Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, a foremost socio-cultural organization in the country, has vowed to stop the contentious National Water Resources Bill from seeing the light of the day.
‘‘That 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 injury to all,’’ Mboho said.
Mboho decision was contained in a communiqué signed by Akparawa James Edet, the 11th International President and Akparawa Bassey Bassey, International Secretary-General was issued at the end of Mboho Central Working Committee at its International headquarters, Sir Udo Udoma House, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State capital.
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Straightnews gathered that the bill sponsored by the Chairman of House of Representatives Committee on Water Resources, Sada Soli (APC, Katsina), aimed at conferring power on Federal Government to control surface and underground water resources in the country is believed by many to be Rural Grazing Area (RUGA) in disguise.
The foremost socio-cultural organization described the bill as ‘‘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.’’
Apart from kicking against enactment of the bill, it appealed to Governors and National Assembly members from the Niger Delta region despite political party affiliations to join in the fight to resist its passage into law.
‘‘That a 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;
‘‘That 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 smouldering 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,’’ the statement said.
According to it, ‘‘That at 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 policy makers 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.’’
Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio founded on August 1, 1987 is organization of Ibibio people seen as Nigeria’s fourth largest ethnic nationality.
