The Ijaw Youths Council (IYC) has called for the dissolution of the three-man interim committee of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) set up by the Minister of the Niger Delta Ministry, Senator Godswill Akpabio, saying “we don’t have confidence that he can supervise a transparent process.”
Failure to dissolve the three-man Interim Management Committee, the Ijaw youths warned, would lead to a clampdown on the operations of the agency across the region.
Factional President of IYC, Mr Eric Omare, handed the warning on Monday in the company of other executive members, at a press conference in Ekpan, Uvwie Local Government Area of Delta State.
Omare noted that the inauguration of the NDDC board which has been cleared by the National Assembly and the ongoing forensic audit under the supervision of President Muhammadu Buhari should be carried out with despatch.
The factional IYC leader, who recalled instances of past forensic audits carried out on the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) under the former President Goodluck Jonathan among others, described the interim management committee as an “illegal contractor.”
The factional IYC added that the argument raised by its proponents that the committee was set up to ensure a credible process of the forensic audit was not only untenable but baseless.
“The reason is that the Committee is headed by Dr. Joy Nunieh from Rivers State. The same Dr. Nunieh is the person that the president nominated to represent Rivers State in the board of NDDC.
“If you feel Dr. Nunieh will not interfere with the audit as a member of the interim management committee, what makes you think that as a member of the substantive board she will interfere with the audit?” Omare queried.
While fanning the members of restiveness in the region if the factional IYC’s demands are not met, Omare pointed out that with only two of the 16 NDDC board nominees left unscreened, there was no basis to delay the confirmation process.
“We are calling for the immediate dissolution of the illegal interim management committee set up by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio.
“That the board of the NDDC that has been cleared and represents different interest groups in the Niger Delta, even if there are reservations somewhere, should be inaugurated without delay upon the Senate’s confirmation.
“That the forensic audit ordered by Mr. President be supervised directly by Mr President and not the Minister of Niger Delta because we don’t have confidence that he can supervise a transparent process.
“If our demands are not met we have no other option than to resort to mass action across the Niger Delta region. The NDDC headquarters in Port Harcourt will be shut down.
“We will not allow the illegal contractor called interim management committee to sit down in Port Harcourt and filter away our resources while our people suffer in penury.
“We want our demands to be met within a reasonable time and if they are not met, we will have no option than to embark on mass action to ensure that our demands are met,” he warned.
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