The minority caucus in the House of Representatives has rejected the appointment of a sole administrator for the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) by President Muhammadu Buhari.
The members of Reps described the appointment as a disservice to the people of the Niger Delta region.
The caucus rather called on President Buhari to, without further delay, inaugurate a governing board for the NDDC as required by the Act establishing the commission.
The lawmakers, in a statement by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ndudi Elumelu (PDP Delta), on Sunday, described the appointment of a sole administrator for the NDDC “as a further pathway to deprive the people of the Niger Delta of the much-desired infrastructural development in their area”.
The caucus stressed that “the recourse to a sole administrator instead of the governing board, is ill-advised as it will promote corruption, alienate the people, trigger disagreements and worsen the managerial sleaze that is crippling the commission and impeding the development of the area.
According to the lawmakers, “the earlier resort to an Interim Management Committee and now a sole administrator, instead of a governing board, has heightened apprehensions in the region. This is not healthy; particularly given the strategic place the Niger Delta occupies in national economy and development.
“Our caucus therefore urges President Buhari to douse the tension by immediately inaugurating a governing board for the NDDC as provided for in the establishment Act, so that the people of the Niger Delta region can start enjoying the much-needed infrastructural development through a properly constituted commission”.
