The speaker said this on Wednesday during the investigative
hearing on the alleged financial mismanagement in the NDDC.
The House had on May 5 deliberated on a motion on the need
to conduct the investigation.
A lot of controversies have emerged in the commission in the
past one month.
Due to criticisms of the operations of the commission, the
president had in 2019 ordered a forensic audit of the operations of the
organisation from 2001 to 2019.
The commission is saddled with the responsibility of
developing the oil-rich Niger Delta region of Nigeria.
One of the core mandates of the commission is to train and
educate the youths of the region to curb hostilities and militancy, while
developing key infrastructure to promote diversification and productivity.
Failed enterprise
Mr Gbajabiamila in his remark said in the 20 years of
existence of the commission, the people of the region have not benefited
significantly from it.
“In the over two decades since, that promise has not been
kept. Despite its critical importance and the vast sums that have been
appropriated by the Federal Government, the Niger Delta of Nigeria continues to
score exceptionally low on many of the major human development indices.
“These statistics reflect the reality of disease and
deprivation, lack of opportunity and broken dreams that is the plight of many
of our fellow citizens in the region.
“It is therefore particularly disturbing and quite frankly,
embarrassing that every other news report about the Niger Delta Development
Commission (NDDC) seems to centre around escalating allegations of corruption
and malfeasance,” he said.
He said the purpose of the investigative hearing “is to ask why the failure persists and to do so with a determination to understand the causes of that failure so that the parliament can act to redeem the NDDC and remove those factors that imperil the commission’s noble mission”.
“We will examine the allegations of corruption and
malfeasance that have dogged the commission,” he said. “We will do so with
neither fear nor favour, confident in the assurance that we have both a
constitutional duty and moral obligation to ensure that the enormous sums of
money appropriated to the NDDC over the years are appropriately accounted for
by those whose responsibility it has been to manage this important and all too
essential public trust.”
The speaker said the success of the investigation will depend on the willingness of the various ‘stakeholders’ in the commission, within government and in the local communities to cooperate with the committee.
“I encourage all the stakeholders to consider this
investigative hearing as a last-ditch effort to save the Niger Delta
Development Commission (NDDC) and to engage with this committee in a patriotic
partnership to break the jinx of underdevelopment in the Niger Delta region,”
he said.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the committee, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, said despite the needless distractions, the committee has remained focused.
“Because of the investigative nature of the House
resolution, the past weeks have been spent on working tirelessly on gathering
the necessary data and analyzing same,” he said.
He also said he is aware of the sensitivity of the matter
and how, if not well managed, “might tend to degrade, incriminate or defame the
person or persons involved”.
“Please note that the House has not condemned anyone, else
there would not be the need for investigation as directed. We are not
hypercritical or condemnatory but open without prejudice.
“We enjoin everyone to give this committee the maximum cooperation as the impact of this shall be far reaching results.”
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