N-Delta activist, Frank Akiefa tells President Tinubu it's Delta's Turn to Produce NDDC Director, urges Ogbuku to Step Aside
By Ezekiel Kagbala
Popular Niger Delta activist, Comrade Frank Akiefa has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, not to renew the tenure of office of Dr. Samuel Ogbuku as Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Akiefa alleged that Ogbuku has been lobbying for tenure elongation in office saying that "this is against the interest of other stakeholders from the Niger Delta region, especially Delta State where the next Managing Director should come from", .
This was contained in a signed statement by Comrade Frank Akiefa, copies of which were made available to journalists in Warri on Friday.
In the statement, Akiefa, who is also the deputy President of the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC), and traditional chief of Ogbolubiri-Mein Kingdom, Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State, noted with concern that "Dr. Samuel Ogbuku was reappointed to a second term in 2023 when Delta State was rightly justified to produce the Managing Director".
Akiefa's statement partly reads, "Somehow it was gathered that Ogbuku is not ready to step down anytime time soon and he is lobbying for elongation of tenure trying to take undue advantage of the provisions for him to continue in office in an acting capacity.
"Samuel Ogbuku's continuation in office is not in the interest of the region, the clamor for him to stop every move of tenure extension is evident enough to show that his leadership of the interventionist agency was lacking a clear developmental blueprint and as such, I am passing a vote of no confidence on his leadership for lack of transparency and accountability.
"It is unacceptable to channel funds meant for the development of the Niger Delta to enrich politicians by awarding bogus contracts that are of no benefit to the region but to bankroll politicians whose stake has impoverished people in the region.
"It is pertinent to state that Niger Delta people are law-abiding in seeking proper accountability and effective management of resources to improve living conditions and foster the development of the oil-rich region by praying for Samuel Ogbuku to exit the stage for the interest of peace in the region".
