The Federal High Court in Abuja has upheld the appointment of Mr. Chiedu Ebie as the Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), denying requests to remove him from office. Justice Joyce Abdulmalik delivered the judgment on Thursday, dismissing the lawsuit brought against Ebie’s appointment by oil-producing communities in Bayelsa and Delta states.
The plaintiffs argued that President Bola Tinubu’s selection of Ebie violated the NDDC Act, claiming he did not represent “the area with the highest quantum of oil production.” Despite these allegations, the court sided with the defendants, stating the plaintiffs’ suit was statute-barred.
The plaintiffs, representing multiple communities, had filed their case on January 11, 2024, over four months after Ebie’s appointment on August 29, 2023. Citing Section 24(1) and (2) of the NDDC Act, the court emphasized that challenges against such appointments must be filed within three months, rendering this case invalid.
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Furthermore, Justice Abdulmalik noted that the plaintiffs had failed to seek the court’s permission to initiate a judicial review of President Tinubu’s decision, leading the court to dismiss the case for procedural non-compliance.
The ruling was celebrated by President Tinubu’s legal team, led by Mrs. Maimuna Lami Ashiru, who had argued the case’s lack of merit. Similarly, legal representatives of the National Assembly, NDDC, and Ebie himself praised the court’s decision.
