By Davies Iheamnachor

Niger Delta ex-agitators have commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu decision to return the supervision of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, back to the Presidency.

The National Secretary of the First Phase of Ex-agitators, Mr. Nature Dumale, in a statement in Port Harcourt, yesterday, described the decision as heart-warming, adding that  to hear that the NDDC would henceforth report directly to the President like the North East Development Commission (NEDC, was welcomed.

Dumale, who is also the Chairman of the Presidential Amnesty Programme, PAP, Strategic Communication Committee,  SCC, said the development is an answered prayer, recalling that he had in the past led a campaign for the commission to be directly supervised by the President.

Dumale maintained that Niger Delta had suffered lack of development over the years because greedy individuals were allowed to convert many interventions by the Federal Government for the region, into their personal estates.

Dumale said: “We want to use this opportunity to appreciate Mr. President, for the wisdom in returning the NDDC to the Presidency.  We believe that this will speed up the development of the region, and stem the culture of turning the Commission into a cash cow.

“For us, it is a sign that the President has good intentions for the Niger Delta region for summoning the political will to move the interventionist agency back to the Presidency. This means that he wants proper supervision of the NDDC.

“As ex-agitators, we can boldly say that the Niger Delta has been suffering because of mismanagement. This move will engender accountability, transparency and the much touted development of the Niger Delta, would become a reality.

“This is one step Mr. President has taken to give us hope as leaders in the region. We believe that the NDDC under the supervision of the Presidency would facilitate meaningful development.

“The only time we experienced some development was when NDDC was under the direct supervision of the Presidency. As soon as it was moved to the Ministry of Niger Delta, it became a cash cow, for the Niger Delta Cartel, whose only agenda, is to keep the Niger Delta underdeveloped.”

Dumale, however, said they discovered that apart from the NDDC and the PAP, there was a Niger Delta Recovery Plan (NDRP), which mandated the ministries of petroleum, environment and Niger Delta affairs, to work in synergy in articulating the development of the region.