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By Joel Anekwe
A Niger Delta group, the Transparency, Accountability, Equity and Unity Network has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to order the stoppage of all employments at the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, until the ongoing forensic audit of the commission is completed.
The group also called for a thorough investigation into the employment scandals that started with the Akwagaga Enyia-led Interim Management Committee, IMC, and has resurfaced under the sole administrator, Bar. Effiong Akwa.
Addressing the journalists in Port Harcourt on Monday, publicity secretary of the group Aniefiok Ibange, while declaring that the group was in full support of the commission employing workers, said the NDDC must follow due process which involves advertising for available vacancies and giving every qualified Nigerian the opportunity to work at the commission.
It condemned any employment process that is not done transparently and advised against any employment during the current forensic audit of the NDDC, even as they declared their support for the forensic audit.
Ibange said; ”Following our discovery through some incontrovertible resource persons on a repeat employment process that is on-going in the NDDC, we have deemed it necessary to let the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, President Muhammadu Buhari and his vice, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, to stop all employments until after the on-going forensic audit and to order a thorough investigation into the employment scandals that started with the Akwagaga Enyia-led Interim Management Committee and has resurfaced under the sole administrator, Bar. Effiong Akwa”.
The group said that as Nigerians, they know that the procedure of recruitment into the federal civil service follows laid down due process mechanism as is been seen in different sections of federal organizations, including the military and paramilitary services.
“We want to state unequivocally that any employment that is ongoing or have been done in the past that was not advertised and proper due processes in line with the norms of the Federal Civil Service cannot be entertained in the NDDC of all places.
“We want to henceforth warn the sole administrator and his supervisor and principal, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, to desist from going ahead with the President’s name, claiming that the President gave him a waiver to employ staff through illegal means.”
They noted that while it was a positive development for the commission to hire workers in order to create jobs, the vacancies must be advertised as is currently been done by other ministries, departments and agencies.
“We want to use this medium to let them know that we will not stop until we are sure that the employment of our people into NDDC is done transparently,” Ibange stressed adding that Transparency, Accountability, Equity and Unity Network might be forced to resort to legal action to achieve their aim.
“It’s a fight for all of us. NDDC must provide a level playing field for every qualified Nigerian to apply and have the opportunity to be employed in the commission, employment into NDDC should not be done in secret”, he stated.
But in his reaction, director Public Affairs of the NDDC, Ibitoye Abosede, denied knowledge of ongoing or planned employment into the commission. Speaking via the telephone, Abosede said; “to the best of my knowledge we are not recruiting”.
