The Minister of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, Sen Godswill Akpabio has revealed that the appointment of a Sole Administration to run the affairs of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) was the work of a court order.
According to Akpabio, the move was necessitated by a court injunction issued by Justice A.R. Mohammed of the Federal High Court in Abuja, and not an official appointment made by the Federal Government.
The former governor disclosed this while receiving members of the Forensic Auditing team in his office in Abuja, who submitted progress report of the on-going Forensic Audit of the NDDC.
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He explained that the appointment of Mr. Effiong Akwa as Sole Administrator of the NDDC was only temporary and would only last the duration of the Forensic Audit, and thereafter, a new substantive board would be inaugurated.
Akpabio further stated the MNDA has started the new year with renewed vigour towards ensuring that all mandates given by President Muhammadu Buhari to revitalize the Niger Delta region are prioritized.
“The key programme for the Niger Delta is the completion of the East-West road particularly Section I-IV and I’m happy to report that contractors are on site and work is on-going at a very busy pace. I also commend the National Assembly for the speedy passage of the NDDC 2020 budget; I think that was a patriotic action taken in the interest of the good people of the Niger Delta region,” Akpabio stated.
He also commended the management team and staff of the Ministry, saying, “The Ministry was able to complete a lot of development projects in different States of the Niger Delta which includes the 50km road in Edo State, Skill Acquisition Centers in Cross River, Ondo, Akwa-Ibom and others with provision for under water welding”.
The appointment of a Sole Administrator for the NDDC has since attracted mixed reactions from key stakeholders and leaders of the region, with many questioning the need for it when the inauguration of a substantive board is long overdue.
