Former Federal Commissioner for Information and South South Leader, Chief Edwin Clark has asked the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Chief Godswill Akpabio to as a matter of urgency, stop his constant interference with the activities of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC for effective performance and service delivery for the people of the region.
According to the Elder statesman and chairman of Pan-Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF), the Minister should note that the NDDC is an independent interventionist agency and that he should not abandon his own ministry as it has become very imperative for him to concentrate in the ministry and leave the NDDC to work, adding that the minister should live above personal interest and have the interest of the Niger Delta region at heart in all its ramifications.
Clark has also called on President Muhammadu Buhari to immediately constitute the board of the NDDC in consonance with the Act establishing the Commission, even as he stressed that there is a lot of Illegality and corruption in the NDDC hence he described the forensic Audit as a welcome development that will help unravel the very bad deeds that took place at the Commission.
Speaking yesterday at his Asokoro, Abuja residence when he received the Interim Administrator of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Effiong Okon, and his Interim Management Committee (IMC), the Niger Delta leader also called on President Buhari to set aside a special fund to complete the East West Road started by the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.
He has assured that as the leader of the region, he will work with others to appeal to the boys to give Peace a chance against the backdrop that the people must remain United and not fight themselves.
Clark said: “There is a law governing NDDC which we all participate in producing and no one should bypass that law or bridge it. Even Mr. President has no power to bypass the law establishing NDDC except he has to go back to National Assembly for any amendment. So, any attempt to bridge the law will become illegal, null and void.
“Well, there has been many arguments about sole administrator or the legality and illegality which have been discussed…the NDDC was under the presidency and we know how it was used. But many of us never thought removing NDDC to Niger Delta ministry was the best thing to do because it would be misused. Niger Delta ministry is our own ministry, therefore, NDDC going to the ministry would not have been a bad idea so we supported it. But what we are opposed is that NDDC is an independent agency like any other one like NPA. Other agencies, the ministers did not abandon their own ministries to go and concentrate in these agencies, that is the problem we have.
“For sometime, some of us have been advising the minister, don’t abandon your ministry and concentrate on NDDC it is not fair. The minister of transportation does not concentrate on NPA or NIMASA or Railways. The minister of state petroleum did not concentrate on NNPC. So the problem we have therefore, is the constant interference with the affairs of NNDC by the minister of Niger Delta. So, I do hope that in your performance of duties you should have a free hand.
“I was shocked when the minister announced that the East West road must be completed, N18 billion was voted for the ministry for capital project. And the minister said we are going to spend about N16 billion on the east west road and you have just confirmed it. There’s no provision anywhere even in the NDDC budget that part of the budget is to be used in the completion of the east west road. East west road is one of the economic road in Nigeria, I see no reason why the Federal ministry of works should not be in charge of the East West Road.
“That is not the duty of NDDC, east west road is the duty of the ministry of works. So we have been protesting that the federal government should make available special funds for that very important economic road. In the recent budget, Kano State alone has three roads within Kano costing about N60 billion to be constructed with our oil money. What is being done for us? Do we have to go and beg for money to build roads? So whoever is the minister should live above his own personal interest and put the interest of Niger Delta first.
“So, Mr. President should provide enough for the completion of the east west road.”
