THE third Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) under the chairmanship of Air Vice-Marshal Larry Koinyan was finally dissolved on September 13, 2011, after an intractable and distracting power play, petition writing and allegations of misdemeanour among the top echelon of the commission.

Among those affected were the third substantive Managing Director of the Commission, Mr. Chibuzor Ugwuoha, who was appointed on August 6, 2009 and the Executive Director Projects (EDP), Mr. Iniobong Esok Etteh, who engaged him in a superiority contest.

The NDDC was established in 2000 as a development intervention agency in the oil bearing regions of the country with the mandate to provide social and economic succour to the ecologically devastated and impoverished region. Although the commission was expected to play complimentary roles to the statutory functions of the three tiers of government in providing services and amenities it became over-burdened and started functioning like an alternate government.

Given the socio-political characteristics of the Niger Delta region, it was not surprising that NDDC became the honey pot of political actors, traditional rulers, retired generals and their cronies, who saw it as their foothold to the national cake.

Worrisome also is the orientation of its chief executives, who see the agency as a spring board to political office. With the exception of first Managing Director of the Commission, Mr. Godwin Omene, all the subsequent chief executives had ended their tenures or been removed midway, to contest for the governorship positions in their states.

The crisis that pulled down the board was triggered by the Executive Director Project, who had publicly queried the MD/CEO for allegedly sidetracking his office to issue letters of award of contracts, contrary to the provisions of the 2001 NDDC Manual, which empowers only the EDP to issue such letters to contractors.

On the other hand, the 2007 Public Procurement Act (PPA) section 20, vested the responsibility of government transactions in the care of the Chief Accounting Officers.

The PPA states clearly: “The chief executive of a procuring entity shall be the person charged with the line of supervision of the conduct of all procurement processes; in the case of ministries, permanent secretaries while in the case of MDAs, agencies and corporations, the Director General or the officer of a co-ordinate responsibility.”

It went further in Section 20(2) to enjoin the Chief Accounting Officer “to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Act in its entirety,” stressing that the Chief Accounting Officer is held responsible for any infraction committed by his or her subordinate. This contradiction set the stage for the power tussle that erupted between the MD/CEO and the EDP.

It is, therefore, our contention that NDDC should be insulated from political influences and manipulations if it is to make any meaningful contribution in the socio-economic development of the region.

There is the need to take a second look at the NDDC manual and streamline its content with the goals of the PPA, as the existence of both documents has created parallel powers and perhaps put two captains in one ship. As an agency of the federal government, we expect NDDC to comply with federal law, rules and regulations but this must not be at the expense of the internal dynamics of the organisations which must meet with local needs.

Again, we believe that the NDDC master plan is too omnibus as it has made the agency an octopus. There is the need to streamline its project focus as it cannot replace elected governments. Another area of concern is the tendency by the elders and elite to regard NDDC as an appeasement .package designed to contain loquacious individuals in the region. This must stop. There is need to study the PTF model and reform NDDC to operate with corporate best practices so that its impact could be visible and less political.

The NDDC must be made to present accounts of its expenditures to the public while the oversight functions should not be limited to lawmakers who see the agency as an open window for graft. We strongly ask the traditional rulers, public officers and oil companies in the region to limit their activities to promotion of a conducive atmosphere for development rather than becoming obstacle.

In appointing the next crop of officers the President should place more emphasis on known performers and people of integrity to reduce the scandals that bedevils the Commission’s Board.