The Rivers State governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has told the new board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) that his administration would support the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
Fubara vowed to collaborate and support the NDDC’s efforts to speed up the development of the region.
The governor spoke at the Rivers State Government House, Port Harcourt when members of the NDDC governing board, led by their Chairman, Chiedu Ebie, paid him a visit.
A statement signed on Thursday, November 23, by Fubara’s Special Assistant on Media, Boniface Onyedi, named other board members, who visited Fubara as the Managing Director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku; Executive Director of Finance and Administration, Alabo Boma Iyaye; Executive Director (Projects), Sir. Victor Antai; and Executive Director of Corporate Services, Ifedayo Abegunde, among others.
Fubara said: “I am very happy that you have done the right thing by paying this courtesy visit. I assure you that we are ready to collaborate with all Federal Government agencies committed to the development of the Niger Delta region.
“The speech of the Chairman, Mr. Ebie, shows that NDDC has already identified more than 90 per cent of the problems facing the region and is ready to solve them.
“The Rivers State Government will support the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to bring hope to the people of the state and Niger Delta region.
“We are going to support you to enable you to discharge your duties and I pray that your tenure will record more successes than the previous boards.”
The governor advised the commission to avoid duplication of projects, adding that it was very necessary to consult the states before embarking on projects in their respective territories.
He said that by identifying project duplication as a problem, the NDDC had shown that it was ready to address the challenge, which he said had caused some friction between the states and the commission.
Fubara assured the NDDC board members that his government was open to partnership and collaboration in the execution of projects and urged the commission to embark on projects that would add value to the lives of the people of the region.
In his earlier remarks, the Chairman of the NDDC Governing Board, Chiedu Ebie, thanked the Rivers government for hosting the commission since its inception in 2000.
He said: “The NDDC Board was inaugurated on November 16. As our host governor, we thought it wise to pay you this courtesy visit before holding our inaugural meeting.
“We need to create a new life in the NDDC and collaborate more with development partners, including the state governments and other stakeholders in the region to achieve our objectives.
“I know that we have had problems with duplication of projects. Henceforth, representatives of the states in the NDDC Board must be in constant touch with their state governments and ensure that projects are based on needs assessment.”
The NDDC chairman assured the governor that the new board would work in synergy with governors in the nine states covered by the commission.
