WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BAYELSA STATE PLASTIC COMPANY AND CREEK MOTEL?
By: Mr. Aye S.O. Egberi
Bayelsa State, a land blessed with immense potential and resources, is being dragged through the mud of neglect and mismanagement. Two significant government-owned properties, the Bayelsa State Plastic Company and the Creek Motel, once symbols of progress and development, now stand as tragic reminders of failed leadership and accountability.
How did we get here? How did properties meant to uplift Bayelsans become targets for looting and abandonment? These questions demand answers, and the silence from those in power is both deafening and shameful.
The Bayelsa State Plastic Company was established to create jobs, boost industrialization, and drive the local economy. Today, it’s an empty shell—its equipment mysteriously vanished. This was a project that could have positioned Bayelsa as a leader in manufacturing within the Niger Delta, but instead, it has been reduced to rubble.
The Creek Motel, another valuable asset, was once a pride of the state’s hospitality industry. It had the potential to attract tourists, and generate revenue for the government. Now, it is a ghost of its former self, stripped of furniture and essential facilities, with even the roofing sheets stolen.
Who is responsible for this mess? Is it a case of outright sale without transparency? Or sheer neglect that allowed looters to ravage these assets? The government’s failure to secure its properties sets a dangerous precedent. If public assets can be stolen or abandoned without consequence, what does that say about the safety and security of private properties?
This level of incompetence raises broader questions about the state of governance in Bayelsa. Where is the accountability? Where is the enforcement of the law? How can a government justify such gross negligence while claiming to serve the people?
Bayelsans deserve better. We deserve leaders who understand the value of public assets and are committed to preserving and utilizing them for the benefit of the people. These establishments were built with public funds, and their loss is a collective tragedy that we must not overlook.
The government must break its silence, explain what happened to these properties, and take swift action to address the failures. This includes recovering looted items, prosecuting those responsible, and ensuring that such incidents never occur again. Anything short of this is an admission of complicity and failure.
A blind government with one ear, incapable of hearing the cries of its people or seeing the rot around it, is a disgrace. Bayelsa deserves leaders who prioritize progress over excuses and action over rhetoric.
Bayelsa is at a crossroads, and the time for accountability is now. Let us demand better, not just for ourselves but for future generations who deserve a state that works for its people.
This is not just a failure; it is a betrayal of trust. And it must not go unchallenged.
