The Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide has accused Governor Sheriff Oborevwori of Delta State of neglecting the Ijaw areas in Delta State.
Spokesman for the apex Ijaw youth body, Binebai Princewill, made the accusation while addressing a press briefing at the permanent site of the Delta State Maritime Polytechnic, Burutu.
He said the IYC is yet any concrete project that can be considered as a landmark project by the Ijaw people in the state, despite the political and economic contributions to the state and the emergence of Gov. Oborevwori, by the Ijaws.
“We are beginning to perceive the Governor of Delta State, Sheriff Oborevwori, as a governor who lacks developmental plans or an agenda for the Ijaws.
“His projects have been viewed as highly sentimental and against all known principles of fairness, justice, and equity. They appear to be twisted and skewed against the Ijaws of Delta State. The Ijaws cannot continue to be disproportionately burdened while others benefit from our contributions.
“The IYC is stating clearly that we cannot continue to be micro-managed by the governor of Delta State. There is a need to balance his administration, ensuring that all ethnic groups in Delta State have a sense of belonging.
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“Delta State belongs to all of us, and the Ijaw ethnic group is a serious stakeholder in the state. We must be given reasonable attention in terms of development, youth empowerment, and other areas to atone for our contributions toward the emergence of Oborevwori as governor of Delta State, considering our political and economic contributions,” the IYC said.
However, the youth group outlined projects that are dear to the Ijaw people in Delta State that needs urgent attention by the state government.
Princewill mentioned the projects to include the uncompleted permanent site maritime polytechnic, Ayakoromo Bridge, Ohoro-Bomadi and Torugbene-Ojobo Road projects, a state owned university in oil rich Ogulagha Kingdom, a tertiary institution in Bomadi and correcting the political anomaly in Warri North Local Government Area.