Senator Anietie Okon, the Pioneer National Publicity/Organizing Secretary of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP has described the warning by the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio to South South governors as ill conceived and mischievous.
Governors of the South-South States had demanded from President Mohammadu Buhari an upward review of the provision of 2.5 per cent as Host Community Trust Fund in the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) to 10 per cent in the best interest of oil communities and the nation.
But Akpabio said the governors lacked the moral grounds to dictate how the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) funds should be used.
He also told them to ensure that local governments in their respective States have elected executives and not caretaker committees.
However, Okon in an interaction with journalists in Uyo told Akpabio to refrain from misinterpreting the genuine advice made by the South South governors which was in the overall interest of people of the region.
His words, “I feel disappointed at Godswill Akpabio’s posturing that the governors of the South South were in no position to issue directives to president Buhari on how to run the Niger Delta Development Commission.
“This utterance amongst others paints an indelible picture of a Minister whose actions and inactions portray a grim indication of an absence of concern for the well-being of the Niger-Delta region. To put the record straight, no South-South Governor issued directives or an authoritative instruction to president Buhari
“I support Governors of the South-South States demanded on upward review of the provision of 2.5 per cent as Host Community Trust Fund in the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) to 10 per cent in the best interest of oil communities and the nation.
“They only made demands for the betterment of their respective States and region regarding the effective and efficient management of the NDDC wherein the development and prosperity of the region has lost its course. And the governor’s demand was properly expressed, it is a justified demand.
“Regrettably, we are in a country where unity, peace and progress unfortunately hang in disequilibrium, where governments of the federation units are forced to pick up the baton of responsibilities neglected by an unhinged Federal government”
The South South Governors Forum (SSGF) had during their meeting held in Port Harcourt weekend noted that the NDDC was still being run without a substantive board for more than a year.
The governors also advised President Mohammadu Buhari that in the absence of the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), funds for the commission beyond the payment of salaries should be put in an escrow account until he constitutes the board.
