Onshore/Offshore dichotomy and North's dance of shame (2)2:39 pm 0 *The writer today continues his argument that Northern leaders are responsible for much of the problems in the region WHEN my friends from the South point accusing fingers at me for being a Northerner and for the way the region has ruled the country and brought it to its present deplorable state, I shake my head in sadness. For a region that produced the country's leaders, both military and civilian, for more than 36 years, it is saddening that the level of poverty in the region could still be as terrible as it is today. And the region is still holding most of the highest positions in the land today; it has the highest number in the legislature, meaning that the wealth of the nation has never been far away from the laps of the North. What do we have to show for these? The truth is, even we Northerners are not proud of these leaders because the poverty in the region is greater than elsewhere as evident in the violence-prone nature of the region today. And some people are waging needless wars over oils that are thousand miles away rather than the fields for agriculture which are close by? What have we gained from the 'little' allocation the states in the region collect now to support call for upward review? Of course, nothing but insecurity and Boko Haram insurgences allover the North. At best, I see the calls for the reversal of the widely-supported abrogation of onshore/offshore dichotomy as a renewal of the grand plot against the South-South region of Nigeria by some Northern leaders. If the current vultures (insert leaders if you want) want us to believe that they are agitating for more wealth in the interest of the masses, they should look inwards first by regenerating the strongholds of the region's wealth. They should develop what truly belongs to the North—agriculture, rather than seeking to grab from the perks of collective allocations and thereby make nuisance of themselves or even cause controversy in the country. It is sad that what we in have in the North now as leaders are lazy people,people without vision, people without foresight but out to line their pockets and those of their cronies. Why can't our leaders look inwards rather than depend on money from the sale of oil? Where are the groundnut pyramids, the solid minerals and agriculture which our forebears used to run the region when oil was yet to be discovered? It is my sincere wish and other Northerners that the country returns to true fiscal federalism so that each would develop its economic potentials to the fullest. The Niger Delta people no doubt produce over 90 percent of the nation's resources whether off shore or onshore. They equally suffer the environmental hazards and degradations associated with oil exploration and exploitations while we in the North sit in the comfort of our offices awaiting the sharing of the proceeds equally with them. These leaders, particularly are nothing but callous in their demand for increase revenue. Can they even withstand the danger the oil producing communities face on a daily basis? A friend jovially said to me recently: "Mohammed, why are your leaders fighting against resource control again?" and I told him it's because they have eaten all the resources of the North and no longer have any to control. The truth is there are countless resources in the North and they should be developed so that we too can have something to collect derivation from, rather than fighting a lost battle. Mr. Abdulrasheed Mohammed a public analyst wrote from Kaduna http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/08/onshoreoffshore-dichotomy-and-norths-dance-of-shame-2/ |
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