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Don’t Extend NDDC Board’s Tenure -Ex-Agitators
A coalition of Niger Delta agitators have appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to halt any plans aimed at extending the tenure of the present board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
They also called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to initiate a probe on the activities of the erstwhile Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Dr. Habiba Muda Lawal.
The agitators in a statement, yesterday, alleged that Lawal collected billions of Naira from the Chairman and Managing Director of the NDDC, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba and Mr. Nsima Ekere, respectively to extend their tenures to 2020 instead of December 2017 when their time would elapse.
The militants stated that influencing the tenure of current NDDC board officials would breed crisis in the Niger Delta region, warning that they would be forced to resume attacks on the oil installations.
The statement was signed by John Duku for Niger Delta Watchdogs and Coalition of Niger Delta Agitators; Ekpo Ekpo for Niger Delta Volunteers; Osarolor Nedam for Niger Delta Warriors; Henry Okon Etete for Niger Delta Peoples Fighters; Asukwo Henshaw for Bakassi Freedom Fighters; Ibinabo Horsfall for Niger Delta Movement for Justice; Duke Emmanson for Niger Delta Fighters Network and Inibeghe Adams for Niger Delta Freedom Mandate.
Others were Abiye Tariah for Niger Delta Development Network; Joshua Ebere for Renewed Movement for Emancipation of the Niger Delta; Jeremiah Athony for Movement for Actualization of Niger Delta Republic; Francis Okoroafor for Niger Delta Freedom Redemption Army and Nelson Okochi Walter for Niger Delta Liberty Organisation.
The statement reads thus: “The Coalition of Niger Delta Agitators condemns the illegal extension of the NDDC board and demand arrest and prosecution of the immediate past Acting Secretary to the Government of the Federation. It is on record that the tenure of the present board of NDDC elapses by the end of December 2017.
“Our position is that, the peace that is in place in Niger Delta must be oiled further by constituting a new board in accordance with the rules and practices that have been in place. There should be no attempt to extend the tenure of the present board, if the Federal Government is genuinely interested in the peaceful atmosphere that is prevalent in the Niger Delta.
“Presently there is peace in the Niger Delta region; the cease fire which was announced and sustained by all the militant groups last year after the intervention of PANDEF was to give the government a peaceful atmosphere for dialogue and subsequent implementation PANDEF 16-point agenda, rather than extending the NDDC board to create crisis in the Niger Delta.
“Having failed in their bid to escalate crisis in the Niger Delta through the meaningless Operation Crocodile Smiles, the hawks and detractors of the Niger Delta have gone about introducing a very gross illegality in the NDDC board and duration to willfully set one state against another.
“The constitution of the board of NDDC and its tenure has been running seamlessly from inception to date. A seamless and rancor free composition of the Board has followed a defined pattern and each state knows when it will assume the headship of the management team.
“Quite unfortunately, we have been inundated with reports of how Dr. Habiba Muda Lawal abused his privilege of acting as the SGF by collecting billions of Naira from Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba and Mr. Nsima Ekere to influence him (Habiba) to raise a memo that illegally extends the tenure of the current board run for another four years to terminate in 2020.
“Another gross error is that Dr. Habiba Muda Lawal was presumptuous, as the current board was inaugurated by the minister of Niger Delta and as such the NDDC is under the oversight of the Ministry of Niger Delta and not the SGF.
“Secondly, the present board of NDDC does not merit a day extension, the Niger Delta people have witnessed the worst board of NDDC since its inception.
“The present board of NDDC constantly engages in fraud, embezzlement, nepotism, favouritism in award of contract running into billions of Naira, it is a standing order of this present board that such billions of Naira contract be awarded to their family members, friends and political associates, without recourse to due process and the rule of law as contained in the Public Procurement Act.
“For instance, Techsel Products Limited, Gasons Nigeria Limited and many others are few of the companies owned by Mr. Nsima Ekere and brothers and currently handling different NDDC projects running into billions of Naira. As witness by us, majority of these projects are not executed and very few executed are of poorest standard with substandard materials, poor facilities and equipment and are below the globally accepted standard compared with the huge amount such contract was awarded.
“Records in our disposal show that some of the beneficiaries of this ill-awarded contracts are brothers, sisters, in-laws and political associates of the Managing Director of NDDC MD, Mr. Nsima Ekere as well as the cousins, brothers, friends and in-laws to the Executive Director – Projects, including their Aides and relations working in the MD’s office who connived in this illegal adventure of fraud.
“It is a well known fact that the MD’s office has been turn to money making factory by his Aides, the Aides are fond of collecting monies from visitors before allowing them access to the MD without the knowledge of the MD.
“Recently, the MD flooded Akwa Ibom State APC and stakeholders with contract award letters ranging from N150million, N200million, N500million, N800million and above in order to further his 2019 governorship ambition, therefore we and the Niger Delta people in general will resist any attempt to extend the present NDDC board more than December, 2017.
“This action will bring injustice to other states in the Niger Delta which supposed to produce the next MD, Chairman and other board members of NDDC.
“We also wish to alert Mr. President that the recent APC local government campaign flag-off in Akwa Ibom state was funded with N500mllion by the managing director of NDDC, this money was meant for the development of the Niger Delta region, the youth empowerment programme which was embarked by commission was hijacked by the aides of the managing director while water icing contract always given to the youths were shared among the aides and directors in the commission and the state representatives in the commission.
“We hereby demand that: The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) should immediately investigate the immediate past Acting SGF and recover billions of naira meant for the development of the Niger Delta region.
“The Civil Service Commission should also suspend the former Acting Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Dr. Habiba Muda Lawal for the role he played in order to fuel crisis in the Niger Delta region.
“We urged Mr. President to disregard the illegal extension of the tenure of the present NDDC board for the interest of peace in the Niger Delta.
“We also urge the EFCC to investigate the Managing Director of NDDC, Mr. Nsima Ekere, his brother Mr. Idorenyin Ekere, his sisters, his Aides, his political associates, Techsel Products Limited and Gasons Nigeria Limited.
“The same investigation should also be extended to Executive Director – Projects, Executive Director – Finance and the Chairman – Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba.
“Finally, the Coalition of Niger Delta Agitators shall resume serious attack on oil installation from January 15, 2018 if the Federal Government continues with this illegal extension after the expiration of their tenure.
“We want the Nigerian public and the entire world to be aware of this injustice as we shall not accept any illegal extension of the present board of NDDC. A stitch in time saves nine,” the ex-agitators added.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.