In its fresh bid for reinstatement, the sacked Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission has written President Muhammadu Buhari, faulting its dissolution alongside other boards of Federal Government agencies.
The board said the action of the president would not only violate the provisions of the Act establishing the Commission 15 years ago, but could jeopardize the gains it had made since it was inaugurated in 2013.
The board had earlier written the president on July 21 seeking affirmation that it was not affected by the dissolution and should remain in office since the Commission is a special one but did not get any response from Mr. Buhari.
The government had in a circular reference No SGF.19/S.81 XIX/964, dated July 16, dissolved all the Governing Boards of Federal Government Parastatals, Agencies, Institutions, and Government-owned Companies.
However, realizing that some of the affected boards are statutory, the presidency directed the re-instatement of some boards, such as the EFCC, ICPC and the governing councils of Federal Universities.
It was, however, silent on the fate of the NDDC Board.
In the fresh letter signed by its Chairman, Bassey Ewa Henshaw, a former senator, the board of NDDC drew the attention of the president to the Act establishing the Commission in 2000, saying its members, including the managing director and two executive directors – finance/administration and projects, were all appointed on the same day and for the same term in accordance with Section 2(1) of the NDDC Act.
It said this section lists all the persons who together constitute the Board and that while the chairman is listed Section 2(1)(a) of the Act, the managing director and the two executive directors are listed in subsections (g) and (h), respectively.
“Thus, dissolution of the Board means that all the members including the occupiers of these four positions (will) have to leave,” it said.
The Board told the president that the boards of the Commission had been dissolved on two previous occasions in 2011 and 2013 and that on both occasions the most senior civil servants acted before new boards were constituted.
It listed the civil servants as P.Z. Aginighan and Christy Atako, saying they were made to act as managing directors “because of the fact that the Board as constituted under Section 2(1) a-h, included the Chairman, the Managing Director and the two Executive Directors and they all had to leave.”
It stressed that “to date, no member of the present Board has qualified to be removed in accordance with Section 5(1) of the Act.”
The Board reminded Mr. Buhari that Section 3(1) of the NDDC Act which specifies the term in office for all members to be four years except where the president decides to reappoint a member for a second term of four years and no more.
It also said Section 5(1) specifies conditions under which a person can cease to be a member of the Board.
Recalling that it was inaugurated on December 16, 2013, therefore its tenure expiring on December 15, 2017, the Board further reminded Mr. Buhari that, in accordance with the Act, the appointments of the chairman, managing director and the executive directors of financ/administration and projects are done on rotational basis among the nine states that constitute the NDDC.
The states are Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, Cross River, and Edo in the South-South. Others are Imo and Abia States in the South East zone and Ondo in the South West.
“By Section 4, of the said Act, the chairmanship position rotates amongst the states in alphabetical order, whereas, the positions of the MD and the two EDs by Section 12 rotate on the basis of volume of oil production beginning with the highest producers,” the Board explained.
“It should be noted that these provisions have always been observed from the inception of NDDC in 2000 and every state has been allowed to occupy its position for the full four years term to ensure fairness.
“This is why the present chairman is from Cross River after Abia, Akwa-Ibom and Bayelsa have taken their turns. Similarly, the MD, the ED Finance & Admin as well as ED Projects were appointed from Akwa Ibom, Rivers, and Delta States respectively.”
“Therefore allowing any one or more members of the board to remain while others are dismissed may be tantamount to dealing unjustly with the states whose members’ tenures are truncated. These states will have no one to safeguard their interests.”
The Board further contended that though NDDC was not listed in Section 153(1) of the 1999 Constitution as amended, Section 2(2) (a) of the Act which requires that its board members be appointed by the president subject to Senate Confirmation (in consultation with the House of Representatives), was in conformity with Section 154(1) of the Constitution which stipulates Senate Confirmation for members of Federal Executive Boards so listed (in Section 153(1)).
It explained that NDDC, like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, was not listed in the Constitution because its enabling law was enacted in 2000 after the document came into effect in 1999.
Further justifying its quest for reinstatement, the NDDC Board told the president that it had done a lot to restore the image of the Commission since it was inaugurated in 2013 through the award of hundreds of overseas scholarship in sciences, construction of hundreds of kilometres of road as well as several university hostels which were started more than 10 years ago, but were not completed.
It also said the headquarters building of the Commission which was started during the days of OMPADEC but abandoned in 2009, was resuscitated last year with a target completion date of December 2015.
“Dissolution of the Board at this time could put the NDDC in jeopardy and reverse all the gains so far made,” it lamented to Mr. Buhari.
“It would also truncate the vision of the Board to make NDDC the vehicle for the rapid development and integration of the Niger Delta Sub-Region through strategic investments in major infrastructures such as roads, rail, power, refineries, education etc. which can open up business, investment and employment opportunities for the peoples.
“In view of the foregoing Sir, our prayer is for confirmation that the NDDC Board is not dissolved and remains in place to carry on with its responsibilities.”
When contacted on phone on Wednesday, Mr. Henshaw confirmed that the letter emanated from him and other members of the Board.
He added that they were still awaiting the response of the president.














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Hmmm Man must wack

But the matter is already in court na...
Which one is letter again?

See this looters o.

Allow the court to interprete the law for you na.

Mind you, the laws you are quoting only states that you have the express right to remain in office for a term of 4 years renewable by Mr President. Nowhere did the law state that Mr President cannot review the appointment midway. He who hires can fire, unless the law states explicitly how you may be fired. As long as no provision for impeachment or indiscipline or death or incapacitation was discussed in that law, then the usual rule of hire and fire remains valid.

I'm coming