Honour for Jasper F. Jumbo

Sam Ekpe

He that humbles himself shall be exalted and whoever exalts himself shall be abased – Holy Bible: Matthew 23 vs 12. This assertion of our lord Jesus Christ has been made manifest in many instances and circumstances all over the world. In the gospel of St. Luke 10 vs 7 we are also advised that the labourer is worthy of his hire. These attestations confirm the fact that at a stage in one’s life, one’s sacrifice for his people or nation should be recognized and appreciated, hence the unique refrain that the labours of our heroes past shall not be in vain in our national anthem.

As the nation discusses the full import of the Petroleum Industry Bill now due for passage at the National Assembly, we should not do so without placing on record the contributions of Nigerian heroes who contributed their intellect, time and personal resources, and endured sleepless nights to ensure the formation of the various development agencies in the Niger-Delta region, for without their effort, the present stage of development of the region, unsatisfactory as it is, has been a great leap forward from the sorry state of affairs in the area in the past.

One such patriot, with nationalistic fervor who devoted much of his over 70 years of life to ensure that the people of the Niger-Delta enjoy the benefits of their God-given natural resources is Chief Jasper F. Jumbo.
Chief Jasper Jumbo is one of the great heroes of the struggle for Niger-Delta development whom it has pleased the Almighty God to keep alive today. Many of his compatriots in the struggle have since passed to the great beyond.

When one hears or reads about the mind boggling figures alleged to have been looted in the NDDC by public officers, instead of being used for the public good, one wonders if the spirit of the deceased founding fathers of the NDDC will not recoil in their graves. Apart from the tokenism of naming the rented Headquarters Building of the NDDC on the Governor Peter Odili, after the demise of late sage Chief Harold Dappa Biriye, no other form of National recognition has being accorded these Founding Fathers of the two Development Agencies of the Niger Delta Region – OMPADEC and the NDDC.

This writer feels deeply concerned about the unfortunate developments in the NDDC as the development agency has been bitten by the bug of corruption, cronyism, financial scandals, abandoned projects and all other negative tales.

Having personally observed with keen interest and admiration, from close quarters at the early stages of the struggle, the intrigues the activities and the eventual success that gave birth to the predecessor organizations of the NDDC and the eventual establishment of the body in 1999 I feel very sad that this worthwhile dream of great patriots has been allowed to degenerate into disrepute many keen observers feel that it is still not late to turn the tide of the organization into hope and prosperity.

The struggle for the emancipation of the grossly marginalized and under developed Riverine communities of Nigeria was initiated by the late Chief Harold Dappa Biriye who made a case for a better deal for the area at the Lancaster Conference in 1957.

Following deliberations at the Conference, the Willins Commission was set up in 1958 to address the case of the Niger Delta minorities of Nigeria. This gave rise to the establishment of the Niger Delta Development Board (NDDB) soon after, which though underfunded, coordinated economic activities in the Niger-Delta Area until the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War in 1967.

I was a witness to the historic role Jasper F Jumbo played in the Niger Delta struggle while serving as the Public Relations Officer to the late Dr. K.O Mbadiwe, then Special Adviser to President Shehu Shagari on National Assembly Matters in the 1980s. Jasper Jumbo is patriotism and compilations endeared him to Dr. Mbadiwe. He worked with us in our office in State House Marina, Lagos and on many occasions sought support for his well researched solution to the Niger-Delta problem from various political heavy weights of the period. Dr. Mbadiwe gave Jasper F. Jumbo a letter of introduction to the late Dr. Pius Okigbo, the then Chairman of the Federal Committee for the Review of Revenue Allocation
Dr. Okigbo’s appreciation of Jasper Jumbo’s confidential submission and positive response was the main reason behind the allocation of 1.5 % of Nigeria’s Federal Revenue to her Mineral Producing Areas
During the Military Regime, Chief Dappa Biriye floated the AMPARS: Association of Mineral Producing Areas of Rivers State and wanted the Mineral Producing Areas Fund used for a Mineral Areas Bank for Niger-Delta and commie Tax for Niger-Delta Monarchs. However, Jasper Jumbo disagreed with him on principle and after his written validation by the Presidential Adversory Committee in Dodan Barracks over Chief Biriye and his team, Jasper Jumbo formed the National Association for Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission (NAMPAD), and for over seven years (7) carried the Niger Delta struggle on his head. As National Co-ordinator and later National Chairman of NAMPAD, Jasper Jumbo in 1986 led a few Niger Delta personalities to formally negotiate with the Federal Government to establish another Commission for the Development of the Niger Delta as well as the Ecological Fund Commission, since the NDDB had become moribund. This led to the establishment of OMPADEC in 1992 by the President Ibrahim Babangida Administration after the Armed Forces Ruling Council cleared his confidential blueprint and later NDDC by President Obasanjo in 1999.

One sees no reason why such icons of the Niger-Delta struggle like Prof. Jasper Jumbo and his other colleagues who saw it all from inception till date should not be involved in nurturing the baby they gave birth to and see it grow to maturity.

At this period, our dear President Buhari is searching for most effective and efficient strategy to develop the goose that lays the Golden eggs, without our endless tales of corruption and scandals, shouldn’t Prof Jasper Jumbo, a tried and tested administrator and the visioner of the Commission be invited to clear the Augean stable and give the Development Agency an entirely new lease of life
I so summit.

• Ekpe is an Abuja-based Media, PR Consultant and Commentator on Public Affairs.