We Won’t Move Forward Without Peace –NDDC Boss

Managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, has said without peace the Niger Delta region will not move forward.

Ogbuku stated this yesterday in Port Harcourt, the  Rivers State capital, while speaking at a one-day capacity building programme for stakeholders in the region on Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and inclusive peace for sustainable development.

The programme, with the  theme: “Fostering Lasting Peace Through ADR: Lessons From The Past, Building Future Opportunities To Advance The Renewed Hope Agenda”, was organised by the commission’s Department of Dispute and Conflict Resolution.

The NDDC boss, who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Rev. Omeya Owoibo, urged the stakeholders to go back to their various communities and preach the gospel of peace.

He said: “We have gathered here today to discuss how our region will be peaceful. Without peace, our region cannot develop.  Recently, NDDC has been commissioning projects in different states in the region. That is possible because of the peace we observe in the region. If we don’t have peace, things will not move forward.

“We are here to reinforce the saying that peace must be present for things to move forward. Here in NDDC, we prefer people who can talk to us than threaten us. We want you to go back to your various communities and let them know that peace is now reigning in the Niger Delta region.”

In his welcome address, acting director, Department of Dispute and Conflict Resolution, Godwin Ogedegbe, said the theme of the capacity building programme calls on Niger Deltans to reflect on how to leverage on ADR to translate policy intentions into tangible, peaceful and prosperous outcome for communities that have borne the brunt of conflict for far too long.

Ogedegbe stated that the intention of Ogbuku in NDDC reflects the commission’s unwavering dedication to transforming the Niger Delta region through the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.