Dogara Cautions Against Mismanagement Of North East Development Commission
BY AMOS DUNIA, ABUJA – Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon Yakubu Dogara, has cautioned stakeholders from the North East geo-political zone against mismanaging the newly created North East Development Commission (NEDC).
Dogara said people of the zone must justify the trust reposed in them by the President and members of the National Assembly from other parts of the country who unanimously supported the passage of the NEDC bill in the two chambers.
The Speaker, who stated these when he received a delegation from Bama Emirate Council, Borno State, led by the Shehu of Bama, Alhaji Shehu Kyari Umar Ibn Ibrahim El-Kanemi in his office, said the North East has suffered devastation that will take decades to rebuild, hence the need for a precise and confirmed law that can provide the legal backing for its recovery.
Dogara therefore urged all elders and stakeholders to unite in ensuring that the objective of NEDC Act is fully achieved, adding that while celebration is ongoing for the signing into law by President Buhari, there should be a consciousness among everyone in the zone that its purpose cannot be abused so as not to break the trust that Nigerians, through their representatives in the House and Senate, reposed on them by approving the passage of the Act.
He said the decision for the creation of the North East Development Commission (NEDC), was reached after careful consideration on the best tool to employ for the long run rehabilitation, reconstruction and rebuilding of the North East region, adding that the decision to make a law was chosen as the best since it would outlive any administration, unlike in the case of policies or other similar adhoc interventions.
Dogara further said; “As true leaders and representatives of the zone, our true focus has been what we can do in order to ensure that we build on the successes that this government is recording in its fight against terrorism and ultimately to ensure that we do not have a relapse in that zone with this kind of situation we have found ourselves.
“The region is behind in all human development indices and businesses, factories, schools have been destroyed. I think as we speak, perhaps the only productive enterprise that we have in the North-east is Ashaka Cement.
“So from day one when we started meeting, our thinking was how we can ensure that whatever policies are developed by government aimed at tackling the myriad of challenges facing us as a zone are those that will survive whoever is President now.
“It became clear to us that if we leave everything at the level of policy, granted that we have a President now that support and loves our people, he will not continue to be there forever. But the truth is that the level of devastation occasioned by this insurgency is such that it is going to take us decades to recover.
“So that is why as skillful legislators, we decided that we will go for NEDC. A lot of people thought it was not necessary, some even thought we wanted to create a pool, like an oasis of prosperity in the desert so that some few privileged sons and daughters in the region can just mismanage the resources.”
The Speaker commended President Buhari and the wife of the president, Hajiya Aisha Buhari, for supporting the coming into being of the NEDC.
Dogara appealed to the delegation not to allow a reoccurrence of what happened in the past saying that the signs that fuelled terrorism were there but were ignored by stakeholders.
Earlier, Shehu El-Kanemi, described the Speaker as a “dynamic political leader of the North East,” thus commended him for the support and dedication given to the quest for the rehabilitation, reintegration and reconstruction of the North-east and it’s people.
