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| Akpabio |
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| Amaechi |
THE recent acquisition of private jets by the governments of Rivers and
Akwa Ibom states is as reckless as it is highly insensitive. The massive
waste of money is coming at a time when the rate of poverty and
deprivation is worsening in the country. It is indefensible for state
governors to add acquisition of jets to the life of luxury they are
already known for. State Houses of Assembly should check such executive
excesses.
The Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, was reported to have taken delivery of a brand new Bombardier Global 5000 (N565RS) on October 7, 2012. Earlier in June this year, Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State also reportedly acquired a new $45m Gulfstream jet. Initial media reports indicated that the Rivers State government purchased the jet for $45.7m from Bombardier Inc of Canada for Amaechi's personal use. But the state government later denied buying any new jet, claiming that the reported jet had been bought two years ago at a cost of $45m after trading off two older state-owned aircraft – Dash 8 and the Embraer jet. It said the jet was not for Amaechi's exclusive use.
The Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, was reported to have taken delivery of a brand new Bombardier Global 5000 (N565RS) on October 7, 2012. Earlier in June this year, Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State also reportedly acquired a new $45m Gulfstream jet. Initial media reports indicated that the Rivers State government purchased the jet for $45.7m from Bombardier Inc of Canada for Amaechi's personal use. But the state government later denied buying any new jet, claiming that the reported jet had been bought two years ago at a cost of $45m after trading off two older state-owned aircraft – Dash 8 and the Embraer jet. It said the jet was not for Amaechi's exclusive use.
The justification offers scant comfort. It is difficult to defend this strange sense of priorities and the arrogant attitude on display. In 2006, the United Nations Development Programme described the Niger Delta region, to which Rivers and Akwa Ibom states belong, as "a region suffering from administrative neglect, crumbling social infrastructure and services, high unemployment, social deprivation, abject poverty, filth and squalor, and endemic conflict." The 2012 Niger Delta Development Forum report says, "There is empirical evidence to show that traditional approaches to poverty reduction have not resulted into sustained improvements, income and employment for the people of the region".
The funds could have been better spent elsewhere. In addition, maintaining a jet will definitely be a constant drain on the public purse. The money, for instance, can repair a number of roads that have been washed away by floods in recent times. It can put smiles on the faces of the indigenes of over 100 communities ravaged by flood recently in different parts of Rivers State. It will rejuvenate many health and educational institutions begging for attention in the two states. It will go a long way in bringing about potable water and power supply, which the citizens desperately need. It will also provide decent and affordable housing to a good number of the citizens. Even if all the roads in the capital cities, Port Harcourt and Uyo, are paved with gold, (and this is not the case) what of roads in the rural areas?
