Ekere came into the public service with freshness, dynamism and deep insight. His life and career have been refined in the crucible of monumental challenges
Beifoh Osewele
When on Wednesday, July 20, 2016, President Muhammadu Buhari forwarded the name of Obong Nsima Udo Ekere to the Senate for confirmation as Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), those familiar with his antecedent could readily tell that transformation and reforms were imminent in the Commission. The reason was obvious: He is a value-adding personality. Like the legendary Midas, he impacts whatever he touches for good.
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A native of Ikot Oboroenyin, Edemaya Clan in Ikot Abasi Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State and former deputy governor of Akwa Ibom State, Ekere started his secondary education at Regina Coeli College, Essene, Ikot Abasi, and rounded off at Mary Knoll College, Ogoja, Cross River State. After a brief stint at The Polytechnic, Calabar (1981/1982), he proceeded to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, where he graduated with a B. Sc. (Hons) in Estate Management in 1986.
He is a fellow of the Nigerian Institute of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (FNIVS), registered member of Estate Surveyors and Valuers Registration Board of Nigeria, ESVRBN, Senior Certified Valuer, International Real Estate Institute, IREI, Minnesota, USA and associate member of the Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation (IRRV), London.
Ekere came into the public service with freshness, dynamism and deep insight. His life and career have been refined in the crucible of monumental challenges, which he calls learning and growth opportunities. Therefore, the moment he mounted the saddle of leadership, he was never in any doubt that the task before him would be a tea party. His mission at NDDC is not just to reform or alter the negative narrative of the Commission, but also to impact the lives and fortunes of the Niger Delta and its people, particularly its restive youths.
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To achieve his mission, he quickly drew up a road- map he code-named, The 4-Rs Strategy, with which he stepped out boldly to restructure the Commission’s balance sheet, reform its governance systems, restore its core mandate and reaffirm a collective commitment to doing what is right.
Two years after, even his morbid critics would readily concede to one fact: Ekere has birthed a new, improved NDDC.
For his exemplary service and effort in ensuring the commission works efficiently and discharges
its core mandate professionally, Ekere, no doubt, deserves a garland of The Sun Public Service Award, which he also won in 2017.