Interim Administrator, Presidential Amnesty Programme (PAP), Col. Milland Dixon Dikio (retd), has challenged the people of the Niger Delta to take advantage of maritime opportunities in the region to grow and nurture successful business ventures.
Dikio gave the charge in Calabar, Cross River State at the weekend when he unveiled the first set of ferries owned by Abitto Global Services Limited, a firm belonging to an ex-agitator, Richard Akinaka.
He expressed optimism that if stakeholders looked inwards and tapped the unique natural endowments in the Niger Delta, the region would produce a new set of wealthy entrepreneurs.
The amnesty boss, in a statement signed by his Media Adviser, Nneotabase Egbe, regretted that people often focused on risk factors and discouraged themselves from starting and in the process allow lofty ideas to die.
Dikio said: “One of the first instructions God gave is ‘go and multiply, dominate’. Are you dominating this riverine environment? Why will you be thinking about other parts when the one God gave you, you have not dominated it? How many roads can you build?
“Our people live in creeks unconnected by road but God has given us roads, the rivers are our roads and for those who don’t know, many great powers are maritime powers.
“The waterways can carry any load, any load at all, it can carry it. The waterways of the Niger Delta are full of money but people don’t know. Stop making excuses and just take the initiative.”
While congratulating Akinaka for the bold step in floating the ferry business, Dikio urged him to expand it to other riverine parts of the country and also go public by allowing people to buy shares and be part of the business.
Earlier, Akinaka said his foray into business was borne out of the need to find solutions to problems, saying he understood the basic challenges of the people.
He appreciated Dikio for his support and inspiration to the community in the region and appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to confirm him as substantive PAP boss.
He said: “We are here to meet the gap of marine transportation. Our operation will definitely start from here, we will operate from here straight to Ibom Golf Resort in Akwa Ibom and other areas.”
