NDDC Declares Zero Tolerance for Project Vandalism, Threatens Arrest of Offenders
By Missang AKPET
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has declared zero tolerance for vandalism of its projects, threatening to arrest and prosecute offenders, including community leaders caught damaging infrastructure.
The Cross River state director of the NDDC, Dr. Daniel Ajunwa, issued the warning on Friday at a one-day workshop on community ownership and protection of NDDC projects.
He lamented that it is disheartening that after the commission spends so much on carrying out projects, hoodlums and criminals vandalize them.
"We have all this in pictures and videos; funnily enough, you will only end up depriving yourselves of basic amenities that have already been provided for you."
"It is for this reason we have brought together community stakeholders and gatekeepers, security agents, and other necessary stakeholders, encouraging them to take ownership of such projects and protect them from theft and vandalism," Ajunwa said.
One of the workshop facilitators, Dr. Carol Bichene, emphasized the importance of community ownership, citing instances where NDDC's intervention programs, such as solar lights, were vandalized or stolen.
"Rather than continuing to provide these interventions while they are being vandalized, NDDC has decided to engage with communities and encourage them to protect and take care of the projects. Stakeholders are involved in the introduction and implementation of these programs; yet, statistics show that about 50% of NDDC's intervention projects have been vandalized, stolen, or abandoned by the communities they are meant to benefit."
"The communities must shift their mentality from seeing these projects as NDDC's initiatives to viewing them as their own, taking ownership and responsibility for their maintenance and protection. This may involve forming vigilante groups to safeguard these projects and keeping the surrounding environments clean," he said.
The workshop, organized by the Corporate Affairs Directorate of the Commission, had community representatives, youth bodies, traditional rulers, security formations, and other stakeholders in attendance.
