President-muhammadu-buhari-should-take-all-the-blame-for-the-unprecedented-corruption-at-the-nddc-under-the-watch-of-the-interim-management-committee-and-godswill-akpabio
September 7, 2020 | News
PRESIDENT MUHAMMADU BUHARI SHOULD TAKE ALL THE BLAME FOR THE UNPRECEDENTED CORRUPTION AT THE NDDC UNDER THE WATCH OF THE INTERIM MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE AND GODSWILL AKPABIO
In what is evidently, and regarded as the fastest, biggest and most annoying alleged fraudulent crime in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the majority of people in the Niger-delta region were left speechless and greatly disturbed too when recent reports revealed the unprecedented corruption at the NDDC under the watch of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) and the Office of the Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs of Godswill Akpabio. Never have we seen such fleecing of the NDDC funds meant for the development of the region, within a short period of time. And as noted by a commentator online: “Those who are begging people not to talk about this crime are jokers. Threats and blackmail are even worse. Nobody does this and gets away with it. This is too ungodly to overlook.”
According to reports on the alleged fraud up to the tune of N40b in the NDDC, which is making the rounds, as the Interim Management Committee has been accused of squandering the said N40b within the space of three months; a civil society group, Directorate of Research, Acts For Positive Transformation Initiative, is raising the alarm about the attempt by IMC to cover up this alleged fraud. And I join other voices to sound the alarm, and urge that this issue must be pursued to its logical conclusion, and not to be swept under the carpet or be treated with kid gloves.
For me, President Muhammadu Buhari and his trusted friend, Godswill Akpabio are the ones that have created this allegation of fraud in the NDDC. But most importantly, President Buhari is to be blamed for what is happening right now in the NDDC. Let us look at it this way. President Buhari appointed the NDDC Board, and this was approved by the Senate to start work. All of a sudden, there was a twist of events in NDDC and it was taken over by Godswill Akpabio with his antics as the person-in-charge. The question is, if President Buhari had wanted the NDDC to function as it was established to do, he would never have appointed Akpabio to supervise the activities of the NDDC with his ministry of Niger Delta Affairs. Who does not know that Akpabio’s record and stewardship as former Governor and Senator, are under investigation of alleged fraud in his State? Yet, and President Buhari felt he is still the right person to supervise the NDDC Board. Talk about a clear case of having a square peg in a round hole – that is the best way we can describe Godswill Akpabio’s appointment and occupation of the Office of the Minister of Niger-Delta Affairs, especially his self-centered antics, manipulation and gross abuse of that Office and its power, in meddling with the affairs and activities of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and its Board.
As noted in a well-circulated interview clip of Malam Nasir El-Rufai, the controversial Kaduna State Governor said: “though, our Constitution says that the President must appoint a Minister from each State. But it does not say that the President should appoint a criminal from the State. It says that you should look for the best possible person and appoint as a Minister. So, for President Buhari to have appointed Godswill Akpabio to head such a sensitive position in his administration, then it means he is the one that has created the current problem in the NDDC because he refused to heed to calls and advice not to place the NDDC under Akpabio as the President, pending when the forensic investigations of the commission’s past activities are done with. It is sad that Akpabio has created most of the problems in the Commission, and President Buhari has not seen the need or demonstrated the will to have him sacked till now. The President has not seen the need to remove the NDDC from the hands of AKpabio and swear-in the new Board of the NDDC, which he had appointed and was approved by the Senate. So, whatever confusion we see right now in the NDDC, let us bear in mind that it is created by President Buhari himself by his appointment of Akpabio to supervise the NDDC. The President does not listen to advice, otherwise, we would not be where we are today with this latest alleged NDDC fraud. The entire Niger Delta people have even rejected the NDDC’s Interim Management Committee and Godswill Akpabio long ago because of these happenings.
Speaking on the said latest NDDC fraud, in a short video interview by Arise Interview News, the Head of the said Civil Society group, Kolawole Johnson, noted that: “the Commission cannot, through the supervisory committee, transmit virement through the National Assembly to appropriate the so-called N40b, under the law because it is illegal. Whatever request of the NDDC should be passed through the President, and then the President passes it to the National Assembly Leadership, not the Committee. And the National Assembly Leadership now passes it to the Committee in-charge. That is the process. Now, if they hurriedly passed this to the Committee, we are saying that: One – there is a foul play somewhere. Two – It shows that they are also incompetent because they ought to know the right procedure in this case.
“Let us look at the content of the virement. We are told how N800m was provided for contingency on regional road repairs, and they are coming to the National Assembly with virement to say that they have spent N25b – illegal on what N800m was appropriated for. In the said virement list, they said that they have spent N5.5b on Awareness Campaign on communicable diseases in the Niger Delta. How much have we spent as a country on an awareness campaigns, that NDDC would say that they have spent N5.5b? Inside that list, they said they have N7b Training of the Niger Delta youths on Welding and electrical fittings. How come? They said they have spent N3.4b on Entrepreneurial Development… They said they have spent N13m on the Headquarters. How do you justify these expenditures within this short period?
“They said they have received N33b (which is $100m). But there was money in the Naira Account of the Commission that was over N20b. So, if you have N20b on the ground, and you collected additional N33b, and they said they have spent N22b out of that N33b – N22b plus N20b on the ground, that is N42b. Can we put facts together to see where the alleged N40b fraud is coming from? If they say they only spent N22b. Why are they asking for virement for one bogus figure? Which include: N7b on the training of youths on welding and electrical fittings; N25b on contingency roads – How many days? Where are those roads; N3.4b on Entrepreneurial development; N5.5b on an awareness campaign on communicable diseases. For Christ's sake let us fear God! These people are not stealing money. They are stealing the blood of the people. You need to see what the people of the Niger Delta are going through. The reason we are making this noise and shouting is that those behind this fleece of public funds should be apprehended and prosecuted. And those monies returned back and be used to better the lives of the people. We cannot continue like this! Imagine in that list, the IMC said they have spent N250m on Economic Summit when only N30m (which is still outrageous) was provided for it. Where did they hold that Economic Summit? They claim they have spent about N200m on sustainable development projects when only N45m was provided for it…”
While we are aware that the National Assembly had recently passed a resolution to investigate the allegation of N40 billion fraud against the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the crux of the matter is that, President Buhari would have ‘prevented’ all of this if only he had listened to good advice. And for not doing that, we blame him for this latest development in the NDDC.
Zik Gbemre.
May 25, 2020.
We Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes
In what is evidently, and regarded as the fastest, biggest and most annoying alleged fraudulent crime in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the majority of people in the Niger-delta region were left speechless and greatly disturbed too when recent reports revealed the unprecedented corruption at the NDDC under the watch of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) and the Office of the Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs of Godswill Akpabio. Never have we seen such fleecing of the NDDC funds meant for the development of the region, within a short period of time. And as noted by a commentator online: “Those who are begging people not to talk about this crime are jokers. Threats and blackmail are even worse. Nobody does this and gets away with it. This is too ungodly to overlook.”
According to reports on the alleged fraud up to the tune of N40b in the NDDC, which is making the rounds, as the Interim Management Committee has been accused of squandering the said N40b within the space of three months; a civil society group, Directorate of Research, Acts For Positive Transformation Initiative, is raising the alarm about the attempt by IMC to cover up this alleged fraud. And I join other voices to sound the alarm, and urge that this issue must be pursued to its logical conclusion, and not to be swept under the carpet or be treated with kid gloves.
For me, President Muhammadu Buhari and his trusted friend, Godswill Akpabio are the ones that have created this allegation of fraud in the NDDC. But most importantly, President Buhari is to be blamed for what is happening right now in the NDDC. Let us look at it this way. President Buhari appointed the NDDC Board, and this was approved by the Senate to start work. All of a sudden, there was a twist of events in NDDC and it was taken over by Godswill Akpabio with his antics as the person-in-charge. The question is, if President Buhari had wanted the NDDC to function as it was established to do, he would never have appointed Akpabio to supervise the activities of the NDDC with his ministry of Niger Delta Affairs. Who does not know that Akpabio’s record and stewardship as former Governor and Senator, are under investigation of alleged fraud in his State? Yet, and President Buhari felt he is still the right person to supervise the NDDC Board. Talk about a clear case of having a square peg in a round hole – that is the best way we can describe Godswill Akpabio’s appointment and occupation of the Office of the Minister of Niger-Delta Affairs, especially his self-centered antics, manipulation and gross abuse of that Office and its power, in meddling with the affairs and activities of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and its Board.
As noted in a well-circulated interview clip of Malam Nasir El-Rufai, the controversial Kaduna State Governor said: “though, our Constitution says that the President must appoint a Minister from each State. But it does not say that the President should appoint a criminal from the State. It says that you should look for the best possible person and appoint as a Minister. So, for President Buhari to have appointed Godswill Akpabio to head such a sensitive position in his administration, then it means he is the one that has created the current problem in the NDDC because he refused to heed to calls and advice not to place the NDDC under Akpabio as the President, pending when the forensic investigations of the commission’s past activities are done with. It is sad that Akpabio has created most of the problems in the Commission, and President Buhari has not seen the need or demonstrated the will to have him sacked till now. The President has not seen the need to remove the NDDC from the hands of AKpabio and swear-in the new Board of the NDDC, which he had appointed and was approved by the Senate. So, whatever confusion we see right now in the NDDC, let us bear in mind that it is created by President Buhari himself by his appointment of Akpabio to supervise the NDDC. The President does not listen to advice, otherwise, we would not be where we are today with this latest alleged NDDC fraud. The entire Niger Delta people have even rejected the NDDC’s Interim Management Committee and Godswill Akpabio long ago because of these happenings.
Speaking on the said latest NDDC fraud, in a short video interview by Arise Interview News, the Head of the said Civil Society group, Kolawole Johnson, noted that: “the Commission cannot, through the supervisory committee, transmit virement through the National Assembly to appropriate the so-called N40b, under the law because it is illegal. Whatever request of the NDDC should be passed through the President, and then the President passes it to the National Assembly Leadership, not the Committee. And the National Assembly Leadership now passes it to the Committee in-charge. That is the process. Now, if they hurriedly passed this to the Committee, we are saying that: One – there is a foul play somewhere. Two – It shows that they are also incompetent because they ought to know the right procedure in this case.
“Let us look at the content of the virement. We are told how N800m was provided for contingency on regional road repairs, and they are coming to the National Assembly with virement to say that they have spent N25b – illegal on what N800m was appropriated for. In the said virement list, they said that they have spent N5.5b on Awareness Campaign on communicable diseases in the Niger Delta. How much have we spent as a country on an awareness campaigns, that NDDC would say that they have spent N5.5b? Inside that list, they said they have N7b Training of the Niger Delta youths on Welding and electrical fittings. How come? They said they have spent N3.4b on Entrepreneurial Development… They said they have spent N13m on the Headquarters. How do you justify these expenditures within this short period?
“They said they have received N33b (which is $100m). But there was money in the Naira Account of the Commission that was over N20b. So, if you have N20b on the ground, and you collected additional N33b, and they said they have spent N22b out of that N33b – N22b plus N20b on the ground, that is N42b. Can we put facts together to see where the alleged N40b fraud is coming from? If they say they only spent N22b. Why are they asking for virement for one bogus figure? Which include: N7b on the training of youths on welding and electrical fittings; N25b on contingency roads – How many days? Where are those roads; N3.4b on Entrepreneurial development; N5.5b on an awareness campaign on communicable diseases. For Christ's sake let us fear God! These people are not stealing money. They are stealing the blood of the people. You need to see what the people of the Niger Delta are going through. The reason we are making this noise and shouting is that those behind this fleece of public funds should be apprehended and prosecuted. And those monies returned back and be used to better the lives of the people. We cannot continue like this! Imagine in that list, the IMC said they have spent N250m on Economic Summit when only N30m (which is still outrageous) was provided for it. Where did they hold that Economic Summit? They claim they have spent about N200m on sustainable development projects when only N45m was provided for it…”
While we are aware that the National Assembly had recently passed a resolution to investigate the allegation of N40 billion fraud against the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), the crux of the matter is that, President Buhari would have ‘prevented’ all of this if only he had listened to good advice. And for not doing that, we blame him for this latest development in the NDDC.
Zik Gbemre.
May 25, 2020.
We Mobilize Others to Fight for Individual Causes As If Those Were Our Causes