The Minister of Niger Delta
Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio who curiously asked and got the nod to
allegedly usurp the statutory powers of President Muhammadu Buhari to enable
him annex and have a firm control of the Niger Delta Development Commission,
NNDC, under his powers had in a split of weeks have his fingers burnt in
controversies.
Akpabio, NigerianEye learnt, has
landed himself in an allegation of N1.9 billion hyacinth contract fraud
reportedly approved by the former NDDC minister.
The New Diplomat, an online
platform had reported that Apkabio deployed phoney companies to scoop the huge
sum of money to himself and cronies.
It was also gathered that the
payment was even done without raising any voucher or recourse to any “tender,
due process or proper documentation, a sad development that has pitted the
minister with some top NDDC management staff and stakeholders in the region.
Recall that long
before the transfer of the NDDC was officially sealed through Buhari’s October
1, address, the Chief of Staff to the President, Mr Abba Kyari had, through a
memo, delegated the effective control of the Commission to Akpabio.
In a restricted memo dated 2nd of
September, 2019 to the Honourable Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, the Chief of
Staff stated, ‘The President had delegated the powers conferred on him by Law
to the Honourable Minister’. But the memo also quoted an initial letter written
by Akpabio on August 22nd requesting that the powers of the President be
transferred to him.
Against this backdrop,
stakeholders are wondering why the Minister’s first assignment, barely 24 hours
after, was to scheme for the control of Niger Delta Development Commission,
NDDC, a statutory commission that was meant to be autonomous but with the
supervision of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Further, an anonymous NDDC staff
alleged that there are rumours that the Minister had promised ‘the powers that
be a huge share of the contracts to be awarded in the commission’. It is
further alleged that the Minister held on to the Commission’s budget submitted
to him for over one month in order ‘for him to amend the documents to suit his
greed’.
As public outcry trails the
alleged N1. 9 billion, it was even alleged that Akpabio has also submitted 11
files for payment that has to do with some emergency desilting projects under
suspicious circumstances.
The payment files, an insider
source disclosed, was personally submitted to the Acting MD by the NDDC
Director, Project Monitoring and Supervision, PMS, on the directive of Akpabio.
But the MD allegedly refused to sign for onward payment. It’s, however, not
clear yet if the files were later signed as requested.
The source alleged that ‘interim
payment certificates were raised three days after raising a bill of quantity
for the same projects, thereby indicating that no work was so far done to
hurriedly warrant such payment.
Though the alleged controversial
payment is being met with stiff resistance, the Minister reportedly had
threatened to sacrifice those standing on his way in a matter of days to
sustain his job.
However, when grilled on
telephone, Akpabio’s media aide, Aniete Ekong, said the incident about alleged
N1.9 billion scam followed a protest in PortHarcourt by some irate youths who
besieged a hotel where Akpabio was holding a meeting in company of the then
Minister of State of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, Festus Kayamo.
He told DAILY POST that the youth
protested against nonpayment of some executed contract and, Akpabio, therefore,
directed that the payment be made. But Ekong did not explain the manner of
payment and beneficiaries involved in the payment as directed by Akpabio.
Meanwhile, the spokesperson of
the aggrieved former militants, General Ebi, had called on Buhari to direct the
anti-graft agencies to immediately swing into action over the matter.
He said, “It is so pathetic,
disgusting and shameful that our so-called leaders are the real problem in the
Niger Delta, if a distinguished leader that was once the governor of Akwa Ibom
state for 8years and is currently the minister of Niger Delta Affairs will
condescend so low to have appropriated 400 slots of the water hyacinth contract
to himself after accusing the former NDDC board of misdeeds.
“1.9billion naira was approved by
the honourable minister of Niger Delta
affairs Senator Godswill Akpabio
for the payment of the water hyacinth
as an empowerment scheme to the
various beneficiaries and youths of the
Niger Delta.
“But so far, what we have heard
from the Director of Environment Mr Boniface Sese, who is in charge of
compiling the list, is that the master list of beneficiaries has been cancelled
since the former board was dissolved and was directed by the present acting MD
to compile a new list of just 100 slots for the youths, 400 slots for senator
Godswill Akpabio, 300 slots for the current acting MD, but him Boniface Sese
the Director of Environment refused to disclose how many slots were allotted to
him. However, our findings reveal that all his staff and aides are allotted 5
slots each and some directors, 10 slots.
“We, therefore, use this medium
to call on the attention of the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari to direct the EFCC and the ICPC to
immediately swing into action and we also call on the honourable minister of
Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio to come out clean and exonerate
himself as his reputation is being dragged to the mud to defraud the youths of
the Niger Delta’.
Besides, investigations, have
revealed that NDDC is, yet, to get a new Board.
Based on all these alleged cases
of official corruption against Akpabio, controversies are building up against
Akpabio’s status in the region.
Some groups have petitioned the
Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the federation, Abubakar Malami
opposing the transfer of NDDC to a ministry.
The petition affirmed that the
NDDC Act charged the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria
with the sole responsibility of overseeing the affairs of the commission and
same is not delegate-able to any person or body.
But Akpabio’s spokesman who
dismissed the whole allegations of graft against Akpabio as unfounded and
baseless said he did not have the understanding of the questionable payment
files currently submitted on the directive of Akpabio for payment.
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