Niger Delta Human Development Report - UNDP Nigeria - United ...

The frequent conflicts and the associated
occupation by military and police, coupled
with the preponderance of weapons,
provoke a sense of insecurity in the region
and even the whole country. A major
consequence of the serious threats to life
and property has been the emergence of
ethnic militia in the region and even across
Nigeria. These groups take the law into their
own hands, practicing a kind of jungle
justice. Youths who could be productively
engaged have become agents of a thriving
crisis generation, prevention and recovery
‘industry’, which allows them to live on
‘standby’ money rather than earning a
legitimate income.
Even the military, sent to quell crises like
the one in Odi community, sometimes
becomes an agent of human degradation.
One aspect of human degradation that cut
across the focus group discussions is rape.
They expressed that the massive rape of
young women in Odi by the soldiers sent
to ensure peace in the community was a
devastating example. Two years later, the
community is now filled with fatherless
babies. On top of being a serious assault
on human dignity, the incident may have
spread HIV.
THE BENEFICIARIES
The Niger Delta conflicts have greatly
benefited some people. To start, the
underground economy of oil and gas that
has flourished on the back of the instability
has become hugely profitable. Human
Rights Watch (2003) describes the
bunkering or illegal theft of oil as
“effectively Nigeria’s most private
business.” According to the 2002 report
of a Special Security Committee on Oil
Producing Areas set up by the government,
this leakage in oil revenues enriches militant
youths and their sponsors, and cartels made
up of powerful politicians, retired and
serving military officers, and community
business men. These groups depend on
lawlessness to thrive and have a stake in
keeping conflict running all the time.
Even law enforcement agents sent to check
illegal bunkering become tempted by the
huge profits to be made from conniving
with bunkerers. A House of
NIGER DELTA HUMAN DEVELOPMENT REPORT
Representatives’ probe in November 2004
uncovered the illegal release by naval
officers of the MT African Pride, a ship
that had been caught bunkering and towed
to a naval base. There were attempts to
cover up the crime with forged release
documents, showing that the network of
actors reaches high levels. The detention
of foreign ships and nationals indicates the
international character of this shady
business. Breaking networks of powerful
crooks with huge arsenals of deadly
weapons, often superior to those wielded
by security agencies, calls for very strong
government determination.
State and local governments in the Niger
Delta region have benefited from conflict,
even if indirectly. Until 2001, the agitation
for resource control was largely fought by
militant youths, civil society organizations,
ethnic groups and community-based
originations. Elected governors and
prominent politicians kept a safe distance
because of uncertainty over the security
implications of involvement. In 2001,
however, most governors discovered it
made political sense to lead the agitation in
order to prevent the opposition from
capitalizing on it, as well as to potentially
secure more revenue from the derivation
funds. The agreement at the National
Political Reform Conference to raise the
derivation percentage to 17 per cent to
pacify and avert the escalation of conflict
became an example of the latter.
EXTRA BURDENS: WOMEN AND
YOUTH
The chaotic and desperate situation in the
Niger Delta condemns youth to a future
without hope. No young person with
healthy aspirations can fail to appreciate
that his life chances depend upon more
massive investments in social and
economic infrastructure, and the more
responsible harnessing of the natural
endowments of the environment. For their
part, women bear the greater brunt of
poverty in the region. They receive the
short end on all fronts, whether in terms
of jobs, water, health facilities, schools or
environmental resources. For both women
and youth, deprivation has driven them into
deep involvement in the Niger Delta
conflicts.
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