House Of Reps Step Down Probe Report On NDDC Corruption Scanda

The House of Representatives has stepped down a committee report on the investigation of the alleged financial recklessness in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

The representatives made this decision to enable all the lawmakers to have copies of the full report.

The reports were laid by the committee chairman, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, at the beginning of plenary, however, copies were not made available on time.

The lawmakers will now visit the report after they return from a six weeks annual recess in September.

Recommendations made by the Representatives committee

The committee recommended that the alleged gross financial impropriety should be reported to the anti-graft agencies for further investigation, prosecution and recovery.

They also recommended that every penny which was given to the acting managing director, the executive directors and others in the NDDC to attend overseas graduation be returned and if they fail to do so immediately, the anti-graft agencies should commence investigation, prosecution and recovery.

Part of the committee’s report also read:

“That scrutiny of the medical treatment bills/insurance payments made by the commission to ascertain their appropriateness especially given that the commission has health insurance and referral partnerships and it is still making payments for staff medical treatments. These cases should be referred to the anti-graft agency for diligent investigation, prosecution and possible recovery.”

Another recommendation was that, based on Sections 12(1) and 12(1)(a) of the NDDC Act 2000, Cairo Ojuogboh is unqualified and unfit to occupy the Office of Executive Director, Projects of the NDDC and should be discharged forthwith from that position.

Following the recommended forensic audit of the NDDC from 2001 to 2019 by President Buhari and the Nigerian Senate, the Commission has been caught up in several acts of misappropriation, diversion of critical funds and financial recklessness.

The NDDC was established to bring development to Nigeria’s oil-rich Niger Delta region and a core mandate of the commission is to train and educate the youth of the region, as well as promote infrastructural development.