…Says intervention serves to complement state government’s effort
The Commissioner representing Cross River State in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Rt. Hon. Orok Duke, has presented truckload of relief materials to Bakassi returnees to ameliorate the sufferings of the people.
Presenting the items to the coordinator of the Bakassi returnees camp at Ikang on Friday, Duke stated that the intervention was to complement what the Cross River state government is already doing to address problems faced by the people.
He charged the camp coordinator to ensure that the relief materials get to the people who needed them most, stating that this would spur up the NDDC to do even more for the Bakassi people.
After receiving complaints from the people regarding their immediate needs such as roads, electricity, jetty and boats for security agencies in the area, the NDDC Commissioner assured them that their complaints would be presented to the Commission for urgent intervention. He also told them that aside the needs articulated, he would draw the attention of the interventionist agency to other critical areas of development such as education, healthcare, economic empowerment, among others.
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Additionally, Duke stated that in subsequent exercise other parts of the state would be duly captured, noting that “we have invasion and refugee camps in Obanliku and Boki which we are working towards. Ours is to ameliorate whatever situation we find ourselves in.”
In their separate remarks, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Niger Delta, Hon. Ani Esin and the former member representing Bakassi state constituency in the Cross River State House of Assembly, Dr Ekpo Ekpo Bassey, thanked the NDDC Commissioner for reaching out to the Bakassi returnees.
Receiving the relief materials on behalf of the returnees, Prince Aston Joseph Inyang, the camp coordinator, who was in company of members of the camp management committee, expressed gratitude to Hon. Orok Duke and the NDDC for the donation. He assured the Commissioner that the items would be distributed in a manner that would reflect fairness.
The relief materials comprise of bags of rice, bags of beans, beds, cartons of noodles, tin tomatoes, toiletries, foot wears, mosquito nets, seasoning cubes etc.