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DENNIS NAKU looks back as the Niger Delta perceived marginalisation and examines the report of a survey by an online newspaper, the New Diplomat, on why the 13 per cent derivation should be paid directly to the host communities and not states
In the last decade, there has been growing agitation by various groups in the Niger Delta for a better deal for the proverbial goose that lays the golden egg.
The Niger Delta region despite producing oil, the mainstay of the nation’s economy, has suffered neglect, environmental degradation such as pollution of rivers and farmlands.
The continued silence of the Federal Government to the plight of the region and the perceived marginalisation of the people gave rise to the emergence of various groups in the region, including the dreaded militant group, the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, and more recently, the Niger Delta Avengers.