A former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe, has called on people of the region to look beyond oil, noting that the oil boom has kept the region in untold poverty.
Orubebe, made this remark while speaking at a seminar organised by the Ijaw Professional Association, IPA, in Lagos.
Speaking on the theme: “The place of the Ijaws in Nigeria: A Call to Strategic Action”, the former minister said that it was necessary for leaders of the South South, especially the Ijaw nation, to come up with a roadmap that would create employment for its people instead of putting hope on oil.
He said: “Because of oil, we have abandoned what God gave to us. We have people who are naturally fishermen and palm oil tappers. You heard when I spoke about Ogogoro (local gin), which is celebrated in China, but the authorities here are not doing anything to improve on it”.
