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Tag: NDDC

  • NDDC Board Chairman, Onochie tasks stakeholders on gender equality

    NDDC Board Chairman, Onochie tasks stakeholders on gender equality

    Lauretta Onochie, the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Governing Board Chairman, has called on all stakeholders to ensure equitable treatment for all, irrespective of gender.

    Adding her voice to the worldwide campaign, Onochie said: “We must all learn to treat our girls the same way we treat our boys.”

    She spoke at the NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt during a courtesy visit by the female champions of the Commission’s football tournament.

    Expressing her delight at receiving the female champions in March when the world focuses attention on women’s matters, she urged all stakeholders to work together to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls by 2030, in line with Sustainable Development Goal 5.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that one of the 17 goals established by United Nations in 2015 seeks to achieve gender quality and empower all women and girls.

    NDDC Board Chairman, Onochie tasks stakeholders over gender discrimination
    Lauretta Onochie (4th left) and female champions of the Commission’s football tournament

    “Achieving gender equality is not only a fundamental human right but also a necessary foundation for a peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world.

    “Some of the key targets and indicators of SDG 5 include ending all forms of discrimination, violence and harmful practices against women and girls; ensuring women’s full participation and leadership in all levels of decision-making; providing universal access to sexual and reproductive health and rights; promoting women’s economic empowerment; and enhancing women’s role in peacebuilding and humanitarian action,” Onochie asserted.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) recalls that sometime December 2022, the Senate had confirmed Onochie and 12 other nominees as chairperson and members of the board of the NDDC respectively.

    Those confirmed, apart from Ms Onochie are Dimga Erugba (Abia), Emem Wills (Akwa Ibom), Dimaro Denyanbofa (Bayelsa), Oruk Duke (Cross River), Gbenga Edema (Ondo) and Elekwachi Dinkpa (Rivers).

    Others are Mohammed Abubakar (Nasarawa), Sule-Iko Sani (Kebbi), Tahir Mamman (Adamawa), Samuel Ogbuku (Bayelsa) MD for a term of two years, Charles Airhiavbere (Edo) Director of Finance and Charles Ogunmola (Ondo) Director of Projects.

  • Ovie Omo Agege; The Mastermind Of Urhobo, Isoko, Delta Ijaw And Itsekiri Loss On NDDC Board

    Ovie Omo Agege; The Mastermind Of Urhobo, Isoko, Delta Ijaw And Itsekiri Loss On NDDC Board

    By Olorogun Olori Magege

    Ovie Omo Agege thinks he is the beloved son of President Buhari. Of course, he is not. A Fulani man has no abiding love for anyone. His love is as fleeting as the moving cloud above, changing as it dissipates over the horizon. That is strange to Ovie because he stole the mace of the Senate of the Federal Republic to stop the phantom impeachment of Buhari. Shouldn’t Buhari forever lick his backside? So he thought. Of course, Ovie didn’t know that Buhari knew there was no impeachment plan on that day and he is only amused by the dexterity of the mace snatchers. It was a comic relief from an otherwise tense Executive/Legislature relationship of that era. But Ovie in his self-induced egomania, overstretched his goodwill with President Buhari.

    When he got rewarded with the plum job of the Deputy Senate President over his role in the mace snatching, he got giddy-headed; he nicknamed himself Ovie Omo Buhari, he was unstoppable, the anointed of Aso Rock. He had direct access to the President of the Federal Republic.

    His first plan was to be anointed as the APC leader of the South-South Zone. But he was rebuffed by the big boys of Rivers, Cross Rivers, and Akwa Ibom. ‘Who are you?’ they asked him. He staged a quick retreat. Buhari was silent, amused by the antics of the mace snatcher.

    Not done yet he set his eyes on the NDDC Board. He reckoned as the Deputy Senate President who hails from the South-South he is the alpha and omega of the NDDC and he should decide who gets nominated into the Board.

    So he sold the idea of the Board to the then National Chairman of APC Comrade Oshiomhole and together they got to work. Ovie knew the Managing Director position would guarantee him the funding of his Guber dream. But he sold a dummy to Adams that the position of the Board Chairman is more befitting to him to appoint as the Chairman of APC. Adams swallowed the bait and he nominated his ex-Deputy to the position of Chairman. Of course Ovie nominated Bennard Okumagba who is said to have bankrolled his second Senate bid. They got some others to nominate for the remaining positions. The job was done and dried, so they believed.

    They bid their time until Buhari had left the country for medical treatment, and they forged a letter to the Senate announcing the nominations and Ovie sought for Senate clearance. Of course, the Senate screened the nominees and passed them. Ovie had delivered, Ovie had vanquished, Ovie had triumphed……Ovie Omo Buhari!!!!

    Ovie in his wildest dream did not anticipate the revolt his actions would provoke; in intensity and severity. Buhari was not amused. Many claimed to be the son of Buhari just because he took pictures with them or because they ran errands for him sometime ago. But only Buhari knows his sons; if you doubt me ask El Rufai.

    Ovie grossly underestimated Buhari’s resolve to clean the augean stable that NDDC had become. The forensic audit would be carried out to catch the thieves and to reposition the Commission for effective mandate delivery.

    So Akpabio didn’t really have any convincing to do on Buhari for Buhari to jettison Ovie NDDC Board.

    The problem with Ovie is his ego. He believes he is the smartest person God has ever created, he knows it all, the alpha the omega. Anything he does not know does not exist. Because of his superego, he did not believe he needed to carry anyone along in his mischief-making. In the art of diplomacy, he has no knowledge of and therefore no need for it.

    How he thinks he can single-handedly nominate a board of such an important interventionist agency beats all imagination. But that is how the world of sadists and despots revolves and the innocent suffer the consequences.

    So when the new Board was being selected Ovie was denied access. He had done his own and alone. This time around his input was denied, and his advice was not needed.

    And the Urhobos, the Isokos, the Delta Ijaws, and the Itsekiris were left out of the Board. Ovie’s arrogance of purpose has cost my people a no representation on a Commission specifically created and mandated to ameliorate the hardships arising from oil exploration and oil degradation of their ancestral lands.

    And Ovie wants to be their Governor. God forbid!

    ©️
    Olorogun Olori Magege wrote from the oil-degraded swamps of the Gbaramatu Kingdom.

  • FG, EFCC accused of illegality in administering NDDC funds

    FG, EFCC accused of illegality in administering NDDC funds

    The federal government and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have been accused of illegality in administering funds and assets of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    Believing in the anti-corruption mantra of the federal government, a coalition of civil society organizations (CSOs) working with The Act for Positive Transformation Initiatives (APTI) launched a campaign for probity and accountability on the NDDC in 2020.

    Thus far, the campaign has revealed that the government only pays lip service to the war against corruption, with the CSOs stressing that the government has failed to take any deterrent steps despite the volume of evidence presented.

    Speaking at a press briefing on Wednesday, Kolawole Johnson, Head, Directorate of Research, Strategy & Programmes of APTI, disclosed that the government rather took advantage of the campaign to engage in systemic feasting on NDDC’s resources.

    According to Johnson, this illegality by the federal government through the EFCC in daily shortchanging the Commission and the people of the Niger Delta region has been ongoing since 2020.

    “The Act establishing the Niger Delta Development Commission, without ambiguity, gave the Commission the exclusive power to determine how its assets and funds are to be held and regulated.

    “Since 2020, the Economic and Financial Crime Commission has taken over, albeit illegally, the role of collecting 3% of the total annual budget of oil-producing companies (The major revenue source for the NDDC) on behalf of the NDDC without remitting the same to the Commission.

    “This was done without any legal justification and in flagrant disregard of the NDDC Establishment Act, 2000. By this act, the EFCC ambushed the provision of section 14(2) (b) of the NDDC Act, diverting and syphoning funds assigned, allotted and due to the NDDC. Note: oil companies are the largest contributor to the NDDC’s revenue.

    “This act of the EFCC is ultra-vires of the powers of the EFCC provided in the EFCC Act 2004 of which collecting funds allocated by law to another body enacted by law does not apply,” he stated.

    He went further to say: “Curiously, in the course of a close investigation, the anti-graft agency appeared not to have created a dedicated account for this fund, fueling suspicion that the Agency might have turned-in a chunk of the fund into recovery for the Federal Government.

    “The said fund cannot be classified under recovery and thus, cannot be kept under government recovery account.

    “Some concerned officials from the region have always been willing tools in perpetuating this illegality, perhaps for the satisfaction of feudal lords.

    “ The immediate past Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and the present Minister cannot feign ignorance. As recent as December 2022, The Minister, claiming to be working on approval from the President, was hoping to access the sum of Four Hundred and Eighty Billion Naira ((480,000,000,000) from the NDDC’s fund with the anti-graft agency to fund some special emergency projects.

    “Notwithstanding the prolonged inability to access the said fund, sources within the oil-producing companies reveal the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr Umana Okon Umana, still encourages the companies to pay the statutory revenue to the anti-graft agency.

    “Of note, by law, EFCC is not a revenue collection agency and thus, cannot make itself one through the back door through hoodwinking and instrument of blackmail.

    “The law only gives the power to specify how NDDC assets are to be held to the management and Board of the Commission, not EFCC or any other agency of government, not even the Ministry of Finance or the Federal Inland Revenue Service. EFCC cannot assume the role of NDDC management under any guise. It is unlawful and illegal”.

    Meanwhile, APTI has demanded the immediate discontinuance of demand for the 3% of the total annual budget of the oil-producing companies operating onshore and offshore in the Niger Delta, including the gas-producing companies.

    APTI also demanded the refund by the EFCC to the NDDC, immediately without illegal deductions of commission or charges whatsoever, within seven (7) days of all the 3% of the total annual budget of the oil-producing companies operating onshore and offshore in the Niger-Delta states including the gas producing companies that have been taken by the EFCC on behalf of the NDDC since 2020.

    “The EFCC should within seven working days give a proper account of what has been collected thus far and make the same public for the purpose of accountability.

    “While assuming that the Economic and Financial Crime Commission will do what is just in this regard by returning the total sum collected thus far, we call on the Commission to release the fund to a dedicated NDDC account not to be touched till after the general elections and even after the general elections, the management of the Commission should ensure every penny taken out of the fund is properly accounted for probity,” APTI demanded.

  • Days of portfolio contractors has ended in NDDC – Onochie

    Days of portfolio contractors has ended in NDDC – Onochie

    Ms Lauretta Onochie, the Chairman, Governing Board, Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), has pledged to improve the credibility and quality of its projects.

    Onochie spoke at a ceremony to celebrate her recent appointment organised by the Buhari Support Organisations (BSO), on Tuesday in Abuja.

    She declared: ”The days of portfolio contractors and splitting contracts have ended,” adding that the commission under her watch was going to get the best contractors to do the best projects for the people of Niger Delta.

    Onochie, who decried that NDDC had in the past became a cash cow for the elites in the Niger Delta Region and beyond, vowed, ”it is not going to be the same anymore.

    She said: ”Although it is going to be a difficult task, President Muhammadu Buhari has made my appointment into NDDC easier.

    ”This is because he had ordered a forensic audit, and from the result, Nigerians were angered when they saw the quantum of evidence that was presented during the audit.

    ” We are not going to be looking at the forensic audit as a board, but we are going to do things differently.

    “I’m very lucky to be a disciple of President Muhammadu Buhari, who everybody knows that he is an incorruptible leader, as he is a man that abhors corruption.”

    Onochie said that Buhari the way Buhari was running the country since 2015 had shown everyone that he means business when it comes to tackling corruption.

    She said: “We are going to stand with our people, as our youth are going to benefit massively, and the NDDC staffers that have been long suffering in the region are going to have a new leaf of life.

    ” They are going to be retrained, rehire some of them as technical aides rather than looking elsewhere. We are just going to do things totally different.”

    She said that NDDC would train the youth and equip them with the requisite skills, so that they are able to get their own businesses started, and become employers of labour.

    Earlier, the Chairman, BSO Coordinators Forum, Umar Shuaibu, who described Onochie as an incorruptible person that has been tested and trusted, expressed optimism that she was going to be the game changer in the Niger Delta region.

    Shuaibu, who is also Coordinator, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), said: “We know that a new Sheriff is now in town, God willing, it is not going to be business as usual in the area.

    He said: “Our advice to her is to always stand strong, and affirm that belief and incorruptible nature of her to make sure that the right thing is done and we have confidence that the right will be done in the NDDC.

    ” The Buhari Support Organisations will make sure the legacy of President Buhari’s administration is sustained.”

  • NDDC: Fractured but unbroken – By Dakuku Peterside

    NDDC: Fractured but unbroken – By Dakuku Peterside

    The inauguration of the Management Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) last week, the second under President Buhari, was greeted with mixed reactions by the people of the Niger Delta and most Nigerians. The people’s response is rooted in many issues, most of which are connected and straddling. I list them here in no hierarchy of importance: a feeling of relief  that finally, the jinx of interim management has broken, a seeming sweetener for politics and the political season we are in, at last hopes of assuaging  the reign of mismanagement that has dented the image of the organisation and  dashed hopes arising from the inability of translating good intentions to practical results, and the general belief that the intervention agency has turned to the feasting ground of an insensitive elite.

    It is relevant on hindsight to understand the wisdom that led to the setting up of the intervention agency and its broad implications for the region and the Nigerian economy, to situate the concern of a broad spectrum of Nigerians. It is common knowledge, that the idea of an interventionist agency for the oil-producing Niger Delta region was premised on three critical pillars: the first is the well-acknowledged challenge of developing the Niger delta, which was adumbrated in the Willinks Commission Report of 1958, predates the country’s independence. The second is the urgent need for environmental justice on account of pervasive damage inflicted on the land, flora and fauna arising from oil production and gas flaring. Third reason was to address the insecurity prevalent in the region, cry of marginalisation and related restlessness of the oil-producing Niger delta which was negatively affecting the country’s revenue.

    The introduction of the NDDC bill by the Obasanjo administration and its dramatic passage by a veto of the National Assembly offered some hope that the country was now ready to remove its knee on the neck of the Niger Delta area. From 2000 to 2008, the government appeared prepared to chart a new path of accelerated sustainable development of the region. Without dwelling much on historical details, that ray of hope evaporated with subsequent leadership of the country. Succeeding leaders of the country and many who managed the organisation, saw the NDDC not from the premise of its founding vision but as a pot to service an insatiable elite at the expense of the area’s development.  It suffices to mention that lack of accountability, impunity and corruption cases became frequent at the agency, and leadership changes without following the law setting up the agency became, sadly, the norm instead of an exception.

    However, the NDDC derailment got egregious and offensive in the past six years leading to a massive outcry and moral panic. The Commission was literally in a coma, yet its resources were vanishing without let up. To respond to the outrage of stakeholders, the Federal Government rightly set up a forensic audit which later turned controversial. Revelations of the forensic audit were both stunning and shocking. Amongst other findings, NDDC got some N6 trillion in its coffers from inception. 13,777 contracts amongst other contracts awarded between 2001 and 2019 valued at over N3.3 trillion Naira, cannot be fully accounted for. A few of the projects are ongoing, and some are abandoned. More serious organisations have taken others over, and many others still need to be made available to be verified. The forensic audit also discovered that so much money ended up in the pockets of the rich and powerful.

    Surprisingly nobody has been prosecuted to date for malfeasance revealed by the forensic audit. Umana Umana, the current minister of the Niger delta ministry, recently revealed that contracts worth over N250 billion were awarded during the forensic period without due process. The findings of the forensic auditors are consistent with earlier findings by NEITI, which underscored that the mismanagement of resources and corruption in the Commission was alarming and embarrassing.

    Related to the gross mismanagement of NDDC and resources accruing to the Commission is the bazaar that the Amnesty program, also designed for the Niger Delta, has come to represent. It leaves those interested in the Niger Delta with the impression that either a section of region’s elite is not serious about the area’s development or that Nigeria always foists the worst to lead the agencies to prove that the people are incapable of driving the growth of the region. No one can tell the truth with certainty.

    Some stakeholders believe that the Federal Government is complicit in the disaster that NDDC turned out to be. From funding deficit, undue interference, and weak oversight to the appointment of incompetent and visionless leadership. It conveys the impression that it is set up deliberately to fail. The reality also came to light that NDDC became a contract awarding entity controlled by the great and powerful in Abuja.

    Similarly, some of the region’s elite, who have been directly involved cannot extricate themselves from the looting of resources meant for its development. These individuals from the region have been enmeshed in contract scandals of bourgeoning dimension, thus losing the moral right to hold those in charge at NDDC to account.

    Indeed, at a time, the deluge of malfeasance has led to calls for the scrapping of NDDC. This has far-reaching socio-political and economic implications, which, when examined extensively, will have little benefit. The challenge has nothing to do with the beneficiaries of the intervention, the people of the Niger delta or the justification for this special intervention but rather the current structure, processes, administration, and quality of leadership of the agency.

    In a general sense, underdeveloped societies are often societies where there is poor leadership and where poor management of public resources is prevalent. Niger Delta communities have become prime examples of the “Resource Curse” phenomenon where abundant natural resources often translate to negative net development, especially when we add environmental degradation to the equation. The accruals to NDDC have not maximally benefitted the region’s people. The NDDC has been unable to impact in any structural manner or reverse the appalling human capital development trajectory of the region despite the enormous resources it has commanded in the past 22 years. The serial lack of visionary and accountable leadership in the Commission has left the region in ruins and fractured the people’s dream.

    Therefore, the burden of history has shifted to the new NDDC Board and Executive management. The only option open to the new leaders of NDDC is to break away from that inglorious cycle and restore hope by deliberate positive and inspiring leadership actions that translate good intentions to development results. It is a no-brainer that we expect a lot from the new NDDC regime. It can never be business as usual, and any attempt to continue in the ways of past administrations will attract unwavering condemnation, if not reprisals, from Niger Deltans. And there is justification for this.

    If anything undermines the relative peace in the Niger Delta region presently, especially given the global energy crises orchestrated by the Russian/Ukraine war, the international community will not look at Nigeria favourably.

    The new board came at a time hope was badly needed in the region. They have two options: join in the conspiracy of those raping the area or stand on the side of history as the harbingers of hope. The new NDDC team must seize the moment and put their names on gold. This will only happen through positive transformational leadership that is action-oriented, and that will stay focused on the original mandate and vision of the Commission.

    I am aware that the forensic audit report recommended far-reaching restructuring and reorganisation in the NDDC, and any attempt to delve deeply into them will go beyond the purview of this piece. However, I will recommend that quickly after taking office, they should do the following:

    First, the new team’s immediate mandate is to ensure no restiveness in the region. When the Niger Delta coughs, cold catches the international oil market. Such instability in these very fluid economic realities post covid 19, Russian/ NATO grandstanding, and global economic and political tensions will not be a welcome development. Global energy security is paramount presently.

    The next most important challenge to my mind is to study and restudy the comprehensive Niger Delta development master plan which was funded by the Commission. This will enable the new team to identify cross-cutting areas of priority.

    The third is housekeeping. That is to do things differently from the immediate opprobrious past of the Commission and chart a part for visible and tangible development impact in the region to erase the impression that the people of the area are incapable of driving development. This will demand a complete overhaul of the NDDC structures and processes to make them fit for purpose. The management should adopt a strategy that will make NDDC lean, flexible, dynamic, and able to adapt to the changing external and internal conditionalities shaping our nation whilst still bringing about massive development to the region.

    The next overriding demand is to embark on massive re-orientation amongst the youth and elite about a certain sense of entitlement to share the region’s resources at the expense of actual development. This has been the bane of NDDC. And the perception of NDDC as a cash cow must change at all costs.

    Finally, the worst tragedy that has happened to the Niger Delta region in the past years is the squandered opportunities to lift the living standard of the people. It is, therefore, a no-brainer that the only motivation for the newly inaugurated NDDC leadership should be to make a tangible difference and leave legacies that would be a reference and not extrinsic self-reward. It is time to improve the life of Niger Deltans through the instrumentality of NDDC. It is time that all Niger Deltans will see positive change in leadership approaches, accountability, and probity in the Commission. Although our NDDC dreams are fractured, they are not broken.

  • New NDDC Board inaugurated; Chairman, Onochie vows not to fail

    New NDDC Board inaugurated; Chairman, Onochie vows not to fail

    The newly constituted Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has been inaugurated with the Chairman of the Board, Lauretta Onochie promising not to fail.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports the new board of the NDDC was inaugurated on Wednesday at the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton, Abuja, the federal capital territory (FCT).

    Unfolding her agenda for the Niger Delta, Onochie asked for the support of Nigerians in general and the support of the people of the region in particular.

    “Apart from the physical development of our region, we will be paying extra attention to the empowerment of our teeming youth population, equipping them with requisite skills to catch up with their peers in other parts of Nigeria and elsewhere.

    “We ask that you give us breathing space to generate great ideas that will bring about the desired change in the region.

    “We are determined to do a great job. We are committed to the improvement of the economic and ecological well-being of our region. We are devoted to the prosperous future of the youths of the region. We will not fail. It’s a promise.

    “But we ask that you give us the breathing space to do our job. We ask for your support, all and sundry so we can deliver for the long-suffering people of the Niger Delta,” the NDDC boss said.

    In his remarks, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Umana Okon Umana appreciated President Muhammadu Buhari for fulfilling his promise of constituting the board of the NDDC.

    “I appreciate His Excellency President Muhammadu Buhari for fulfilling the law by keeping his promise of approving the Board of NDDC in line with section 2 subsection 1 of the NDDC Act 2000.

    “Today, we are witnessing the inauguration of the board in fulfilment of Mr President’s promise that he will put in place a genuine board for the commission after the completion of the forensic audit,” the Minister said.

    TNG reports members of the NDDC Board include: Dimgba Arugba, State representative from Abia (South East); Dr Emem Wilcox Wills, State representative from Akwa Ibom (South South); Elder Sen. Dimaro Denyabofa, State representative from Bayelsa (South South); Hon. Orok Duke,State representative from Cross River (South South) and Dr Pius Egberanmwen, State representative from Edo (South South).

    Others are: Engr. Anthony Okene, State representative from Imo (South East); Hon Gbenga Edema, State representative from Ondo (South West); *Elekwati Dimpa, State representative from Rivers (South South); Alhaji Muhammed Kabir Abubakar, zonal representative from Nasarawa State (North Central); Alhaji Sule Iko Sadiq Sanni, zonal representative from Kebbi State (North West) and Prof. Tahir Mamman, OON, SAN, zonal representative from Adamawa State (North East).

    Chief Dr Samuel Ogbuku from Bayelsa (South South) holds the position of Managing Director, for a term of two years, to complete the unexpired term of his predecessor; Major General Charles Airhiavbere (rtd) from Edo State (South South) for the position of Executive Director, Finance and Charles B. Ogunmola from Ondo State (South West) for the position of Executive Director, Projects.

  • Court stops Onochie’s inauguration as NDDC Chairman, moves to jail her

    Court stops Onochie’s inauguration as NDDC Chairman, moves to jail her

    Despite the Senate’s confirmation of Mrs. Lauretta Onochie as the Substantive Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) board, a Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday halted her inauguration and warned that she risks going to jail for contempt.

    Recall that four days ago the Senate confirmed Onochie as Substantive NDDC Chairman and 12 other nominees as members of the board.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that last week, the Court granted an order stopping the National Assembly from screening and confirming the nomination of Onochie and Ogbuku.

    In a notice of consequences of disobedience to the order of the court dated 23rd day of December 2022, the court passed directions to President Muhammadu Buhari, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, Senate of the National Assembly, Onochie and Ogbuku on the consequences of flouting an earlier restraining order even as it stopped the inauguration of the new NDDC board.

    “Take notice that unless you obey the directions contained in this order, you will be guilty of contempt of court and will be liable to be committed to prison” and with it the court put a stop to the inauguration of the board of the NDDC as confirmed by the Senate.
    Court stops Onochie's inauguration as NDDC Chairman, moves to jail her
    The presiding judge, Justice J. K. Omotosho, instructed that all actions on the matter be suspended pending the determination of the suit.

    Chief Edward Ekpoko, and Engineer Victor Wood, who are representing the Itsekiri Leaders of Thought, and Mr. Edward Omagbemi, who is representing Omadino Unity Forum all, on behalf of the Itsekiri ethnic nationality of Delta State are seeking whether upon the proper construction of Section 12 (1) and other enabling sections of the Niger Delta Development Commission ( Establishment Etc) Act 2000 as amended and the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) it is not the turn of the Itsekiri Ethnic Nationality of Delta State, the highest oil producing region of the Delta State to produce the next chairman and managing director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that the plaintiffs are seeking a declaration that the nomination of Onochie, who hails from a non-oil producing area in Delta State as Chairman of NDDC by President Buhari is unlawful for being contrary to the intent and purpose of NDDC Act.

    They are also seeking a declaration that the nomination of Chief Samuel Ogbuku, who hails from Bayelsa State as Managing Director of NDDC by President Buhari, when it is the turn of the Itsekiri Ethnic Nationality of Delta State to produce the Managing Director of the Commission, is unlawful for being contrary to the intent and purpose of the NDDC Act.

    Particularly, they are seeking an order quashing the nomination of Onochie and Ogbuku as Chairman and Managing Director as well as restraining the President of the Senate and the Senate of the National Assembly from screening and confirming Onochie and Ogbuku as Chairman and Managing Director respectively.

    The matter was adjourned to January 11, 2023, for further hearing.

  • Just In: Finally, Senate confirms Onochie from non-oil producing area as NDDC chairman

    Just In: Finally, Senate confirms Onochie from non-oil producing area as NDDC chairman

    The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Lauretta Onochie, a Special Assistant on Social Media to President Muhammadu Buhari, who is from a non-oil producing area of Delta State as the Board chairman of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC.

    TheNewsGuru.com (TNG) reports that 12 other members of the board as the Delta State Representative remains missing from the board.

    Both the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Niger Delta had screened Onochie on Thursday alongside 13 others for the NDDC board roles.

    Buhari had written to the Senate requesting the Upper Chamber to confirm the appointment of the Chairman and Members of the commission’s board in accordance with the provisions of section 2(2)(a) of the NDDC (Establishment) Act.

    This marked the second time Buhari forwarded a list of nominees for the NDDC board for confirmation. He sent the first list of nominees for the board in 2021 and the Senate screened and confirmed the nominees.

    However, Senate President Ahmad Lawan stated that the President’s decision to send another list of nominees for confirmation was because there was a flaw in the previous compilation.

    Onochie’s nomination faced some resistance from some committee members notably on the grounds that she is not from an oil-producing community in Delta State where she hails from, which is against the NDDC Act, preventing her from chairing the commission as Section 12(1) expressly states that nobody from a non-oil producing area should be given the position.

  • Senate refers Onochie’s confirmation as NDDC Chair, 14 others to committee

    Senate refers Onochie’s confirmation as NDDC Chair, 14 others to committee

    The Senate has refered to its Committee on Niger Delta Affairs for screening, the confirmation of the appointment of Lauretta Onochie as the substantive Chairperson, Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

    Also referred for screening are 14 others as members of the commission.

    The resolution followed the presentation of an Executive Communication by the Senate Leader, Ibrahim Gobir during plenary on Tuesday.

    Gobir in the presentation said that President Muhammadu Buhari had written the Senate in November seeking the confirmation of the 15 nominees.

    He listed the names of the other nominees to include

    In his remarks, President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan refered the nominees to the Senate Committee on Niger Delta Affairs for screening.

    He said that: “The committee has one week to carry out further legislative action on the nominees and to report back on Tuesday, Dec. 20.

    “This is because we have to finish the confirmation before we close for our Christmas and new year break.

    “And we are going to consider the 2023 Budget by Tuesday or latest Thursday.

    “I know it is tasking but it is doable. The committee should start work immediately,” Lawan said.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Buhari had on Wednesday, Nov. 3, written the Senate seeking the confirmation of the appointment of Lauretta Onochie as the substantive Chairperson, Board of the NDDC.

    Onochie before the appointment was the Special Assistant on New Media to President Buhari.

  • OMO-AGEGE secures N80bn Presidential approval for reconstruction of Sapele Benin, Amukpe/ Agbor roads

    OMO-AGEGE secures N80bn Presidential approval for reconstruction of Sapele Benin, Amukpe/ Agbor roads

     

    * Gets support of CCN/OAIC

    President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the release N80 billion for the reconstruction of Sapele/Benin Road and the Amukpe/Agbor/Uromi Road.

    Deputy President of the Senate and governorship candidate of the APC, Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, made the disclosure during a meeting with members of the Christian Council of Nigeria (CCN), which held in Sapele, Monday, November 28.

    He recalled that as soon as he became Deputy President of the Senate he requested from Delta State Governor, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, to know the status of the road all the way from Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) to Agbor. He said this was because he knew the contract had been awarded previously and hence requested for a review so he could put it in the Niger Delta Development Commission budget. He explained that because Okowa felt he would not get the political credit, the issue died.

    But recently, with the reconstitution of the NDDC board, President Buhari ordered that N500 billion naira of the Commission that was frozen be released for development projects and the sum of N80 billion was approved when he pleaded with the President to consider the Sapele/Benin Road and the Amukpe/Agbor Road.

    Senator Ovie Omo-Agege said it would be insanity to repeat the same thing over again and expect different results. This he said, was what it would amount to by continuing to hold onto Okowa through his anointed proxy, both of whom have collectively failed to developed Delta State.

    He assured that when elected as governor he would create an enabling environment for companies that left the State as a result of insecurity and other factors to return. “When I become governor in May 29, 2023 I will not wait for the Federal Government before constructing strategic roads in Delta and ensuring the implementation of the local content law so as to provide job opportunities for our youths.”

    Speaking on the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the APC presidential and vice presidential candidates, Omo-Agege said, ” we want power for development and progress. That’s what we use power for. Tinubu has a wife who is a Pastor and if he could not islamize his wife, how would he be able to islamize other Nigerians?

    “I believe that after eight years of Buhari it is only fair and equitable for power to move to the South. I put all my strength into it. Governors of the APC supported it. All governors of Southern Nigeria supported it, met and signed a Communique in Asaba. Okowa read the Communique.

    “But no sooner had that been done, during the PDP national congress, Okowa asked delegates of Delta to vote for a Northerner. Yet, he is the one crying about a Muslim-Muslim ticket. The same Okowa that said take the presidency back to the North, just give me vice president?

    “The focus should be who can bring development to our people. Okowa who is a Christian has he changed anything, are Deltans not crying?”he wondered.

    Senator Omo-Agege also dismissed the views in some quarters that because his father, the late Justice James Omo-Agege was an adherent of African Traditional Religion, specifically the Urhobo “Igbe” movement , he was also one.

    He said while the Constitution of Nigeria guarantees freedom of religion and to that extent, he could not dictate the religious choices of his father, so too, his father could not dictate his own personal choice of religion. “As a result of this, all my siblings and I are devout christians of the Catholic faith. Christianity is a conscious choice for us, “ he explained.

    Earlier, Chairman of Christian Council of Nigeria, Delta State chapter, Rev Dr Jonathan Iwhiwhu, highlighted the contribution of the Church to development and called for assistance in terms of construction of a secretariat and official bus.

    He had drawn Senator Omo-Agege’s attention to the deplorable Sapele/Benin Road and the Amukpe/Agbor/Uromi Road. He pleaded that policies that negatively impact on the economic ventures of the church such as schools should be moderated when he becomes governor.

    Rev Dr. Iwhiwhu also called for provision of job opportunities for the youths of the church as a reward for the church’s support for his election as governor.

    The CCN is comprised of Baptist, Anglican, Methodist, African Church and the Church of the Lord ( Aladura) spread across the 25 local government areas of Delta State.

    Meanwhile, the Organization of African Instituted Churches, OAIC, has presented a copy of the Holy Bible as a guide and scepter of authority to Senator Omo-Agege as he goes about campaigns across the State.

    The presentation was made by Archbishop Jonathan Arhavwarien, Chairman of OAIC, Delta State Chapter, during a meeting with the body at St Lazarus Christ Church, Ughelli, today.

    Speaking at the OAIC meet, Senator Omo-Agege lamented that despite the huge resources that accrued to the State by way of FAAC, IGR, 13 percent oil derivation fund, Delta State remained seriously undeveloped, pointing at the Ughelli/Asaba Road that has taken over 16 years to build but remains uncompleted.

    He said he was fully prepared for the electioneering race, has an independent mind, can discern what is right from wrong to win and salvage the state from its the pitiable condition.

    Senator Omo-Agege also pledged to support community policing that would complement the effort of the police and related agencies in curbing crime and criminality across Delta State.

    He said as governor, he would set aside a budget that would provide funds for entrepreneurs to start something with the State government as shareholders. He criticized the unwarranted arrest of youths just because they carry laptops, without verifying who they actually were. “This is bad, instead, we will harness our youths’ potential and convert their ingenuity to economic opportunities.”

    Archbishop Arhavwarien, had asked for his plans to support of the church, youths and women in the state. He also raised concerns on security of the State in the face of herdsmen/ farmers clashes, and the general industrialization of Delta State.

    The organization gave its united support to Senator Omo-Agege, and prayed for his success of at the polls.