NDDC board tenure: Bayelsa monarch writes open letter to President Buhari

macfranc007 January 06, 2018 Nigeria News today & Breaking news ▷ Read Nigerian newspapers 24/7 Nkem Ikeke

- King Okpoitari Diongoli has lent his voice to the call for the dissolution of the present board of the NDDC

- He wrote an open letter to President Buhari, stating that the tenure of the current board has elapsed

- He called on the government to be guided by the Act establishing the NDDC

The paramount ruler of Opokuma clan in Kolokuma/ Opokuma Local Government Area of Bayelsa state, His Majesty, King Okpoitari Diongoli, Opuokun IV, Ibedaowei of Opokuma, has written an open letter to President Muhammadu Buhari over the dissolution of the present board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

The monarch stated that the tenure of the current board has elapsed and it was time to make way for a new board, Vanguard reports.

He called on the Buhari-led government to be guided by the Act establishing the NDDC.

King Diongoli said: “The issue of the tenure of the Board and Management of the NDDC is a creation of an act of Parliament therefore should not be exposed to the whims and caprices of a group or individuals or even a state for whatever reasons.”

The traditional ruler added that calls for the appointment of the managing director from Bayelsa state was for equity, fairness and justice.

According to him, the state has qualified manpower irrespective of political affiliation.

NAIJ.com earlier reported that President Buhari had been urged to ignore calls to dissolve the board of NDDC.

The Youth Initiative for Education, Development, and Empowerment of Niger Delta said those responsible for the call are a former governor of Bayelsa state, Timipre Sylva and minister of state for agriculture, Hon. Heineken Lokpobiri.

The group accused both men of stoking embers of conflict and pandering falsehood to destabilising the NDDC over the tenure of the present board.

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Meanwhile, some leaders and supporters of the ‎All Progressive Congress (APC) in Bayelsa state are threatening a suit at the Federal High Court sitting Port Harcourt, Rivers, against the federal government over the alleged attempt to extend the tenure of the current management board of the NDDC.

A top member of the party in the state, Comrade Sunday Frank-Oputu, said the decision to approach the court was based on the conviction that the presidency and some agents of government officials are “moving to violate the NDDC Act on tenure of the board.”

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