The Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, has stressed the need for increased investment in education as a key element in reorienting the children and laying the groundwork for a better future for Niger Deltans and Nigerians.
Ogbuku spoke during the plenary session of the 2026 Law Week of the Nigerian Bar Association, Yenagoa Branch, at the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board, NCDMB, Conference Hall, Nigerian Content Tower, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
The 2026 Law Week, with the theme “Securing the Future,” was attended by the renowned Kenyan lawyer and activist, Professor Patrick Lumumba, who was the keynote speaker; the former President of Nigeria, Dr Goodluck Jonathan; the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, among others.
The plenary session, which focused on the topic “National Assets Protection: Nigeria’s Shared Responsibility,” featured discussions with key stakeholders, including security agencies, regulatory bodies and development agencies.
The NDDC Chief Executive Officer observed that discussions on strategies for securing the future must take cognisance of the past and what has gone wrong in our history. “In securing the future, we must also think of the past, because we have missed our way and there is a need to rediscover our purpose,” he said.
Ogbuku lamented that corruption had eaten deep into the fabric of our society, noting that most corrupt tendencies were negative practices copied from online media.
He stated; “We must invest in the right education for our children. Western culture has polluted our society, and only the right education can save our country.”
The Chairman of the plenary session, Dr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, shared Ogbuku’s views on the need to reform the education system to adequately prepare young Nigerians for the future, noting that “we have to prepare our children for the bright lights of the future.”
In his keynote address, Professor Patrick Lumumba stressed the need for unity among African countries to pave the way for true independence and prepare the continent for the future.
He noted: “We have a duty to secure our future, but we must start by being united. It is only in unity that we can protect our assets.”
“To talk about our future, we must find out who we are and decolonise our minds because Africans were wired to fail by the colonial masters.”
Professor Lumumba’s keynote address was entitled: “Sustainable National Assets Protection in Africa: Opportunities, Risks and Regulatory Pathways.”
In his remarks, the Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Douye Diri, called on the Nigerian Bar Association to intensify efforts to enforce discipline and best practices among its members.
Governor Diri, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Nimibofa Ayawie, described the keynote speaker, Professor Lumumba as a powerful voice for good governance, accountability, Pan-African development and principled leadership in Africa.
He said: “The theme of the Law Week,’ Securing the Future, is both timely and profound. It speaks to the collective responsibility of leaders, institutions, and citizens to build a society founded on justice, equity, accountability, and sustainable development.
Also speaking, the NBA Branch Chairman, Mr Clement Kekemeke, challenged legal practitioners to go beyond routine practice and actively contribute to societal development.
