Chief Samuel Ogbuku, Managing Director (MD), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), has acknowledged that the commission was not perfect but ready to take corrections.
Ogbuku stated this at a World Press Briefing organised by the commission at its 25th anniversary as a commission in Asaba on Monday.
He said that NDDC would be 25 on Saturday, July 12 since it was formed, and paid tributes to all stakeholders who made it possible for it to be created as an interventionist agency in the Niger Delta Region.
According to him, the commission was an upshoot of the Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission (OMPADEC), NDDC was in year 2000 passed by Act of parliament.
“NDDC is special because it is an act that belongs to the people and it was a response to the crisis in the Niger Delta to address the agitations of our people and to ensure that there was peace in the region and to bridge the developmental gap,” Ogbuku said.
He noted that the needs assessment of the people of the region as at then were addressed accordingly by the commission.
Ogbuku said that their demands then were roads, water, good schools, hospitals and light, accordingly, the commission ensured that there were concrete roads for the people, schools, jetties, hospitals were built, electricity and water provided for the rural communities.
“So today, most of the government projects you see in the rural areas in the region, are NDDC projects.
“But as we proceed, people started expecting more, they want to see roads linking communities, states and we started looking at regional projects that would link two states and more,” he said.
He said that most of the bigger projects conceived by NDDC were started and a lot were not finished but not because those who conceived them did not mean to finish them.
“But one of the major challenge the commission has had in the past has been the high turnover of management and board and from our record, it is possibly only one board that completed its tenure in the commission.
“Since then, no board has ever completed its tenure, some spent one year, some two years and even less. And between 2015 to 2023, I was the ninth chief executive of NDDC. This gives an idea of how the commission has suffered high turnover of management,” he said.
Ogbuku, however, thanked President Bola Tinubu for believing in the current board and charged them to ensure it make a difference in the region.
“President Tinubu has shown much love for the people of the region and we want to thank him for giving us this opportunity to serve our people and for constituting the commission immediately he assumed office.
“Mr president did not only constitute the board, he engaged and directed us to ensure that we complete all abandoned projects and to sign a performance bond and we signed our performance bond during our retreat at Ikotepene, Akwa-Ibom,” he said.
The NDDC boss said the board was guided by the president’s directives to spread the Renewed Hope Agenda in the region, by first engaging all the stakeholders in the region.
“We met with the Chiefs, traditional rulers, leaders of the region, youths and women to get their thoughts on what they wanted the commission to do for them.
“We looked at the mistakes of the past, challenges, and possible areas to improve on the success of the past administrations, and to correct them.
“So, we came up with the policy of transiting from transaction to transformation. We perceived that for NDDC to progress faster, we needed lot more of transparency,” Ogbuku noted.
He said that the commission reviewed its contracting processes and had digitised its procurement processes by ensuring that nobody could fake it’s award letters.
The MD said that the directorates of the commission was restructured and also engaged KPMG to design its governance advisory policy which document would be launched soon.
He noted that the staff morals were also boosted by payment of all their allowances and outstanding owed them.
Ogbuku said that some of the projects; Okitipupa electricity projects abandoned for over 15 years was completed and inaugurated and the people of Ondo South are currently enjoying 24 hours power supply.
“In Edo State, we also completed an injection substation and commissioned and in Akwa-Ibom, we also commissioned Ibulor bridge and the 27.1 km Ogbia-Nembe Road linking 14 communities in Bayelsa was completed.and commission,” he said.
He noted that while completing some strategic old projects in the region, the commission also carried out new projects with commitment to finish the projects started in line with Mr President’s mandate.
“This year, we completed 10 km Abraka to Benin Road in Delta and we also commissioned 7.5km road in Nwangene in Imo and in Obigbo, Rivers another 7.5km network of roads completed and commissioned.
“Before we came in, NDDC had only one state office in Imo state, inherited from OMPADEC. Today we have commissioned that of Cross Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta is ready for commissioning and Akwa-Ibom is coming soon.
“So, the task we have is to ensure that all the participating states must have a state office and the commission must not rent offices anymore. All these happened withing the last two years that we are in the office,” he said.
The NDDC boss noted that the commission embarked on solar powered electricity to lighting up the region and to check insecurity.
“So, we came up with the operation light up the Niger Delta using the solar to illuminate most of the communities to reduce criminalities and improve commerce in the areas.
“In education, we believe that digital education for our young children is important. We acquired 450,000 new lesson tablets which has been distributed to primary and secondary schools in the Niger Delta which can be used online and offline.
“We have also continued with our foreign scholarships scheme, which has been successful. Last year from our foreign scholarships, the commission turned out 17 distinctions in 2024,” he said.
He said that the commission has also intervened in free medical missions across the the states which he said would be done twice yearl.
Earlier, The Chairman Governing Board, Mr Chiedu Ebie, thanked all stakeholders for their support while assuring of the commission’s commitment to deliver on the its mandate to develop the region.