Ignore Lori-Ogbebor’s Bid to Stop NDDC Board Inauguration, Group Tells FG

A civil society organisation, Niger Delta Integrity Group (NDIG), has reacted to news report in a national daily on Saturday that a suit filed by Rita Lori-Ogbebor in August at the Federal High Court, Abuja, seeking to restrain “President Buhari, Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, and President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, from inaugurating a new board for NDDC, pending the public release of the forensic audit report, comes up on Tuesday, November 2.”

NDIG, in a statement issued by its President, Akpoebide Okotiene, and Secretary, Edet Ekpenyong, noted that this was “rather strange, curious, and a wicked subterfuge, coming at a crucial time the entire Niger Delta region is at tenterhooks awaiting the NDDC Board inauguration following President Buhari’s delay in keeping to his promise to inaugurate the Board of the NDDC upon receipt of the report of the forensic audit of the Commission, which was submitted to him since September 2, 2021.”

According to the group, “this is without question one more instance of Lori-Ogbebor’s meddlesomeness taken too far,” because President Buhari, on June 24, 2021 “gave a firm promise to inaugurate the NDDC Board upon receipt of the Commission’s forensic audit report in July, when he received the leadership of Ijaw National Congress (INC) at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja.”

The President said: ‘‘Based on the mismanagement that had previously bedeviled the NDDC, a forensic audit was set up and the result is expected by the end of July, 2021. I want to assure you that as soon as the forensic audit report is submitted and accepted, the NDDC Board will be inaugurated.”

However, NDIG noted that since receiving the forensic audit report on September 2, 2021, the President is yet to keep to his promise to inaugurate the NDDC Board, and the NDDC “continues to be run in breach of the law. All stakeholders in the region have continued to express their dismay, warning against further delay of the NDDC board inauguration.”

Akpoebide Okotiene and Edet Ekpenyong noted that “across the length and breadth of the Niger Delta region there are unending calls, demands and peaceful agitations of youths, men and women, political and traditional leaders and civil society organisations that the NDDC should be run in accordance with the NDDC Act which requires a substantive board in place. The stakeholders have also stated that the inauguration of the board of NDDC will ensure compliance with the law as well as promote and sustain peace, equity and fairness, transparency and accountability, good governance and rapid development and transformation of the Niger Delta Region, and douse the tension of militancy as well as curtail the menace of insecurity in the region.”

Niger Delta Integrity Group further stated that Rita Lori-Ogbebor’s “ludicrous quest is against the spirit and aspiration of Niger Deltans who have continued to question why the illegality of running the Commission by a sole administrator, in breach of the law should continue even two months after the submission of the much touted forensic audit report to the President.”

According to NDIG, “it behoves the Federal Government to ensure that the long-suffering people of the Niger Delta region who have been denied of equitable and fair representation in the NDDC through a substantive board since October 2019 is quickly assuaged with a Board as promised by Mr. President to ensure proper corporate governance, accountability, checks and balances and fair representation of its Constituent states” noting that “Ogbebor’s unwarranted and mischievous suit is clearly the handiwork of a clique designed to perpetuate the illegal interim management contraptions that has been in place running the NDDC and utilising its funds totalling over N500 billion since October 2019 to date, with no developmental projects in any of the constituent states to show for it.”

The Group stated that “Niger Delta Governors, ethnic nationalities, statesmen and civil society organisations have been calling for the inauguration of the Governing Board in compliance with the NDDC Act and to ensure full representation of the constituent states since 2019, with President Buhari, finally promising on June 24, 2021 when he received the leadership of Ijaw National Congress, to inaugurate the Board upon receipt of the forensic audit, which report he has received since September 2, 2021.”

NDIG observed that “Rita Lori-Ogbebor is not acting for our people in the Niger Delta region and is merely playing a script being directed by forces who do not wish our region well.”

The group therefore “urged the Federal Government to ignore her (Ogbebor’s) desperation and attempt to scuttle the will of the people, obstruct abidance with the law setting up NDDC as we await the earnest inauguration of the NDDC Board, as promised by President Buhari, to ensure fair representation of the nine constituent states, accountability in the utilisation of the NDDC funds, checks and balances and due process in the Commission in compliance with the NDDC Act.”