Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye and Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

President Muhammadu Buhari has vowed to get to the root of the crisis rocking the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

According to a statement by Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, Buhari ordered speedy and coordinated investigation by security agencies and the National Assembly to ensure that the administration’s effort to bring sanity, transparency and accountability to the management of the large amount of resources dedicated to development of the Niger Delta sub-region was not derailed.

The statement read in part: “In his reaction to the unfolding drama, which include attacks and counter-attacks between and around persons, institutions, and the Niger Delta Development Commission, President Buhari expressed his strong determination to get to the root of the problem undermining the development of the Niger Delta and its peoples in spite of enormous national resources voted year after year for this singular purpose.

“According to the directive, auditing firms and investigative agencies, working in collaboration with National Assembly committees to resolve the challenges in the NDDC, must initiate actions in a time-bound manner and duly inform the Presidency of the actions being taken.

“The president also directed timely sharing of information and knowledge in a way to speedily assist the administration to diagnose what had gone wrong in the past and what needs to be done to make corrections in order to return the NDDC to its original mandate of making life better for people in the Niger Delta.

“President Buhari said the administration wants to bring about ‘rapid, even and sustainable development to the region.’

“The president gave firm assurance that his administration would put in place a transparent and accountable governance framework, not only in the NDDC but in all other institutions of government.”

This came as the NDDC team walked out on the House of Representatives Committee, yesterday.

Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, and the former acting managing director of the commission,  Joy Nunieh, were conspicuously missing at the investigative hearing. While the absence of Nunieh was said to be as result of the siege on her home in Port Harcourt,  no reason was given for Akpabio’s absence.

The NDDC’s acting Managing Director, Kemerbrandikumo Pondei, had objected to chairman of the committee, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, presiding over the investigative hearing of the alleged N40 billion irregular expenditure by the commission, insisting he could not preside over a matter in which he was an accused party.

Members of the committee told the acting MD that he was constitutionally bound to answer their queries. But Pondei said he and his team were not prepared to make any presentation before the committee and asked for permission to leave.

The House Committee on NDDC had on Wednesday commenced a probe of alleged irregular expenditure by the NDDC Interim Management Committee (IMC).

Tunji-Ojo, at the inaugural sitting, had said though the mandate of the committee was to investigate alleged N40 billion irregular spending by the IMC, documents at its disposal revealed that the interventionist agency had spent N81.5 billion between January and May 2020.

However, Pondei said since the NDDC had repeatedly accused the committee chairman of various “crimes” against the commission and the people of the Niger Delta, they did not have confidence in his headship of the panel.

“Let me just say that we are not comfortable with the chairman of this committee presiding over a matter in which he is an accused party. The NDDC has over the time accused the Honourable Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo of different crimes against the NDDC and its people and he has responded in the press.

“He is an interested party.  And we do not believe that the NDDC can have justice,  because he cannot sit in his own case. We have no issues appearing; we have appeared before the Senate ad hoc. And as long as he is the chairman of this committee, the NDDC will not make any presentations here.”

However, the lawmakers said it was not in the place of the NDDC boss to to dictate to the committee how it would conduct its affairs, noting that the session was not about Tunji-Ojo.

At that point, Pondei retorted: “Can I excuse myself?” Immediately, he got up and left Hearing Room 231, venue of the probe, alongside others members of his team.

The committee, which continued with the investigative hearing, accused the NDDC of breaching the Legislative Privileges Act and resolved to issue a warrant of arrest against Pondei to appear before the committee to respond to its queries.

 Compel IMC to attend National Assembly public hearing, group tells Buhari

President Buhari has been called upon to end the percieved arrogance of members of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the NDDC by directing them to appear before the National Assembly committees investigating their activities.

According to Transparency and Accountability Advancement Group, in a statement by Godknows Sotonye, national coordinator, the incident at the public hearing of the House of Representatives committee probing the NDDC, where Pondei walked out on members of the committee, should not be ignored, as it sends a wrong signal about the Buhari government.

“This is unprecedented in the history of this country that the head of an MDA would walk out on a legislative committee carrying out its oversight functions,” the group said.

The group said the NDDC IMC was trying to “sit in judgment over their own case. They are trying to avoid having to account in public for the expenditure they have incurred as outlined by the Office of the Accountant-General and the CBN, which appeared before the committee the day before.

“This cannot be allowed in any sane society, as the committee rightly stated. This conduct by the NDDC acting MD and his IMC team is an affront to the President’s anti-corruption stance.”

Transparency and Accountability Advancement Group said, by virtue of Section 88 of the Nigerian Constitution, the National Assembly is empowered to have oversight on ministries departments and agencies (MDAs) such as the NDDC.