IYC accused the ministers of disobeying the directive of Mr. President to appoint the most senior Director as the Acting Managing Director of NDDC.
The Nigerian Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami and Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Umana Okon Umana have been accused of dubiously and fraudulently announcing the most junior Director as Acting Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission, (NDDC).
The leadership of the Ijaw Youth Council, Abuja/Northern chapter, which raised the alarm, asked the ministers to stop oppressing the Ijaw people.
The group noted that Malami and Umana cannot succeed with the same method used by Chief Godswill Akpabio, the immediate former Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs.
IYC accused the ministers of disobeying the directive of Mr. President to appoint the most senior Director as the Acting Managing Director of NDDC.
This is contained in a statement signed by the Chairman of IYC, Abuja, Chief Adam Marbo, who stressed that the right thing must be done.
The statement obtained by SaharaReporters was copied to President Muhammadu Buhari; Femi Adesina, Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to Buhari; Douye Diri, Governor of Bayelsa State; Malami; Garba Shehu, Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity to Buhari; Seriake Dickson, Senator and former Bayelsa State Governor and Edwin Clark, Ijaw leader.
The group called on the Nigerian Government to without further delay, make public the forensic audit report on the NDDC and also appoint a substantive board for the agency to tackle the challenges of underdevelopment in the Niger Delta region.
The statement reads in part, "Following the recent appointment of Engr. Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua as the Ag. MD of the NDDC pending the appointment of a substantive management team and governing board, we the 4th leadership of the Ijaw Youth Council Abuja/Northern Chapter kick against the Hon. Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Mr. Umana Okon Umana and Hon. Minister of Justice, Attorney General of the Federation Abubakar Malami CON (SAN) for disobeying the orders and directives of Mr. President for the selection and appointment of the most Senior Director as the Ag. Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission, (NDDC).
"IYC Abuja/Northern Chapter condemns in its entirety the dubious and fraudulent manner the Hon. Minister of Niger Delta Affairs unilaterally announced the most junior Director as Ag. Managing Director of NDDC.
"According to our investigation which shows that one Mr. Glasgow Victor Seigha, Prince Alazigha, and Rachel Oddiri were appointed as Directors in 2010, 2011, and 2013 on the board of Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), while Engr. Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua, Kaltungo, and others were appointed Directors in 2015 respectively.
"By this order and sequence, Mr. Glasgow Victor Seigha is the most senior Director and still active in service (NDDC) why deprive him of his own fundamental rights of benefit in service? Why shortchanging him with the most junior Director Engr. Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua? All we are saying here is that the right thing must be done.
"We appeal to Mr President respectfully to prevail on the honorable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs and direct him to appoint the most senior Director of NDDC pending when the submitted names have been screened by the National Assembly to avoid rancor and bad precedence.
"It is pertinent that due process and diligence should be followed based on the second paragraph of the letter sent by the Hon. Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Umana Okon Umana which stated that 'President Buhari has further approved that the most senior director in the commission should take over and perform the duties of the managing director in acting capacity in line with the provisions of the extant Federal Government Circular Ref No. SGF.50/S.II/C.22/268. And we draw the attention of Mr. President and Hon. Minister of Niger Delta Affairs to constitute the substantive management and governing board for the Commission in line with the NDDC Act 2000, to the National Assembly."
"That the Federal Government of Nigeria should, without further delay, make public the forensic audit report on the NDDC and also appoint a substantive board for the interventionist agency to tackle the underdevelopmental challenges of the Niger Delta region," it added.
SaharaReporters had reported that indeed, the directive of Buhari was ignored in the appointment of Audu-Ohwavborua as the Acting Director of the NDDC.
However, multiple sources told SaharaReporters that one Rachel O. Oddiri is the most senior director in the commission and not Glasgow Seigha, as claimed by the IYC.
It was gathered that Oddiri joined NDDC when it was still known as Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commission (OMPADEC).
She was appointed as the substantive director in 2013 while Audu-Ohwavborua became a substantive director in 2015.
“Rachael Oddiri is the most senior Director at the Niger Delta Development Commission of which Mr President Buhari approved that the most senior Director in the Commission should act pending the setting up of the governing board,” one of the sources had told SaharaReporters.
“A very junior director with high contacts has just been named as the Acting MD in flagrant disregard of the directive of Mr President as contained in the letter dated October 20, 2022, and signed by the Minister of the Niger Delta, Umana Okon Umana.”
According to one of the sources, “President Muhammadu Buhari approved the appointment of the most senior director as acting MD NDDC, pending the inauguration of a substantive board to run the affairs of the commission”.
The source continued, “Emmanuel Audu-Ohwavborua, who has now been appointed as acting MD is not the most senior director in the commission. Ms Racheal Oddiri, who has been with the commission since the days of OMPADEC is presently the most senior director in the commission.
“She was appointed as a substantive director in 2013 while the presently appointed acting MD, Audu-Ohwavborua was appointed a substantive director in 2015.
“Ohwavborua is highly connected, a development that resulted in Mr President being misled to approve the said appointment. It should be noted that a certain Mr Serigha Glasgow joined the commission through a former MD, Timi Alaibe as a deputy director after youth service with no record of service and is also laying claim to being the most senior director against service regulations.
“There is a muffled unease presently at the commission because of widespread knowledge among staff members that a very junior director who was deputy director as of 2013, when Rachael Oddiri was a substantive director is paraded publicly as the most senior director of the commission."