Niger Delta Open Government Observatory (NOGO) has called on state governments in the Niger Delta to sign on to the Open Government Partnership (OGP) and commit to open government reforms that will ensure greater citizens participation, transparency, accountability and deployment of technology and innovation in governance processes. The call was made in a statement released, Sunday, by Policy Alert and We The People – the two non-governmental organizations who co-facilitate the Observatory- to mark the 2018 International Anti-corruption Day. The statement was signed for both organizations by Tijah Bolton-Akpan and Ken Henshaw, respectively.
“Corruption has turned the Niger Delta into a basket case, a development paradox. 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 region’s resources are plundered mindlessly while the environment is continuously poisoned because responsible people and institutions are selfishly looking the other way.
It is worrisome that across several development indicators, including life expectancy, health, education and employment, the region’s performance remains below the national average” the statement said.
“The biggest culprit for 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. The OGP is 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. Nigeria joined the partnership in 2016 and has made substantial progress in implementing its National Action Plan (NAP). States are being encouraged to join so that the reforms to empower citizens, fight corruption, and harness new technologies to strengthen governance could be cascaded to the subnational level.
“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 AkwaIbom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Imo, Ondo and Rivers states to sign on to the OGP without further delay ” the statement added.
It concluded: “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.”
ANTI-CORRUPTION DAY: NGOS TASK NIGER DELTA STATES ON OPEN GOVERNMENT
