By Nuel Suji – The Senate on Tuesday confirmed the nomination of Sen. Victor Ndoma-Egba as Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and Nsima Udo Ekere as Managing Director of the commission.
The Senate however rejected the nomination of three board members for the commission saying that their nomination contravened the 2007 NDDC Act.
The NDDC Act stipulates that stipulated that only persons from oil producing communities could be appointed to such positions.
The rejected nominees were: Olatokunbo Ajasin (Ondo), Donatus Eyinnah (Abia) and Igo Weli (Niger Delta).
One more nominee Sen. Osita Izunaso (Imo) however declined interest in the board membership saying that he was not from the oil producing region of the state.
During the debate, Sen. Eyinnaya Abaribe pointed out that Section 2(1)(b) of the NDDC Act stipulated that nominees for the board of the Commission must be from communities where oil is produced.
Senators however rejected argument by Majority Whip Sen. Sola Adeyeye that a nominee should be cleared if he comes from an oil producing state not necessarily the region.
Chairman of the Senate Committee on NDDC, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi informed the Senate that in the nomination of Ajasin was particularly rejected.
He said that people from the Ilaje area of Ondo state, had stormed the screening venue in eleven fully loaded commuter buses protesting his nomination.
Two other nominees, Mahmoud Isa-Dutse and Abdul-Kazeem Bayero from the Federal Ministry of Finance and Federal Ministry of Environment were also confirmed.
The senate however resolved that the two would cease to be members of the NDDC board whenever they are transferred from their present ministries to other MDAs.
Other nominees who received the nod of the Senate are: Adjogbe Ajenakevwe Samuel, Mene Ienyie Derek, Frank Samuel George, Brambaifa Nelson and Sylvester Effefiom Nsa.
Others are Ogaga Ifowodo, Uwuilekhue Saturday, Harry Iboroma Dabibi, Benard Banfa, Yahaya Mohammed and Mustapha Dankadai.
