishment of the Ministry of Niger Delta Development because they think that the region’s founding fathers’ grand goals and aspirations would one day come true.

The congressman voiced worry that “there was a noticeable sense of tension in the oil-rich region on October 24, 2024, after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu announced that the ministry of Niger Delta Development would be abolished.”

“This is hardly encouraging for an area that has made significant contributions to the economic development of our country and has enjoyed some relative peace”.