Former Kano State governor and senator representing Kano South senatorial zone, Kabiru Gaya, has justified President Muhammadu Buhari decision to reconstitute the Board of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) already screened by the Senate.
President Buhari in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, disclosed that the Interim Management Committee of the commission with Dr Gbene Nunieh as the acting Managing Director would continue to run the affairs of the Commission pending the forensic audit of the organization.
The statement further revealed that “the supervision of the Commission shall remain under the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs.”
With the development, the already screened NDDC Board which has Dr Pius Odubu and Bernard Okumagba as chairman and managing director respectively has been put in abeyance.
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Senator Gaya who incidentally is a member of the Senate Committee on Niger Delta Affairs told newsmen that President Buhari reserved the right to choose those to work with.
He said: “We screened those nominees presented by the President so that they are now confirmed members of the board of the NDDC and it is based on the President’s wish and desire that he sent us the list of the people he trusted and agreed.
“The president owns the people and he decides on the people he wants to work with. If there were some issues that came up later that made the president to change his mind, we would be glad to work with the President because of the issues.
“The law states that the President should just inform us that he has decided to submit another name.
“The president can choose those he wants to work with.
“As a Governor I decided on whom I want to work with. It is left for the State Assembly to approve.
“I can accept and later because of internal issues may be for security or other issues that may affect the governance of my State, I usually try to change the names and the President by so doing is on the right track.
Senator Gaya further argued that there was no need to question the rationale to halt the inauguration of the new Board pending the outcome of the forensic audit of the agency.
“It is in order because he may want to get to the root of some issues that may have cropped up which we do not know and we don’t have to know, it is only when he brings up the names, we will screen them but it is between him and the leadership of the senate.
“I am sure he will explain the reason to the leadership of the Senate and we trust our leader, the Senate president and all the other leaders.
“We are here to assist the president to do a good job. In the event where he decides to make some changes and we found out those changes are important, we will uphold it.”
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