From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Leader of Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), Chief Edwin Clark, has condemned the plans to set up a Naval Base in Kano State, describing the project as a waste of resources and the height of nepotism and parochialism.
He building a Naval Base in the middle of the Sahel region which is a dry land, under threat of fast spreading desertification, is ill-conceived and not in the interest of the nation.
The former minister of information and culture, in an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari urged him to always take decisions based on national interest and rational considerations as every decision taken while in power would be subjected to public scrutiny in the future.
He dismissed the claims of the existence of two rivers in Kano State,
describing it as a futile attempt to justify a maritime project in the middle of the desert, totally inaccessible by water.
“The citing of naval base the world over, is mainly for provision of security along the waterways of a country and in order to provide security for the nation’s internal waters and its territorial integrity. This is done where there is water and not in the heart of a dry land. It is even difficult to decipher and more curious why you intend to crowd the north which is already saturated with heavy military infrastructure, especially in places like Kaduna and Kano States. There must be limit to nepotism and parochialism.
“It is indeed nonsensical, unprofessional and parochial for anyone to compare the situation in Nigeria to that of the United States of America (USA). But even in the U.S.A., the major Naval Bases are clearly situated at the riverine and oceanic towns of the country. Perhaps it will interest Nigerians to know that if it is the same Mississippi River in the U.S.A that they are referring to, let me briefly describe it. Mississippi is a State located in the southern part of the U.S. A, with the Mississippi River to its west, the State of Alabama to its east, and the Gulf of Mexico to the south; from this description, it is shown that Mississippi is a State surrounded by water.
“Your Excellency, please in the interest of Nigeria, build the Naval Base where it will be economically efficient and viable, and provide security for the nation’s territorial waters. Nigeria is dying economically and politically.”
Yet here we are, deploying scarce resources to embark on projects on nepotistic reasons, rather than on viability. As President of the entire country, you will save huge resources doing the right thing and improving the economy, if objectivity and national interest are your watch words,” he said.