Socio-cultural organization, Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio seeks collaboration against Water Resources Bill

A socio-cultural organization Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, an Ibibio-centric group in Akwa Ibom state has called on all governors and national assembly members from the Niger Delta region as well as other coastal states in Nigeria to collaborate irrespective of party affiliations against the proposed Water Resources Bill being put forward for consideration at the National Assembly.

This was contained in a six-paragraph communique issued at the end of its Central Working Committee meeting, held at its International Headquarters, in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital.

The organization reasoned that the bill was evil, repressive, a complete misplacement of priorities, and an attempt to deprive the people of the Niger Delta region and other coastal states of their freely God-given resources thereby further impoverishing them.

The communique reads, “Members of the National Assembly nay the Federal Government should resist every temptation by the promoters of this evil and obnoxious bill to exacerbate the already smoldering schisms in our country which have brewed mistrust fueled by actions, inactions, policies and lopsided appointments to key positions in favour of a particular section of the country.

“All governors and national assembly members from the Niger Delta region and other coastal states in Nigeria should rise against the proposed Water Resources Bill being put forward for consideration at the National Assembly, irrespective of political party affiliations;

“The bill is evil, repressive, a complete misplacement of priorities, and an attempt to deprive the people of the Niger Delta region and other coastal States resources freely given to them by God and by such action, further impoverish them.

“All bill which aims to confer ownership, control and management of surface and underground waters on the Federal Government, like what is obtainable in petroleum resources, is an affront to the sensibilities of our people which must be rejected and fought with all peaceful and constitutional means available to ensure it does not see the light of the day;

“A period where our students have been grounded at home for over six months due to the ASUU strike; at a time insecurity has attained monumental proportions with killings and abductions for ransom; at a time that the country’s currency, the naira, is on a free fall and at its lowest ebb ever in the history of our country; at a time enterprises are shutting down and foreign investors are leaving the country due to unbearable operational costs and poor economic policies, what should preoccupy policymakers in our nation should be how to channel all energy and resources towards tackling those issues and not to plunge the country into more avoidable crisis, with such a highly contentious bill which is suspected to have been put forward to serve sinister and sectional interests”.

The organization promise not to only bark but would bite by ensuring that they galvanized other ethnic nationalities to form a formidable resistance against the presentation of the obnoxious bill.

“Working with other ethnic nationality groups in the Niger Delta region and sister coastal states, Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio will mobilise strong resistance to the Water Resources Bill and hopes that other patriotic Nigerians who desire the unity and cohesion of the country will lend their voices as well, as injury to one is an injury to all”.