Musa ODOSHIMOKHE
THE Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godwill Akpabio, has been clearing the Augean stable since he took over the ministry.
Akpabio assured that he was competent and capable of ensuring that the right thing was done in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
The intervention of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs in the NDDC logjam had set the commission’s past chief executives on explanatory mission.
The Minister demanded to know how the NDDC had managed its affairs under past and new leadership.
The major complaint was that the NDDC had become a conduit pipe for endless siphoning of public funds.
The former governor of Akwa Ibom State said it was no longer going to be business as usual, adding that those who abused their position in the NDDC would account for it.
He masterminded the appointment of an Interim management Committee to manage the affairs of the commission, and the committee eventually edged out the board whose members were confirmed by the Senate from the equation apparently because President Muhammadu Buhari was happy with the moves so far made by the Akpabio-backed committee.
The minister had mounted pressure on the contractors handling the construction of the NDDC headquarters buildings to double their effort. He had ordered the refund of N1.9 billion meant for the clearing of water hyacinth.
Akpabio said he did not see where such project was carried out and money could not just be expended on ghost projects.
Read Also: Akpabio: massive looting left NDDC in serious debt
His appointment as the minister had engendered controversies which many stakeholders were not comfortable with.
Apart from the NDDC issue, the former governor is trying to level up with happening in his state.
The once celebrated and highly respected governor was defeated in a senatorial election which he contested against Senator Chris Epkeyong of the PDP.
Observers said Akpabio’s defection to the APC was responsible for his defeat in the Akwa Ibom Northwest Senatorial District.
They said the former governor was eyeing the majority leader of the Senate, but the ambition was truncated due to the poor outing at the poll.
They equally said the former governor defected because it wanted to be protected as he had scores to settle with the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC).
Akpabio first came under investigation in 2015 following accusation that he diverted N100 billion from the oil rich state account between 2007 and 2015.
Other allegations against the former governor include the award of bogus contracts to his cronies, who allegedly used the proceeds to buy several properties in Lagos and Abuja.
Though a rerun election was fixed between Akpabio and the senatorial candidate of PDP, Ekpeyong, it is believed that it will be difficult for Akpabio to counter the 38,056 votes advantage of the PDP candidate.
Leave a Reply