NDDC Tasks Legal Directorate Personnel on Conflict Resolution

•Innovative strategies for service delivery, region’s devt, others

 Sunday Okobi

The Directorate of Legal Service (DLS) of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), as part of its efforts to build capacity for its personnel, has urged them to imbibe the principles of innovative strategies and conflict resolution aimed at effective service delivery in meeting the main objectives of the NDDC towards facilitating rapid and sustainable development of the Niger Delta region.

With the theme: ‘Exploring Innovation for Effective Legal Service Delivery in the Public Sector’, of this year’s retreat, which took place in Lagos yesterday, the leaders of the directorate said it resonated deeply with their collective mandate to embrace innovation as a pathway to excellence in legal service delivery and effective conflict resolution, especially in today’s rapidly evolving legal landscape.

In his paper presentation, one of the resource persons and keynote speakers, Dr. Babatunde Ajibade (SAN), said the retreat aimed to “enhance the capacities of personnel of DLS for effective service delivery in the Niger Delta region.”

He noted the theme was aptly within  the main objectives or focus areas of the NDDC, which include: “Enhancing infrastructure in the Niger Delta; improving healthcare access for people of the Niger Delta; empowering Niger Delta Communities through Education, Skills and Jobs; sustainable environmental management of the Niger Delta’s environment and resources; facilitating agricultural development and supporting agro allied industries, as well as fostering social welfare programmes for all of the Niger Delta’s people.”

Ajibade, who presented his papers on the topic: ‘Innovative Strategies for Excellent Legal Service Delivery and Conflict Resolution’, added that all these must be linked to how the DLS can contribute its quota to enabling the NDDC achieve these laudable objectives, including “understanding our role as legal practitioners; focusing on what is in the client’s best interest; being open minded and not wedded to one solution, and pragmatism.”

According to him, “Relating this then to the DLS and the NDDC, I wonder if the management of the NDDC appreciates the importance of the DLS in the scheme of things and carries it along in the formulation of all its plans.

“In the same vein, I wonder if the DLS itself appreciates the importance of its role and the importance of bringing in necessary external resources where required to enable it to play that role effectively.

“There is no aspect of human activity or human endeavour that does not have a legal aspect to it.  When I examine the six focus areas of the NDDC as listed on its website, I immediately see the legal issues that could, and I am sure that do arise in relation to each one of them.

“Each of them will necessitate that the NDDC enter into contracts of varying levels of complexity.  They will also require that the NDDC is properly advised regarding the position of the law on a variety of subject areas, ranging from construction, through project financing, education, healthcare, environment, agriculture, and social welfare.

“The negotiation and drafting of these contracts and the provision of advice on these areas of law to ensure that the NDDC’s interests and that of the Niger Delta people are adequately protected should be one of the primary roles of the DLS, and the DLS should not be hesitant to call in external resources where required to ensure that it performs this role effectively.”

He stated further that he wasn’t familiar with the workings of the DLS or the NDDC, “and it may be that I am preaching to the choir and that these recommendations already form part of the modus operandi of the organisation.

“If this is the case, then please accept this as an endorsement of what you already do.  If this is not the case, then please accept this as a recommendation for a different approach going forward.

“In many organisations that I am familiar with, especially in the private sector, legal departments are seen as a cost centre and consequently as a drain on resources because they do not generate income.

“However, this perception is skewed, and I am often at great pains to make it clear to the General Counsel or Legal Advisers manning these departments that they do the legal profession a disservice when they fail to correct this misconception.”

In his address at the retreat, Victor Arenyeka, Esq., director of Legal Services at the NDDC, stated that the Legal Directorate remains a pivotal component of the NDDC and will continue to play a critical role for years to come.

He said: “As the custodian of the Commission’s legal and regulatory framework, the Legal Directorate serves as a tool in advancing NDDC’s mission, from ensuring contractual integrity and regulatory compliance to fostering harmonious conflict resolutions.

“To achieve this, it is imperative that we work in synergy by adhering strictly to established processes, maintaining transparency in all dealings, and promptly seeking legal guidance when required.”

He advised the personnel that: “As public officers, we must recognize that embracing new strategies is not optional but essential. In so doing, we collectively strengthen the integrity of our operations and uphold the values of accountability and excellence that define the NDDC’s mission.”

Arenyeka stated that the retreat is not merely a formality, “but an opportunity to build capacity, foster collaboration, and sharpen our collective resolve to serve with excellence.

“Let us garner new insights and challenge ourselves to think innovatively. By so doing, we will return to our respective roles better equipped to confront the challenges ahead.

He expressed gratitude to the NDDC Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Chief Samuel Ogbuku, for his visionary leadership and unwavering support towards the growth of the Niger Delta Development Commission and for making the retreat possible.

“I also thank the Executive Directors for their support of the Directorate. I am also grateful to the Consultants and in-house Planning Committee who worked tirelessly towards the execution and realization of this retreat,” the director said.

Also, another keynote speaker at the retreat, Dr. Innih Archibong, who dwelt on the topic: ‘Repositioning the Legal Services Department for Excellence: The Role of Paralegal Staff in Promoting the Cause of Justice’, noted that the legal services department of any corporation is the legal and ethical nerve centre of that organisation, adding that it is the thermometer by which its corporate health is measured.

Accordingly, he posited that: “After all, a corporation is a mere fiction, a creation of law and a figment of the law’s imagination. Its founding and its death are within the hands of the law, and who better to protect and sustain that life than a department of persons trained in the law.”

He advised the staff members of the directorate that if any company was created under the Companies and Allied Matters Law, the legal department would ensure that annual returns were made, that its membership did not fall below the required minimum, and that other regulatory requirements were complied with.

“Otherwise, it may wake up one day to realise that it is no longer a company, that it has died. If the entity is a Commission or agency such as the NDDC, the department must watch over the establishment law and the constitution and seek ways of complying with their requirements, and engage in legislative advocacy to improve its standing, establishment, and funding.

“The department also ensures that the rules governing the conduct of staff and management are established and complied with.

“These certainly include finance, contracts, and bidding policies, but also extend to more moral-leaning policies like sexual harassment and staff victimisation policies – documents and policies that ensure that the reputation of the company is protected both within its confines and in the court of public opinion,” Archibong stated.