Oil bearing states urged to commit to transparency, accountability

Oil producing states in the country have been urged to commit to transparency and accountability by signing up to the Open Government Partnership as a veritable tool in the fight against corruption.

Niger Delta Open Government Observatory (NOGO), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) made the appeal in a statement made available to the media to mark this year’s international Anti-corruption Day.

Jointly signed by Tijah Bolton-Akpan and Ken Henshaw of Policy Alert and We The People, the NGO said that it has become worrisome that despite the region being rich in oil and gas resources, it has remained region with high incidence of poverty.

“Despite its abundant natural resource wealth which oils the wheels of the national economy, the region remains steeped in under-development while critical infrastructure continues to deteriorate, the statement said.

It added that several development indicators, including life expectancy, health, education and employment, the region’s performance remain below the national average” the statement said.

“The biggest culprit why things are the way they are is corruption. And a novel approach to dealing with the issue is to sign on to and implement the OGP.

Describing the OGP as a platform that brings together government reformers and civil society leaders to create and implement specific commitments that make governments more inclusive, responsive and accountable, it noted that it would as well encourage the use of new technologies to strengthen governance in the region.

“We are concerned that of the eight states that have signed on to the OGP so far, only two- Abia and Edo – are part of the Niger Delta. The slow uptake of the OGP in this region belies the huge governance challenges – including corruption and budget inefficiencies – that the region is surmounting. On this 2018 International Anti-Corruption Day, we call on the governments of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Imo, Ondo and Rivers states to sign on to the OGP without further delay,” the statement added.

“As the 2018 elections approach, we call on the citizens to make the OGP an election agenda and extract commitments from candidates on their plans to make government more open, responsive and accountable,” it further said.

ANIEFIOK UDONQUAK, Uyo