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N’Delta Groups Restate Demand For NDDC Board Inauguration
Two Niger Delta advocacy groups, the Ijaw Interest Advocates (IIA) alias, Izanzan Intellectual Camp; and the South-South Youth Initiative (SSYI); have restated their call on President Muhammadu Buhari to inaugurate the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) board to avoid unnecessary crisis in the Niger Delta.
Whereas the IIA, in a statement signed by its President, Amb. Arerebo Salaco Yerinmene, stated that “Akpabio’s mismanagement of NDDC and the region were creating unnecessary tension in the oil rich Niger Delta,” the SSYI besieged the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs at the Federal Secretariat in Abuja, protesting against the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, accusing him of delaying the inauguration of the NDDC Board.
The SSYI group stated that Akpabio’s “major priority is how he can fraudulently continue to maintain himself as the sole authority to all the accounts of NDDC which to us is highly unacceptable”
The IIA group lamented that since Akpabio took over the affairs of the Commission, it has witnessed endless protests from the people of the region, wondering if the Niger Delta Ministry was the only ministry in the Federal Republic of Nigeria under this government.
Yerinmene reiterated the group’s call on the Federal Government to “call Akpabio to order to stop using the name of President Buhari to cover up his lies and atrocities as regards the mismanagement of funds and delay in inauguration of the NDDC substantive board.”
According to Izanzan Intellectual Camp, Akpabio’s “antics will not bring an eventual peace to the region, won’t stop the people from agitating, nor will it overturn the genuine demand by the people for the right thing to be done by inaugurating the NDDC board for even representation by all constituent states for functionality.”
The IIA, therefore, urged Buhari to “uphold the rule of law and the Act establishing the NDDC, do the right thing by inaugurating the substantive board to bring back normalcy to the region.”
Yerinmene regretted that since Akpabio became supervisory minister of NDDC and imposed interim managements/sole administrator contraptions in breach of the NDDC Act, the commission has not been “working optimally as staff too can effortlessly count number of days they are allowed into the offices because of endless protests by various groups in the region.”
The group also accused Akpabio of employing over 1,000 persons from Akwa Ibom, his home state without recourse to other states that make up the region and the Federal Character Principle.
The South-South Youths Initiative (SSYI) led by Comrade Imeabe Saviour Oscar, accused the minister of Niger Delta Affairs of misleading Buhari by causing the delay in inaugurating NDDC Board, and thereby shortchanging the people of Niger Delta region.
According to SSYI, “the sole administrator is not known to the Act that established NDDC, yet the interim managements and sole administrator contraptions have been in office for over two years now illegally backed by Akpabio, arbitrarily deploying the huge funds that come into the commission’s accounts on a monthly basis without accountability.”
The group, therefore, urged Buhari to heed the call of Niger Delta stakeholders and inaugurate the board of the commission in compliance with the NDDC Act as he had earlier promised.
It would be recalled that Buhari had promised the nation on June 24, 2021, while receiving the Ijaw National Congress (INC) at the State House in Abuja that the NDDC Board would be inaugurated as soon as the forensic audit report is submitted and accepted.
The president said: ‘‘Based on the mismanagement that had previously bedevilled the NDDC, a forensic audit was set up and the result is expected by the end of July, 2021. I want to assure you that as soon as the forensic audit report is submitted and accepted, the NDDC Board will be inaugurated.”
However, the forensic audit report has been submitted to President Muhammadu Buhari since September 2, 2021, prompting the Ijaw National Congress (INC) to caution that “any further delay in the inauguration of the NDDC Board is a clear betrayal of trust and display of state insensitivity on Ijaw nation and Niger Delta region.”
President Bola Tinubu has approved the nomination of four new members to the Governing Council of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB).
The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, in a statement yesterday, said the appointment is to fill existing vacancies and strengthen the board’s capacity.
The statement said the approved nominees are Mr. Olusegun Omosehin of the National Insurance Commission and Engr. Wole Ogunsanya of the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria.
Tinubu also endorsed the nomination of Sam Onyechi, who represents the Nigerian Content Consultative Forum and Barrister Owei Oyanbo from the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.
The President encouraged the new members to leverage their expertise and dedication to enhance local content development within Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
It added, “The nominations arose from the exit of previous institutional representatives from the Governing Council.
“The NCDMB Governing Council, established under Section 69 of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development Act, 2010, comprises representatives from key institutions.
“These include the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria, the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, the Nigerian Content Consultative Forum, and the National Insurance Commission.”
The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has announced plans to construct additional hostels, rehabilitate roads, and enhance power supply in the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT).
NDDC’s Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, disclosed this during a visit to the commission’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, yesterday by a delegation from the UNIPORT’s Governing Council.
Ogbuku stated that the NDDC had committed to upgrading facilities at UNIPORT as part of efforts to foster partnership with educational institutions across the Niger Delta.
According to him, the implementation of additional projects at the university forms part of a broader strategy to improve education standards in the region.
“Aside from the construction of new hostel blocks and installation of a 300 KVA solar inverter system, the NDDC will also facilitate more projects in the university.
“The commission will also deploy its engineers to assess the condition of UNIPORT’s roads and hostels for potential rehabilitation,” he said.
Ogbuku noted that upon completion, the projects would add to various initiatives previously undertaken by the commission at the university.
“These and other projects reflect our commitment to actualising President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda in the Niger Delta region,” he added.
He reaffirmed the NDDC’s dedication to fostering development and strengthening partnerships across the region.
Earlier, Sen. Mao Ohuanbunwa, Chairman of UNIPORT’s Governing Council, who led the delegation commended the current leadership of the NDDC for its achievements in accelerating development in the Niger Delta.
He highlighted the university’s infrastructural challenges, noting that it lacked adequate facilities to accommodate its growing student population, and appealed for the NDDC’s support in addressing the shortfall.
“Currently, UNIPORT has a total student population of about 50,000, while its hostel accommodation capacity can only cater for 5,000 students.
“We therefore urge the NDDC to assist in the construction of additional hostels, improve transportation facilities, and facilitate the acquisition of gas turbines to enhance power supply for our students,” Ohuanbunwa pleaded.
The Vice Chancellor of UNIPORT, Prof. Owunari Georgewill, commended NDDC for its impactful projects across the Niger Delta and extended an invitation to the commission to participate in the institution’s forthcoming 50th anniversary celebrations.
The Senate has rejected a motion to rename the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) headquarters after the former chairman of the defunct National Electoral Commission, late Prof Humphrey Nwosu.
Nwosu presided over the June 12, 1993, presidential election, which was truncated by the former military President, General Ibrahim Babangida (rtd).
The election which was won by the late business mogul, Chief MKO Abiola, was adjudged to be the freest and fairest in the electoral history of Nigeria.
The motion to rename INEC after Nwosu was re-sponsored by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe yesterday after lawmakers threw it out last Wednesday.
Abaribe called for posthumous national honours to be conferred on Nwosu in recognition of his role in Nigeria’s democratic evolution.
However, the proposal sparked a heated debate once again, with lawmakers deeply divided over Nwosu’s legacy.
Senator Osita Ngwu acknowledged that Nwosu operated under a military regime, which restricted his ability to announce the results.
He argued that “there was no way he would have announced the results with a gun to his head. That doesn’t change the fact that some of us see him as a hero.”
Senator Austin Akobundu, however, described it as most uncharitable for lawmakers to dismiss Nwosu’s contributions, insisting that he deserved a place in Nigeria’s hall of honour.
On the other hand, several senators like Senator Jimoh Ibrahim dismissed the idea outright, questioning why the Senate should honour someone who failed to announce the results insisting that “nothing should be named after him”.
Senator Cyril Fasuyi argued that history does not reward efforts, but only results.
“As long as he did not announce the result, whether under duress or not, I am against naming INEC headquarters after him,” he submitted.
Also, Senator Sunday Karimi criticised Nwosu for lacking the courage to speak out, while Senator Afolabi Salisu warned that immortalising him would undermine the memory of MKO Abiola, the widely accepted winner of the June 12, 1993, annulled election.
“Any attempt to do anything beyond a one-minute silence is to rubbish Abiola’s legacy,” he tendered.
After intense deliberation, most senators rejected the motion through a voice vote.
They, however, agreed to honour him with a one-minute silence and extend condolences to his family, effectively dismissing the other prayers to immortalise Nwosu.