Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The Federal Government has directed the management of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to put on hold, its current employment exercise.
The Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, gave the directive through a letter issued by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, Mrs. Didi Walson-Jack, to the Acting Managing Director of the NDDC, Dr. Akwagaga Enyia.
Both directives came after the Minister’s inaugural meeting with the management of NDDC where he gave the team a marching order to buckle up on the development of the Niger Delta region.
Akpabio had during the meeting, said NDDC owed over two trillion naira, disclosing that the government will carry out a forensic audit with the aid of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in analysing the money that accrued to the commission so far, including the expenditure.
Akpabio, in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Anietie Ekong, further “directed the suspension of handing over of appointment letters, documentation and all other processes connected to employment into the Commission.”
“According to the Ministerial directive, the Commission’s payroll should not accommodate any new employees and should revert to the status quo as of August 31, 2019, while he should be furnished within three days with a detailed report of any employment exercise being undertaken by the Commission.
“The letter said the suspension exercise is to subsist until a due process evaluation of the purported exercise is carried out by the Ministry in consultation with the two NDDC Committees of the National Assembly and sought prompt action of the Acting Managing Director on the matter,” Ekong said.