With effect from 12^th April 2009, the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC Board ceased to be as it was dissolved by a Presidential announcement. This led to the appointment of an Acting Managing Director to pilot the affairs without board members. According to Olusegun Adeniyi, Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), this is in fulfillment of the Section 3(1) of the NDDC Act, 2000 which provides a four-year tenure for members of the Board, other than ex-officio members, from the date of appointment at the first instance.

I understand that the current NDDC Board was inaugurated on April 12, 2005 and the members have spent the normal four years. Since the announcement of the dissolution, we have heard of so much lobbying for candidates by god fathers and different stakeholders for the various board appointments. And as of now, no pronouncement has been made and no appointments have been announced. There have also been several rumours as to the reasons this has been so. These include irreconcilable difference between stakeholders, disagreements within the political ranks, and the pushy roles of political god fathers as well as reports of confusion within the Presidency about what really is to be done. However, one thing is clear and that is that the real reason is known only to the President.

Similarly, the CBN Governorship seat occupied by Prof Charles Soludo has come to the end of its tenure. As I write, there are news reports that another Governor has been nominated who will be screened by the Senate soon.  The speed with which the new CBN Governor has been nominated for appointment shows the seriousness of the Federal Government in matters of our monetary policies. The Government knows it can not afford to have a vacancy or any person in acting capacity for that post. This is encouraging and is good for our country. It is good because appointments into strategic positions do not have to be delayed because of trivialities and unnecessary politicking. That no matter what kind of politics is involved; it does not take the President too long a time to make up his mind on who should occupy which post. After all the President has an armament of qualified advisers who can fish out the right persons to do the right jobs when required.

This is why I am concerned about the time the board appointments into the NDDC have taken. The tenure of the dissolved board has been known to the Presidency since. Even the Niger Deltans knew when the tenure was to end. I understand that lobbying into the various positions started a number of months before the board was dissolved. So what reason will our President who has told the Niger Delta people that he cares for them and their problems are his concern give for delaying appointments into such a sensitive Parastatal especially in these times when all has not been well with the region? What sort of politics is being played here that should stop our President from acting quickly.  Who is giving him the wrong signal with these appointments? News reports have indicated that the disagreement on the choice of qualified persons to serve on the board and the management of the commission by the political and ethnic leaders in the region was responsible for the delay in appointing the new helmsm. However, judging from the way the new CBN governor has been nominated despite the underground and open politicking, I do not see any reason why the President can not do a similar thing with the NDDC. The current delay can only lead to suspicions and insinuations as well as what may appear to be wrong deductions that something is wrong somewhere. But what is wrong Mr President? We need to know. You have always told Nigerians that openness is part of your style. There have been denials that there is any bickering. We have no cause to disbelieve you for now. But if the delay continues, then more questions would be asked by the people about your love for them.

This crisis period is a golden opportunity. It will be a shame if Mr President were to lose this golden opportunity. My thinking is that considering the fact that there are security issues in the region; this would have been the best opportunity for him to show the people of the Niger Delta that despite all the problems, he still cares and nothing will stop him from doing the right thing. Recent reports have suggested that the President is going the way of having non politician who is a technocrat for the post of MD of the NDDC. If that is the case, there are so many Nigerians from the States assigned the various posts who can do the job. I therefore think that it is not dearth of qualified persons that could be the reason.  Thinking about the issue of non politician doing the job, I have come to the conclusion that who ever is appointed will eventually become a politician because the post is a political post. This is usually the case with non partisan political appointments and we should not shy away from the fact as it has been happening in the country.  

The President should appoint persons with untainted character who are committed to the rapid development of our region soon rather than later. The so called front line politicians from the region have so much at stake in terms of personal wealth and political power that their immediate reasoning and concerns will be 2011 rather than the Niger Delta. I would also advise Mr President against the act of recycling. We know that it is easier to recycle than get young and energetic persons who are rearing to go. If the presidency has true intention to turn around the fortunes of the neglected region, then persons who understand the suffering of the people should be considered. I believe that the integrity of persons chosen to the board will go a long way in showing the government's commitment to the development of the Niger Delta and thereby aiding the resolution of the Niger Delta crisis.

Finally, I believe, it will not be out of place if the President uses this opportunity of delayed appointments into the NDDC Boards to also release the white paper on the Technical Committee on Niger Delta. A new Board will have something to work on and the President can also measure their output based on a new mandate backed up by the NDDC budget he has sent to the Senate. 

Robot  # 1 | 06.06.2009 16:41

With effect from 12th April 2009, the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC Board ceased to be as it was dissolved by a Presidential announcement. This led to the appointment of an Acting Managing Director to pilot the affairs without board members. According to Olusegun Adeniyi, Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), this is in fulfillment of the Section 3(1) of the NDDC Act, 2000 which provides a four-year tenure for members of the Board, other than ex-officio members, from the date of appointment at the first instance. I understand that the current NDDC Board was inaugurated on April 12, 2005 and the members have spent the normal four years. Since the announcement of the dissolution, we have heard of so much lobbying for candidates by god fathers and different stakeholders for the various board appointments. And as of now, no pronouncement has been made and no appointments have been announced. There have also been several rumours as to the ...Read the full article.