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By Festus Ahon, ASABA

COMMUNITY Development Committee of Oil and Gas Producing Areas of the Niger Delta, CDCOGPAND and Oil Mineral Producing Communities Traditional Rulers Forum, OMPCTRF, yesterday, warned that the continued delay in the inauguration of a substantive board for Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, may lead to renewed hostilities in the oil rich region.

It will be recalled that following the resolution of Council of Traditional Rulers in Bayelsa State, it was the turn of Bayelsa to produce the next Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission, NNDC, but top All Progressives Congress, APC, chieftains from South-South zone are battling to control who heads the agency saddled with interventionist projects for oil-producing areas.

The groups in a statement by Chairman Board of Trustees, CDCOGPAND, Joseph Ambakederimo and Head of Secretariat, OMPCTRF, Kingsley Arthur, enjoined the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Obong Umana Umana, to stop the ongoing charade of the illegal sole administratorship and not get himself involved in the macabre dance of shame in the NDDC.

They said Umana should not allow himself to be manipulated, and not give-in to the shenanigans of the buccaneers.

According to the groups, “We are appealing to President Muhammadu Buhari to implement his renewed promise last week to inaugurate the board of NDDC, whose members he duly nominated, equally forwarded to the Senate for screening and confirmation as the NDDC Act prescribed, as the President’s appointees are yet to be sworn into office to do their work, three years after the process of the appointments was completed.

“Looking at other appointments the President has made, particularly, the recent appointment of the Managing Director for the Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority, OGFZA, Onne in Rivers State, the swiftness at which the appointment was made calls to question as to why the NDDC board has become something of a ridicule to the people of the region.

“Another one is the directive by the President for a forensic audit of Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project, HYPREP, without dissolving the board of HYPREP or appointing an interim sole administrator to run the affairs of HYPREP while the audit will last. In the case of the NDDC, a substantive board has been delayed even after the forensic audit had been concluded.

“The President did not also appoint an interim sole administrator to run the affairs of the OGFZA. A substantive appointment was quickly made, which has made the OGFZA appointment the swiftest appointment ever made in seven years of this administration.

“Now the question to ask the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Umana, is: what is delaying the NDDC board inauguration? Why is the NDDC board inauguration being handled in such a lackadaisical manner, and why are our people so weak that they can’t resist this treatment of slavery of our people?

“There have been two financial years’ budgets of NDDC approved by the National Assembly amounting to N799 billion, which has been brazenly mismanaged with no repercussions meted out to persons and we say this is alright by every standard.”

“The resources of the commission are allegedly pilfered on a daily basis with some used to lobby people in this government to get extension of tenure in order for them to continue the illegality of the ongoing contraption and pillage the collective resources of the region.”

 “We, hereby, call on the minister to stop the ongoing charade of the illegal sole administratorship, so that he does not get himself sucked into this macabre dance of shame. Umana should not allow himself to be manipulated, he should not give-in to the shenanigans of the buccaneers.

“The people of Niger Delta are happy that Obong Umana was given the headship of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs and by extension the responsibility to supervise the NDDC. The people are looking up to him for succor, to better their lot, therefore, he cannot afford to disappoint the people, but the only way he will continue to enjoy the confidence of the people is when he quickly ensures the inauguration of the board, in accordance with the law, to ensure fair and equitable representation of the nine constituent states.”