Nigeria: NGO Worries Over Level of Poverty in Riverine Areas

from All Africa

Daily Champion (Lagos)

Timothy Ajiboye
Lokoja

A Non Governmental Organization (NGO) Community Action for Popular Participation (CAPP) has urged the federal government to pay more attention to eradicate poverty among the people living in the riverine areas.

President of the NGO, Mr. Chom Bagu disclosed this while speaking during a National Conference with the theme "Making Poverty History in Riverine Communities in Nigeria," event is in collaboration with over 22 state-wide riverine community coalitions with support from McArthur Foundation.

Bagu noted that the conference is the first of its kind aimed at exposing the suffering of the people living in the riverine areas and proffers solutions to their problems.

"The people of the riverine areas have been ignored by succeeding governments and dined the basic infrastructure of that makes life meaningful because of the difficulty of their terrain," he added.

"This conference therefore provides the best opportunity for deep and constructive dialogue on the best way to attack poverty," he stressed.

The NGO boss regretted that nearly eight years of democracy and civil rule, the level of economic and social degeneration and the degree of desperate poverty are alarming.

"Even more alarming is the utter inability, the shameful refusal by the political class both in government and the opposition to develop specific ideas and political will to deal with this man-made catastrophe, our political elite do not and even if you give them a million years, Nigeria may only step back into deeper poverty," he disclosed.

Bagu explained that the government over the years greedily harnessing resources in the riverine communities and giving back nothing but insult and abuse, stressing that, they harness oil and give the people environmental pollution and violence, they harness electricity and keep the people in darkness."

He therefore urged the federal government to properly put to use he large volume of aquatic resources which can eradicate poverty, attract the speculated foreign investment and generate foreign earning.