Engagement, Interaction and Trayvon Martin

Unless you’ve been under a rock for the last couple weeks, the death of seventeen-year-old Trayvon Martin at the hands of Neighborhood Watch captain George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida last month has definitely been something you’ve heard of.  It is an unbelievable tragedy that has exposed the fault lines of American society.

By now most observers are familiar with the general narrative.  Martin was walking in the rain through his dad’s gated community, returning from a trip to the local convenience store.  He was being watched by Zimmerman, armed with a semiautomatic weapon, who found the teen wearing a hoodie to be suspicious.  Zimmerman called 9-1-1, elected to follow Martin… and from there the details are murky except for one.  Trayvon Martin was shot and killed by George Zimmerman.

Much of the news coverage of this case has been on two elements: racial profiling, and the validity of Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law.  Racial profiling by law enforcement – and indeed by the general public – is something that has been an issue forever.  Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” law is much more recent.  The law allows those who feel their well-being is in jeopardy the opportunity to retaliate with force, even without first making an attempt to flee.  Zimmerman invoked this law after shooting Martin, saying he reacted in self-defense after being attacked.  Protesters have made the case that profiling and ‘Stand Your Ground” are the root reasons for this horrible event.

But could this tragedy have even deeper roots?  I would argue that the way we build communities in America today played a fundamental role in this case.

I do a lot of reading on planning.  I try to see how planning can be applied to our everyday existence, because planning detractors often fail to see its utility as a profession.  Yesterday I found two articles that get right to the heart of this matter.  First, I found this article by Robert Steuteville of Better Cities.net that makes the case that the gated community where this took place, The Retreat at Twin Lakes in Sanford, Florida, is a classic example of an insular community that casts suspicion on people walking in the area.  From the article:

“Those who don’t drive are likely to be on the economic margins or intrepid teenagers—old enough to be on their own but without wheels—who can hurry across huge crossings and ignore conditions that are miserable for anyone on foot.”

But simply having a dislike for walkers might not be the only factor at play in this gated community.  Also from the article:

“The economic downturn is another factor. The Retreat at Twin Lakes is only six years old, but its property values have declined precipitously. Foreclosures forced owners to rent out to “low-lifes and gangsters,” one resident told the newspaper. The development is now “minority-majority”—49 percent non-Hispanic white, 23 percent Hispanic, 20 percent African-American, and 5 percent Asian. This story is partly about what happens to a gated development when residents find themselves on the same side of the gate as people they fear.”

This comment represents a shift from making a design critique about gated communities to making a broader economic and social critique about the development form – “suburbia”. 

That led me to reread another article I read from last week at Rust Wire.com called The Psychology of Suburbia.  In it, author Richey Piiparinen said that the suburban development form was created to provide comfort and security to those who wanted to escape the complexities of urban living.  Want to get away from crime, dirt and smog?  Move to the wide lawns and picket fences of suburbia.  Maintaining a certain level of comfort and security of suburban residents means someone must obtain and exert a certain amount of control over the environment, too.  That can mean your unincorporated subdivision incorporates, or a homeowners association strictly enforces rules, or a neighborhood watch program provides an additional level of security for residents.

Both articles get a little closer to what I think ails our suburbs, but don’t quite dig deep enough.

You see, I believe that the American urge to escape, find comfort, maintain security and exert control over our built environment is as old as America itself.  It explains the development of this country.  But over the last 100 years or so, and even moreso after World War II, America has applied that same mindset to the new development form called the suburbs. 

The new development form has impacted our psyche.  Today, we believe in having an equal opportunity to escape.  We demand total security.  We seek comfort at all costs, sacrificing long-term benefit for short-term gain.

But the suburban development form has impacted our psyche in much more subtle ways as well, and I see evidence of it every day.  You see it in the fearful eyes of driving suburbanites who are unaware of how to drive in city neighborhoods with tons of pedestrians; they are used to having streets solely for cars.  You see it in walking suburbanites who are nearly trampled by pedestrians; they are used to having any pedestrian environment nearly all to themselves.  You see it in the disdain that some suburbanites have for those who like to meet and greet on the street; they are used to the street being a means to an end, for cars, and not a destination unto itself.  You see it in the elaborately decorated backyards that serve as playgrounds for suburban kids, or in the open attached garages where men hang out over beers; they are not used to having a useful public realm.  You see it in the desire of some suburbanites to seek gated communities; they are used to exerting control over their environment.

And you can see it in the contempt a suburbanite might have for someone walking in a community with a hoodie on, presumably identifying him as an outsider; they are used to people following the strict mores of suburbia and its development form.

This is where our preferred development form intersects with this tragedy.

I’m not about to launch into some diatribe that calls for a preference of cities over suburbs – I happen to live in one of the most suburbiest of suburbs in the Chicago area.  If you want to call me out as being suburban, I am guilty as charged.  But I do know how to operate within any environment.  You could drop me off in Englewood or Homer Glen, in Austin or Arlington Heights, or in Little Village or Lake in the Hills, and I’d be alright.  I know how to manage that way. 

However, I believe that is the exception and not the rule.  Many suburbanites have lost the ability to engage and interact with an environment that is unfamiliar and beyond their control, and – more importantly – people who represent an environment that is unfamiliar and beyond their control.  Unfortunately, this inability has grown with each new generation of suburbanites. 

Your granddad may have moved from the West Side of Chicago to River Grove; your dad grew up there and later settled in Addison.  You liked Addison, but you jumped at the opportunity to live in Wrigleyville for a few years after college; once you got married and had kids, you decided to settle down for the comfort and security of… Bartlett.  Even those who might not know a thing about any of these places would be familiar with the cycle, and this is exactly the type of cycle that reinforces our inability to engage and interact with each other.

I have often heard academics, pundits and intellectuals talk about the isolation of African-Americans in our nation’s cities, and its impacts.  But I never hear anyone talk about the insulation of residents of suburbia, and its impacts.  To me, they go hand in hand.  You can’t have one without the other.

Don't Move, Black People!!!

There is a major demographic shift going on that’s been identified in the 2010 U.S. Census but largely missed by the MSM (I really don’t like that phrase, but it does apply).  African Americans are migrating from large Northern cities and relocating to the suburbs or back to the South. 

This article from USA Today nearly a year ago speaks to this in Chicago, Cleveland, Atlanta, Oakland and St. Louis.  But the same pattern is evident in New York, Washington, DC and of course in Detroit.  

The cities that have added African Americans?  Indianapolis and Philadelphia are notable among Northern cities; however, Charlotte, Nashville, Austin, Phoenix, Las Vegas – traditional Sun Belt locations – showed boosts. 

This quote from demographer William Frey sums it up:

“In the Northern cities, a lot of young blacks who might have grown up in cities are leaving maybe the entire region," says William Frey, demographer at the Brookings Institution who analyzed the data. "They're going to the Sun Belt and particularly the South. The ones who stay in the area want to move to the suburbs."

It’s easy to see why this has happened.  Blacks are moving for the same reasons others made the move in recent decades: better job prospects, especially for low-skilled or little-educated workers, are often common in the Sun Belt.  It’s the same transition that’s taken place for the last 60 years by other groups.

But things are different now.  And blacks may end up being on the outside looking in.

My fear is that many blacks will move to the suburbs or the South at precisely the same time that the transition back to cities gains momentum.  Many will find themselves attracted to the suburban lifestyle at the same time that sustained high gas prices make driving less viable, that jobs begin to migrate from the suburbs back to cities. 

Furthermore, blacks are moving south to locations that could be at the forefront of climate change.  Much of the South from Atlanta westward to Texas has been dealing with a years-long drought that has put water management issues on the table, while temperatures have been creeping upwards.  Meanwhile, Northern cities, particularly those in the Midwest, have access to the water that Southern cities will later crave.

It reminds me of an encounter at a public meeting when I was a planning consultant.  I was working on a neighborhood planning project in a predominantly black neighborhood adjacent to an expanding downtown.  There was genuine concern that downtown growth would swallow the old neighborhood.  Our approach was to show residents how to embrace the new types of development that could occur on the edges of the community – mixed use and multifamily development – while preserving the single family character of much of the area.  We emphasized that communities around the country were embracing new development patterns after learning how unsustainable the low-density, conventional suburban pattern had become.  This approach was met with silence from the community. 

Finally one gentleman spoke up.  He said, “In those other communities, didn’t people have a chance to try out their white-picket-fences before realizing they wanted something else?”  We agreed, they did.  Then he said, “Well, we want our chance to find out it doesn’t work.”

Updates, Reads and Reactions

Thanks to WJR Radio in Detroit for having me on to talk about my "Reasons for Detroit's Decline" stuff.  I had a brief discussion with Warren Pierce on the Great Voice of the Great Lakes!  I so remember him on WJR before and after Tiger games I listened to as a kid.

I want to give a shout-out to Jim Russell of Burgh Diaspora.  I've been reading his blog for a few months, and I think he is on to something.  He has rightfully recognized and documented Pittsburgh's economic turnaround in recent years, and has shown that it's happened without corresponding population growth.  In fact, Pittsburgh is growing wealthier as it continues to (slightly) lose population, and is beginning to stand out as a new template for urban revitalization.  I'll write more about it in the near future, and what it could mean for other Rust Belt cities.

Midsize Midwest Cities and Detroit On the Precipice

A condensed version of my Reasons Behind Detroit's Decline article has made it to the Detroit Free Press Op-Ed page.  Thanks, Freep.  BTW, I never intended to have this blog be an "all Detroit, all the time" blog, but I'll take what comes.  What will come later is much more content on Midwestern industrial cities, particularly the small to midsize types (usually with a population between 50,000 to 250,000) that have long been forgotten by many.  Cities like Gary, IN; Dayton, OH; Akron, OH, Rockford, IL, Terre Haute, IN and Muncie, IN come to mind.  There are dozens like these in the Midwest.

In the meantime, the City of Detroit is at a major crossroads in its history with a looming possible fiscal takeover by the State of Michigan.  The City is very nearly broke, with enough cash on hand to last only through the end of April.  Mayor Dave Bing has been trying to institute budget cuts and renegotiate union contracts to close the deficit and build the reserves, but has had little success in doing it.  Meanwhile, the State has been developing a consent agreement that would give it broad fiscal authority to improve financial accountability.  A good summary of the State's approach can be found on the HuffPost Detroit website.

My take is that something drastic needs to happen in Detroit, something along the lines of the Washington, DC Control Board of the mid-'90s.  Detroit is no longer the city it once was, and cannot be governed like the city it used to be.  And if Detroit is to rise from its current position it has to establish a forward-looking and forward-thinking fiscal policy that allows it to make the transition. 

DC made the transition 17 years ago that Detroit could potentially undergo now.  Let's hope it can lead to the same kind of revitalization in the Motor City.

Worlds Within Worlds

I read this article on rustwire.com the other day and it made a lot of sense to me.  I think it illustrates a problem in many Rust Belt cities.  The author talks about the fact that Cleveland is a metro area made up of two separate and competing worlds.  Quoting from the article: 

World 1—Younger Clevelanders who grew up here, particularly on the west and south sides. Some description: late 20s to 30s.  Many Catholic—be it through Polish, Irish, Slovakian, Italian, or whatever descent. Despite the rumors of a mass exodus most of them haven’t left. But those that grew up in the city have largely moved to the suburbs. Those that grew up in inner-ring suburbs have mostly moved farther out. A few buck the trend and move closer to the core—in Tremont, Downtown, but they’re anomalies. Some have stayed put.  As for attitude, work—the indigenous are closer to the Baby Boomers than they are their actual age. They are in many ways an extension of a legacy city threaded forward into the present, complete with naysaying about how Cleveland has fallen (though they only knew it on its knees)—complete with manufacturing and union ties, cop and fireman ties...

 World 2—Clevelanders who grew up elsewhere, be it out of Ohio, in Ohio, but not considered from here (granted being considered “from here” is–by the indigenous–a pretty small radius). Some description: no coalescing ethnic or religious descent—a mix of everything, nothing. They live in the core, be it city neighborhoods, Downtown, or inner ring suburbs. Cleveland is more about today to them, with the legacy ties tethered mainly to their chagrin that there’s a legacy still weighing the city down. But they appreciate the city’s past, especially it’s built past. They form Facebook groups about a lot, like micro-lending and historical preservation and bike advocacy and outings. There’s a lot of biking overall—doing it, talking about it. And the newcomers have an entrepreneurial spirit, with start-ups and worker co-ops defining the day as opposed to structured times and static work stations. Urban planning to them doesn’t arouse shrugs—like with their indigenous counterparts—but is rather part of the day, like finding food.  This is partly why they are attracted to Cleveland I am told, for it’s a real city with a real history, but with an opportunity to do real shit. 

I don't know Cleveland.  I've been through there only a couple times in my life, but I saw enough to show me that it shared a lot with Detroit and Chicago, two cities I'm intimately familiar with.  And in both of those cities this same dynamic rings true.  Oldtimers from the old neighborhood who tsk-tsk about the fall of their city, and newcomers who have no memory or connection with the past that oldtimers hold onto.  What separates the newcomers from the oldtimers is their belief in what lies ahead for the city -- they believe in a future for the city, one the oldtimers could never create on their own.

While I think there's a lot of truth to this dynamic, I think there are other "Worlds" that aren't accounted for.

World 3 -- the minority middle class citizens of the Rust Belt who believe in the future of their city and have staked their claim through homeownership.  Many are teachers, post office workers, healthcare workers, midlevel public sector workers, and they're waiting for the revitalization they see happening in World 2 to reach them.  And they're impatient about it.

World 4 -- the minority "underclass" that's had so much written about it.  Poor, poorly educated, lacking job skills, and struggling with life on a daily basis.

World 5 -- the minority blue-collar, working-class Rust Belt citizens who work in fast-food restaurants, auto repair shops, corner stores and the like, trying to find a way to make it through the day, week and month.  They're the "left behind": they likely viewed high school with ambivalence and once thought there would be good factory jobs that they'd be able to latch onto after graduation.  Unfortunately, it didn't pan out that way.  They might know that there are jobs in the suburbs they could make some decent money with, but there are physical and psychological barriers that may prevent them from obtaining them.  And honestly, with the right breaks they can move pretty easily between worlds 3 and 4.

I'm sure there are more, but my point is that we look at all aspects of the multifaceted worlds of our metro areas.

S-Africa begs Nigeria

BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE, KALU UDUMA & VICTORIA OJEME
LAGOS—AFTER six days of diplomatic stand-off that led to the deportation of 256 nationals, Africa’s two powerhouses, Nigeria and South Africa, have mended fences and reached a five-point agreement to avert a recurrence.
The much needed truce came after the South African government sent a letter of apology to Foreign Affairs Minister, Olugbenga Ashiru, apologizing to Nigeria for barring 125 Nigerians from the country last Friday over alleged possession of fake yellow fever vaccine cards and the acceptance of the apology by the wronged party. Since the first deportation, Nigeria, in retaliation, has turned away 131 South Africans.
“We apologize for this unfortunate incident and we hope this matter will not in anyway affect our bilateral relations,” Deputy Foreign Minister, Ebrahim Ebrahim, told reporters in Pretoria.



From Left; South Africa Deputy Minister of International Relations
and Cooperation Ebrahim Ebrahim; Nigeria High Commissioner to
South Africa Mr. Anderson Madubike; Mrs. Kojo, of South Africa
International Relations and Cooperation Department and Nigeria
High Commission Consular Minister, Ibrahim Bashir at a news conference
on the crisis between Nigeria and South Africa in Pretoria
on Thursday. Photo: NAN



“We have put into place certain mechanisms to ensure this doesn’t happen again, and we believe that this matter is closed. Thereafter, we will move quickly to ensure that we put machinery in place so that it will be a lasting solution. We don’t want this to happen again because of our bilateral relations. We felt it was un-African to have deported well over 125 Nigerians in a space of two days,” he added.

Ebrahim said South African officials had agreed to reopen an airport clinic that would allow travelers to receive yellow fever vaccines on arrival. Immigration officials will also need a foreign ministry official’s consent before turning away large group of travelers.

Indeed, a Minister in South African Presidency, Collins Chabane, told reporters in Cape Town yesterday that “Cabinet expressed shock and regret at the reports regarding how African foreign nationals, particularly Nigerians, and other nationals from other parts of the world have been treated” at Johannesburg’s main airport.

Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister, Olugbenga Ashiru, said that Nigeria had accepted the apology, saying a South African envoy was expected soon to formally apologize for the row.

Ambassador Ashiru said the apology and letter would be sent to President Goodluck Jonathan as well as a reply to the South African Authority to show that it had been accepted.
He said during the Bi-National Commission meeting, “Nigeria would demand for waiver of the yellow fever vaccination card or present sample of Nigeria’s yellow fever card to South Africa seeking for respect for Nigerians visiting and living in the country, saying some of them were going there for medical treatment, seminar and tourism.
However, the minister urged Nigerians in the Diaspora to conduct themselves in a manner that would not bring disrepute to the country and to always obtain necessary documents whenever they were traveling abroad, adding that yellow fever vaccination cards were available in medical centres and airport clinics.
Also speaking, Minister of State (II) Foreign Affairs, Dr. Nurudeen Muhammed, said Nigeria would no longer tolerate any ill-treatment meted on her citizens on flimsy excuses.
To firm up the reconciliation, the governments of both countries yesterday reached a five-point agreement to end the face-off and prevent a recurrence in future.  This came as Nigeria’s 360-member House of Representatives asked the Federal Government to review the country’s relations with South Africa.
Viewing the developments, which led to deportation and counter-deportation of nationals in a serious light, the two governments, through diplomatic channels, consulted at the highest levels on ways of avoiding a recurrence of such developments.
A joint statement by the Department of International Relations, Republic of South Africa, and the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, said:  “The South African government has sent a letter of apology to the Nigerian government following this regrettable incident which the South African government believes could have been handled in a better way” adding that both countries have agreed on number of measures to avoid future occurrence.
Among the measures agreed were:
* The Bi-National Commission between South Africa and Nigeria should be revived as soon as possible. There is also agreement that the Immigration Working Group should also be revived.
* The National Department of Health and the Gauteng Health Department should consider re-opening the vaccination clinic at the OR Tambo International Airport so that passengers without the yellow fever card can be vaccinated upon arrival at the airport, rather than be deported.
* The South African and Nigerian Health authorities would exchange vaccine batch numbers and details about the official institutions that administer the vaccine for verification purposes at the port of entry. This information would also be made available to the Missions in Lagos and Abuja who issue visas based on the proof of a yellow fever certificate. The airlines will also be informed about the verification process.
* Immigration officials should be the first officials that deal with the passengers at the port of entry and if they experience challenges, they should invite other units (such as health) to help and not the other way round.
* When it comes to mass deportations, it was agreed that senior officials at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (including Protocol) should be consulted by Immigration and Health officials at the airport before undertaking such action. This will provide the Senior Officials to consult with the Department before deporting large numbers of people.
They hoped that “these measures, when fully implemented, will address the current immigration challenges affecting citizens from the two sister African countries and help us avoid a recurrence of the regrettable incidences we have seen recently.”

Ex-militants, sea pirates flee Bayelsa creeks

By Emma Amaize
WARRI -  EX-MILITANTS and sea pirates operating on Nembe and Ogbia waterways in Southern Ijaw area of Bayelsa state have fled their camps following a crackdown on  them by the Joint Military Task Force, JTF, codenamed “Operation Pulo Shield”.
One of the fleeing ex-militants, who was among those agitating for inclusion in the post-amnesty programme told Vanguard in Warri, Wednesday,  “Many of us have fled from Bayelsa state because JTF is ransacking everywhere after the killing of four military men and four policemen , last week”.

Spokesman of the JTF, Lt. Col Timothy Antigha confirmed on Sunday that the remains of a Lieutenant Colonel and three naval ratings killed in a gun fight with sea pirates, led by one Shedrack Itokofuwei, alias Mammy Water had been recovered.
He, however, disclosed that Mammy Water, who the task force described as a sea pirate was later shot dead in a gun battle with a Naval patrol team after three speed boats in his convoy were sunk.
Vanguard gathered that apart from ex-militants and suspected sea pirates, a lot of youths in most of the riverside communities in Southern Ijaw local government area had fled their communities as a result of the siege to the waterways by the task force.
An ex-militant leader, identified as “General” Victor Gbekegbeke spoke to Vanguard on phone, Friday, March 2, claiming to be the leader of a 200-man strong band that killed the military men.
He said they would continue with their renewed attacks on the waterways until the Federal Government incorporates them into the post-amnesty programme.
He spoke very confidently, claiming, he was fortified in his mission by Egbesu, the Ijaw god of war because he was fighting a just battle.
An informant who linked Vanguard with the ex-militant leader confirmed when contacted, Monday morning, “I am hearing that Victor is dead, that he was killed by the JTF in a gun battle after he spoke to you (Vanguard).
Asked if “General” Victor Gbekegbeke also bear the sobriquet, Mammy Water, the informant said, “They interchange their names to deceive people, but I can tell you that what I am hearing is that he is dead”.
The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger-Delta, MEND, however, insisted, that the attack and killing of soldiers were carried out by its fighters and not sea pirates.  It denied that any of its fighters were killed by JTF and challenged it to produce the remains, if any.

 

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/03/ex-militants-sea-pirates-flee-bayelsa-creeks/

Cash withdrawal limit: CBN grants PMIs, MFBs waivers

Lagos – The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Wednesday waived the daily cash withdrawal limit of N1 million for some customer of  Primary Mortgage Institutions (PMIs) and Microfinance Banks (MFBs).
A circular by Mr Giaus Emokpae, Assistant Director (Banking and Payment System) in the CBN, said that the waiver was due to the nature of their businesses.
“It has come to our notice that some Deposit Money Banks apply cash withdrawal/deposit limits for corporate organisations to PMIs and MFBs.

“PMI and MFBs are specialised banks under the new banking model which have customers that maintain savings demand and time deposit accounts with them.
“As deposit-taking institutions, they are obliged to honour the withdrawal requests of their customers and other deposit obligations.
“It is imperative to note that the aggregate withdrawal by the depositors of MFBs and PMIs per day could exceed N1 million.
“Thus necessitating those institutions to withdraw over N1 million from their correspondent banks in order to service their customers,” the circular said.
It streesed that by this directive, withdrawal and deposit by microfinance banks and primary mortgage institutions had been excluded from the policy of N1 million limits for corporate bodies.
The CBN, however, said that the cash withdrawal and deposit limits were applicable to customers of MFBs and PMIs.
The cash withdrawal limit policy started in Lagos on Jan 1 and will be extended to other states by June.
Under the directive, individuals are not allowed to withdraw more than N150,000 per day while withdrawal by corporate organisations should not exceed N1 million.
The objective is to reduce business transactions with cash. (NAN)

 

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/03/cash-withdrawal-limit-cbn-grants-pmis-mfbs-waivers/

Ancient Bibles and Torahs in rare Vatican show

VATICAN CITY-(AFP) – Ancient Torahs and Bibles have gone on show in the Vatican in an “inter-religious exhibition” aimed at exploring the common heritage of two of the world’s main monotheistic religions.
The show “Verbum Domini” (“The Word of God”) in St. Peter’s Square puts on display for the first time outside the United States the contents of the Green Collection — the world’s biggest archive of ancient biblical texts.

The exhibition, which runs until April 15, is organised with the support of Pope Benedict XVI who wants “a renewed passion for the word of God,” organisers said, adding that it “shows the common roots of Christianity and Judaism.”
Among the most precious texts is the “Codex Climaci Rescriptus” — one of the oldest Bibles written in Aramaic, the language of Jesus Christ.
There is also the first-century Jeselsohn Stone tablet which contains 90 lines of Hebrew text and a rare Byzantine manuscript from the 11th century.
Visitors are also shown fragments of Torahs that were destroyed or damaged under the Nazi and Communist regimes in the 20th century.
The exhibits include shoe insoles made from a Torah during the Nazi occupation of France and a soldier’s sack made from the binding of a Torah.

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/03/ancient-bibles-and-torahs-in-rare-vatican-show/

SNC is a call for trouble – Uduaghan

By DAPO AKINREFON
LAGOS — Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State said, yesterday, that irrespective of the deficiency in the 1999 Constitution, advocates for the convocation of a Sovereign National Conference, SNC, were calling for trouble.
He also said that although a state governor was entitled to request more revenue, it must be done in line with the provision laid down by the  Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC.

From left: Gov Emmanuel Uduaghan of Delta State; Prof. Emevwo Biakolo and Mr. Richard Ikiebe during a lecture on "Media, Democratic Governance and Challenges of National Development", delivered by Governor Uduaghan at the School of Media and Communication, Pan African University, Lagos yesterday. Photo: Lamidi Bamidele.

On the on-going trial of his predecessor, Chief James Ibori, the governor explained that he declined to comment on the case because it was still in the law court.
Uduaghan, spoke on Media, democratic governance and the challenges of national development, at the first distinguished lecture series organised by the School of Media Communication, Pan-African University, in Lagos.
While he attested to the fact that the 1999 constitution is imperfect, he berated advocates for the convocation of a national confab, saying they were out to cause trouble.
His words: “The issues of amendment are also in the constitution and the amendment in the constitution does not give room for a Sovereign National Conference. So, why do we want to deal with things that are not legal? Why do we want to deal with things that will make me hate you? What some people are setting out to do is for an ethnic group to face the other ethnic group.
No need for SNC
“Most of the things they said that day were based on ethnicity or region. That will not move us forward. It will cause more problem than we envisage. I do not believe that there is a need for a Sovereign National Conference, because a Sovereign National Conference, is a call for trouble, except we don’t have faith in our National Assembly and I think that is very wrong.
“We have a National Assembly that has been approving budgets over the years, the budgets are being used to run this country. Many of us are part of the running of this country. The constitution, obviously is not perfect, and to make it perfect, it has to pass through the National Assembly and follow due process.”
On northern govs’ demand
On the demand by northern governors and elders for more revenue, he said the request had to be in line with the provisions of the constitution.
According to him, “I think I have tried to deal with the issue of the demand for money. Every governor has a right to demand for more money and every governor also has a right to strategise to earn more money for the state. But like I said, that demand has to be done within the constitutional provision and the constitutional provision in terms of revenue allocation is that states can demand for more revenue or for higher share of the revenue allocation.
“Right now, I think the Federal Government takes about 52 per cent of the revenue, the states and local government are getting 46 per cent, while we have the remaining two per cent for ecological issues.”
Supports review of revenue formula
Throwing his weight behind the call for  a review of the revenue formula, the Delta State governor said: “What we are saying even at the Governors’ Forum is that there has to be a review of allocation and of course, the body that is empowered to initiate that review is the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission.
For us as governors, we have come together, we are looking at it and we are also liaising with the RMAFC to initiate the review. We think that more funds should be given to the states and local government councils, and that also means the review of the responsibilities of the various tiers of government.
FG has no business with PHC
“Some of us, and I think generally, do not think the Federal Government has any business in dealing with primary health care problems. Why should the Federal Government come and build primary health care centres in your village?  Federal Government has no business constructing primary schools or even water project.
These are some of the things that should be left in the hands of states and local government councils. The Federal Government should be confined to the bigger issues of national security, issues of bigger projects. That’s what we are saying.
Off-shore oil revenue
“Taking a look at revenue allocation, we must also take a look at the responsibilities. Having said that, it is not acceptable  for anybody to say that the revenue coming from a particular part of Nigeria, does not come from a state.
It is not acceptable because every part of Nigeria, whether it is filled with water, fresh water, sea water, high sea or whatever all belong to part of a state. The constitution says revenue from any part will be put together and shared according to the laid down formular.
“So, no one can say this revenue from this part belongs to the Federal Government alone. No. These are issues that do not jive, like we say it in our area and they are not correct.”
On Ibori’s trial
On the alleged speculation that he travelled to London during the trial of his predecessor (Chief Ibori), he said: “You called it a rumour, so, why should I react to it? A rumour is a rumour and truthfully, it is a rumour. I will leave it at that. Rumours are never truthful.”
In addition, he said he declined comments on the Ibori trial to avoid contempt of court.
He said: “All the issues on that case are in the court of law, either in Nigeria or in the United Kingdom. Once issues are in the court of law, I cannot make any comment. The issues are in the court of law, let the court determine the case.
Until the court cases are over, I don’t think  it’s right for anybody to make comments because whatever comments you make, might either influence the court or the jury. Some people are just flouting the law.
“Why should I make a comment on a case that the judge has not delivered judgment on? Let’s not go into that debate of him (Ibori) being found guilty; you must get the truth of the whole matter before you make a comment. And I don’t want us to debate it because it is still in the court of law.”
Challenges facing devt
In his lecture entitled:  Media, democratic governance and the challenges of national development”,  Uduaghan identified unemployment, insecurity and misinformation as major challenges facing national development. He said the state government had been able to address some of the challenges facing the state.
While reeling out his administration’s  vision to diversify the economy of Delta State from over reliance on oil and statutory allocation, he said efforts had been geared to other sectors that could create employment and wealth for the people.
He said: “We designated two growth poles on which to hinge the programme. Warri area, in the Southern part of the state, would benefit from both the upstream and downstream sectors of the oil industry, by offering complementary services and support infrastructure. The northern part of the state is our logistic hub.”
Speaking further, he said “The Asaba airport was faster in taking off because we already have a large market ready for it. The combination of Onitsha/Nnewi market and the growing interest in the vast businesses and investment opportunities in the state are making it a successful investment for us.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/03/snc-is-a-call-for-trouble-uduaghan/