BY VICTOR BUORO, ABUJA – The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has come under severe attacks and wrath of the people of the Niger Delta region for plotting to thwart the inauguration of the new board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), by appointing an interim management committee for the Commission.
This is as the Senate screening and confirmation of President Muhammadu Buhari’s nominees for the NDDC Board is ongoing.
Barely five hours after the President of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan read out the letter from President Buhari seeking the screening and confirmation of members of the new Board of the Commission, Akpabio announced the inauguration of an interim committee for the NDDC, saying it is to oversee the planned forensic audit of the Commission.
However, the proposed interim management committee by Senator Akpabio, has raised questions as it has no time limit within which it is to operate taking into consideration the time the audit may take since its timeframe has not been determined.
Already, torrents and flurry of press conferences and statements have greeted Akpabio’s setting up of an Interim Management Committee with prominent stakeholders branding it a deliberate attempt to scuttle the new board and advance the minister’s selfish interests.
In its reaction, the umbrella organization of Ijaw youth associations, the Ijaw Youth Council, pointedly called for the “immediate sack of Akpabio as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs owing to what they described as his undue interference in the affairs of the NDDC. The statement which was signed by the President of IYC, Eric Omare, said; “The activities of Chief Akpabio since his appointment as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs have led to instability and confusion in the region especially with respect to the management of the NDDC.
“The IYC completely reject the interim management committee set up by Chief Akpabio because it is not in the interest of the NDDC and the Niger Delta region to set up such a committee when the Senate has begun the screening and promised to complete the exercise within seven days.
“In his interview with Channels Television, Akpabio in one breath said that the interim management committee would stay in office until the Senate’s approval of the new board and in another breath said that the committee would stay until the completion of forensic audit ordered by President Buhari.
“We are therefore compelled to ask what exactly is Chief Akpabio’s intention in setting up the interim management committee? How can an interim management committee be set up when within a week’s time, the Senate would have confirmed the NDDC Board members ready for inauguration? “What would the interim management committee achieve for the Niger Delta region within one week period of their stay in office? Why is there so much instability in the NDDC under the Buhari presidency, when the North East Development Commission with similar mandate is focused and delivering on its mandate?”
In his comment, Comrade Igbini Odafe of the Vanguard for Transparency, Leadership and Democracy (VATLAD), said; “We wish to state unequivocally that we strongly and totally object to this fraudulent, unlawful and provocative action of the Minister because it is a deliberate violation and desecration of the 2001 Act of the National Assembly establishing NDDC and threat to our Democracy.
“It must be noted that it was never contemplated and will never be contemplated that a so-called Steering Committee be constituted to run and manage the affairs of this very critical and important Agency of Government (NDDC) even when an Interim Management Board is in place and a new Statutory Board is very soon to be inaugurated.
“Hiding under the cover of the proposed Forensic auditing of NDDC to act so lawlessly and unconstitutionally should not be allowed and must not stand. It has been stated and agreed by all of us who are critical Stakeholders of the Niger Delta Region that indeed there is need to urgently sanitise the management of NDDC and also that of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, both of which have been enmeshed in years of massive looting and misappropriation of funds released to them.”
In its own submission on the subject matter, the Oron, Akwa Ibom State – based Oro Youth Movement (OYOM), one of the oldest civil rights organisations in the Niger Delta said it viewed the move by Akpabio as contrary to the sincere commitment of President Buhari to the development of the region.
President of OYOM, Comrade Etifit Nkereuwem, who stated this in a statement, said; “We make bold to describe the Interim Management Committee as illegal, unknown to law and NDDC Act.”
OYOM appealed to President Buhari to direct Akpabio to inaugurate the Board of the NDDC once it is screened and approved by the Senate.
In its reaction, the Niger Delta Peoples Confederation (NDPC), said the minister’s action is a travesty against the people of the Niger Delta.
This was contained in a statement by Messrs Iyamu Osai, Movie Kenneth and Iroyameh Bright in which they declared as illegal the three man interim committee set up by Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen. Godswill Akpabio to oversee the affairs of NDDC and supervise the forensic audit, stressing that the move by Akpabio is designed for his inordinate ambition.
Similarly, the IYC alleged that Akpabio is merely using the NDDC to settle his cronies and milk its lean purse and said that the decision to transfer the commission to the ministry may be a bad one after all, given the conduct of the minister.
IYC called for the NDDC to be moved back to the presidency.
Also, the NDPC described the action of the Minister as “criminal, self-serving and capable of setting our already volatile Region on fire.”
It further said; “It is in the light of the above that we are saying the illegal 3 man interim committee will not preside over the forensic audit and Sen. Godswill Akpabio must be removed as Minister of Niger Delta Affairs.”
President Buhari through the office of the Secretary to Government of the Federation announced the appointment of a 16-man Board for the NDDC, with Chief Pius Odubu as Chairman and Chief Bernard Okumagba as Managing Director, while directing the most senior director in the Commission to act as Acting Managing Director pending Senate screening and confirmation of members of the new Board.
This led to the emergence of Dr (Mrs) Akwagaga Ayia as Acting Managing Director.
However, to the consternation of Nigerians, in the evening hours of October 29, 2019, the minister announced the appointment of a three man NDDC interim management committee led by one Mrs. Joy Ghene Nunieh as Acting Managing Director. The NDDC Act 2000 (as Amended) does not have a provision for an Interim Management Committee.
