Traditional rulers and youth groups from the nine states of the Niger Delta region have urged the Federal Government and international oil companies (IOCs) operating in the region to release the $5.6 billion being owed the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
They said paying the money would allow the Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs, Umana Okon Umana, to reposition and implement the commission’s newly developed roadmap, adding that at the last count under the tenure of the former Minister, Godswill Obot Akpabio, the NDDC was owed about $5.6 billion and another N649 billion by the multinational oil companies.
“Umana’s newly developed roadmap to achieve the commission’s core mandate may not work if the NDDC is not removed from its life support approach, because what the commission receives every month is only enough to pay employees’ salaries and office maintenance,” they stated.
The stakeholders, comprising traditional rulers, chiefs, women and youth leaders, in a statement issued by its Secretary-General, Chief Anthony Loveday, noted that the call on the Federal Government and the IOCs was necessitated by the short time left for the President Muhammadu Buhari administration and the reality that the roadmap developed by Umana could not be implemented without proper funding.
They also restated their support for the rebranding of the commission to enable it to serve as a vehicle for driving the socio-economic development of the region.
“The leadership must understand that time is of the essence, as millions of people in the region are languishing in abject poverty.
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Therefore, the Federal Government should match its words with action and release the funds owed the NDDC, as well as direct the multinational oil and gas companies to release the money owed the commission.
“We support the new policy directions and the expected rebranding of the commission under Umana’s leadership. We await the Federal Government to release the funds for the expected reforms to commence.
We expect the reforms to lead to sound decisions on various issues affecting the Niger Delta region, including the completion of the East-West road and review of various infrastructure development projects across the region.
“The Presidency should as a matter of urgency, grant the NDDC powers to award new contracts to enable the it to provide communities in the nine states of the region empowerment and entrepreneurship training programmes to alleviate the sufferings of the people and ensure payments of verified and completed contracts before the expiration of President Buhari’s tenure,” the statement reads.
The stakeholders also commended Umana and management team at the NDDC for prioritising projects execution and payments that deliver most impact for the region and their new focus on execution of security, health, education, water and road infrastructure projects.
The equally backed the minister’s directive that further award of contracts on water hyacinths in the Niger Delta region should be suspended, while all such ongoing projects should be reviewed.
