Grom Judex Okoro, Calabar
Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Obong Senator Godswill Akpabio, has stated that President Muhammadu Buhari is totally committed to the development of Niger Delta region.
Speaking during the a courtesy visit on the Cross River State governor, Prof. Ben Ayade at the executive council chambers of the Governors office in Calabar yesterday, the former governor said the forensic audit ordered by the president is a sign of courage on his part to righting the wrongs in the region.
He said the essence of the Ministry’s visit to the state is to look at ongoing projects and see where the ministry can intervene alongside the NDDC so as to touch the lives of the people besides fast-tracking development in the region.
According to him, President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to the total development of the Niger Delta. “He is not playing politics with the region and this is why projects are taken to the grassroots through intervention in areas that touch people’s lives,” he said.
On the forensic audit, he said the NDDC has been a cesspool of corruption over the years and everyone knows it including the workers, contractors that the agency deviated from its original mandate of ameliorating the sufferings of the people over the years.
Giving some details of what he meant he said between 2017 and 2019, 468 billion was expended on emergency jobs particularly road projects that did not have gutters, 4.3 billion cash grants given to NGOs, 90% of which were not registered and wondered how they opened accounts with banks.
He assured the people of the state that the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs will collaborate with the state particularly in the area of agriculture to ensure that the Niger Delta becomes the hub for the production of rice in the West African region.