Niger Delta
NDDC: South-South Elders Move To Recall Bayelsa Lawmaker
South-South Elders Progressive Forum (SSEPF) has declared a member of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly representing Ekeremor Constituency 2, Hon. Wilson Ayakpo Dauyegha, an enemy of the Niger Delta region.
The elders said recent comments by the lawmaker urging President Muhammadu Buhari not to inaugurate a substantive board for the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) until investigative and prosecutorial processes had been taken, was against the popular wish of the Niger Delta people.
In a statement on Tuesday jointly signed by its chairman, Dr. Promise Okpolo and Coordinator, Community Relations, Chief Anderson Etiewo, the SSEPF noted that deafening calls for the inauguration of a new board for the interventionist agency were germane and patriotic, amidst rising tempers in the region which had reached a boiling point.
It said Hon. Dauyegha’s comments with regards to the inauguration of a substantive NDDC board was clearly an act of sabotage as it was antithetical to the popular desire of his constituents and the generality of the Niger Delta people.
The SSEPF, whose membership comprises elders cutting across states in the Niger Delta region, contended that the NDDC Establishment Act had no provision for an interim contraption in the running of its affairs.
Part of the statement reads: “It is noteworthy that the NDDC is a statutory creation and its Establishment Act is explicit on how it should be administered.
“It does not provide for an interim arrangement and therefore, anyone calling for a delay in the inauguration of a new board and promoting the sustenance of an illegality is a saboteur.