Lokoja Indigenes Call for Immediate Redeployment of NIWA GM Administration Over Alleged Role in Marginalization

By Amuda Dan Sulaiman Fab

Indigenes of Lokoja have called for the immediate redeployment of the General Manager (Administration) of the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), Mr. Abdullahi Aliyu Dabai, accusing him of aiding the Managing Director, Bola Oyebamiji, in the alleged marginalization of Lokoja indigenes within the agency.

The demand was made on Monday during a press conference in Lokoja, where concerned indigenes expressed anger over what they described as a deliberate attempt to exclude their people from employment, promotion, and contract opportunities at the NIWA headquarters.

The group’s spokesperson, Mallam Ibrahim Ahmed, alleged that Mr. Dabai has become a willing tool in the hands of the Managing Director, often acting on his behalf and misleading him on administrative matters.

“We have credible information that Mr. Abdullahi Dabai usually holds brief for the Managing Director whenever he is away. He is known for offering wrong and misleading advice to the MD, which has continued to deepen the marginalization of Lokoja people in NIWA,” Ahmed said.

He further claimed that the GM Administration has been using his office to frustrate staff and contractors of Lokoja origin while promoting the interests of outsiders, especially those from Osun State, the home state of the Managing Director.

“Dabai’s conduct is unbecoming of a senior public servant. Instead of promoting fairness and inclusion, he has turned NIWA into a political platform that alienates the host community,” he added.

The group therefore called on the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy to urgently investigate the activities of NIWA management and redeploy Mr. Dabai without delay to restore fairness and transparency in the system.

They warned that failure to act could lead to renewed protests at the NIWA headquarters, adding that Lokoja people will no longer tolerate being treated as strangers in their own land.

It would be recalled that a few weeks ago, aggrieved Lokoja indigenes staged a peaceful protest at the Maigari of Lokoja’s Palace, where they accused the NIWA leadership of neglecting the host community.

The protesters, carrying placards with inscriptions such as “NIWA MD Must Go” and “Stop Marginalizing Lokoja People”, urged President Bola Tinubu to sack the NIWA Managing Director, accusing him of relocating the agency’s operations to Abuja.

In response, the Maigari of Lokoja appealed for calm, urging the protesters to remain peaceful while the federal authorities are informed of their grievances. The monarch emphasized that dialogue and patience remain the best approach to resolving the ongoing crisis.

Efforts to reach the NIWA management for comment were unsuccessful, as calls and messages to the agency’s spokesperson were not returned as of press time.