…Leaves Many Questions Unanswered
From Joseph Obukata (The New Diplomat’s N’Delta Correspondent)
Minister for Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio on Monday faced the drilling probe panel of the House of Representatives which is investigating the multi-billionaire multiple fraud allegations rocking the Niger Delta Development Commission(NDDC).
Chief Akpabio was required to give answers to barrage of questions bordering on the N40 billion that was reportedly drained from NDDC’s coffers under his watch and another N81.5bn allegedly expended fraudulently by the NDDC between January and May this year.
He has been in the centre of the abracadabra dance in the NDDC since the setting up of the controversial Interim Management Committee(IMC). Rather than give cogent answers, Akpabio decided to throw punches at his panelists with a cliche.
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The deputy chairman of the panel, Thomas Ereyitomi, who presided over the hearing later said it it is an interactive session. A panel that was meant to drill and quiz Akpabio suddenly because an “interactive session” ostensibly because they were fed up with the innuendos, outright lies and cover up. He was even reported to have stylishly dodged oath taking before the session started.
While the members of the committee were taking turns to ask Akpabio questions, Hon. Boma Goodhead put the Minister on the spot by asking him if he didn’t consider it weird that he couldn’t say the exact number of contracts executed by the commission under his watch.
Hon. Goodman, who is the lawmaker representing Akuku -Toru/Asari Toru Federal Constituency in Rivers State, however, kept talking while Akpabio wanted to answer the question.
This prompted the minister to ask the committee to protect him. He said, “Am I protected Hon. Chairman? It’s like this woman here wants to eat me raw.” According to The New Diplomat report, the last was not, however, seen between the duo as they were later to engaged in altercation again.
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A lawmaker, making reference to Dr. Cairo Ojuoghoh, asked Akpabio if he didn’t consider it awkward that a medical doctor is the commission’s executive director, project.
Akpabio said, “60% of the projects of the NDDC are medical. Even before the outbreak of COVID ’19 is on record that malaria has been killing people in Africa”
When a lawmaker cut in during Akpabio explanation and told the minister to give a direct answer because the question was direct. The minister made a comment that almost got the house rowdy.
He said, “60% of the development projects in the commission were awarded to members of the National Assembly.” The statement apparently got Hon. Goodhead angry. She reacted: “Can I ask you the beneficiaries in the National Assembly getting 60% as you said? Can you substantiate your claim? You were a member of the committee on NDDC in the eight Assembly, did you get contracts too?”
She was eventually calmed down by Hon. Thomas Ereyitomi who presided over the hearing after the Chairman of the committee, Tunji Ojo had recused himself from the committee.
The session became rowdy with intermittent shout of “Hon. Minister, it’s OK, Hon. Minister off your mic”, renting the air as Akpabio insisted on speaking.
Meanwhile, earlier, after the momentary break caused by the collapse of Professor Daniel Pondei, Deputy Chairman, Thomas Ereyitomi, who presided over the hearing, asked the minister if the three major projects he had carried out had the approval of the Federal Executive Council.
Akpabio, who was interrupted while answering the question, said, “Mr Chairman, the condition, where we are in now, does not require bullying, with due respect.”
However, Ereyitomi responded, “We are not bullying you, honourable minister. Answer the question directly. You know you are my leader. An uncommon leader.”
At a point, one member of the panel, Benjamin Kalu became ‘charged’ and accused the Minister of not answering the Committee question, but Akpabio denied the allegations flatly and said; “I am giving you the facts”.
The lawmaker then hit him with another question, accusing him of usurping the functions of the Managing Director of NDDC by writing a letter to BPP securing a letter of “no objection”, but Akpabio who was obviously prepared to ‘dodge or wage’, said “It is the NDDC that eventually became the procuring agency.
“What happened was that we thought the government was going to pay for the forensic audit. But when the approval of the President came out, he said NDDC should pay and so the letter we wrote was withdrawn.
“We had even gone to the federal tenders’ board. But eventually, the NDDC became the procuring agency.”
“If I find out that the MD of NDDC is not acting in the interest of the Niger Delta people, I will intervene. I had to do that once when I heard about the payment for Lassa fever. I called and found out that they had paid N2.9 billion and they were about to pay another N572 million, I had to intervene and say they should not because there was no budget at that time. The contractor wrote to me to approve N572 million.”
He also spoke on impression that the forensic audit ordered by President Muhammadu Buhari was yet to start, saying “the forensic audit is ongoing” and nobody would have expected that the account of the agency would not be audited after nineteen years of its existence.
Again, on the allegation that the agency had been awarding contracts to its contractors without going through the procurement process and signing of necessary documents, he said that the agency only awarded three contracts after he assumed office as Minister.
The Minister, according to reports also hinted that in all the contracting processes, both the technical and financial bidding processes were conducted before the contracts were awarded to contractors.
Akpabio however revealed that in a bid to evade his signing contract payments, the management of the NDDC splits contracts making it difficult for him to know what is going on in the Commission. This is one huge indictment of his own capacity and the NDDC as an intervention agency.
He said that he has no hands in the contracts payments in the NDDC as government regulations does not allow ministers to pay for parastatals. “It is not my business to approve payment for parastatal, where they can come to me is when the payment is above 1 billion naira. Even at that, I must go to FEC to get approval,” he said.
He said because of contract splitting, a minister could stay four years in the Ministry without knowing what was going on. “Over N4.2 billion was spent in a day in tranches of N49 million,” he alleged, accusing the IMC of financial infractions.
Speaking further, he claimed that the former Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr. Joi Nunieh was relieved of her position following a letter from the late Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari that she does not have the requisite qualification to occupy a public office because she didn’t have an NYSC certificate.
He also said another reason for her removal from office borders on insubordination and her refusal to attend a meeting of the Federal Executive Council to offer explanation on certain actions of the Commission.
Akpabio went further to also refute allegations by Nunieh that he approved from NDDC coffers a whopping N10bn for her to share to its contractors. He further said that the N2.5 billion for the forensic audit exercise was included in the 2019 budget of the agency.
According to the Minister he has no hands in the contracts payments in the NDDC as government regulations does not allow ministers to pay for parastatals. “It is not my business to approve payment for parastatal, where they can come to me is when the payment is above 1 billion naira. Even at that, I must go to FEC to get approval,” he said.
But for many stakeholders, Akpabio left many critical and serious questions bordering on financial infractions and reputational crisis rocking the NDDC unanswered. In the view most stakeholders of the Niger Delta region, the President should, on the basis of the revealing and most evident accounts of fraud that have trailed the NDDC, the present IMC should be shoved aside for the inauguration of the proper Board which was earlier screened and confirmed by the Senate.
” We appeal to Mr President to direct that the Board that has been screened and confirmed inaugurated immediately to save the Commission from imminent collapse. That is the right thing to do. Anything short of this would be tantamount to aiding illicit and bad practices that have engulfed the NDDC,”, said Comrade Dagogo Spiff, a Port-Harcourt based development activist.
