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Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities Demand Inauguration Of NDDC Board

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2 years ago

November 15, 2021

Editor

Presidents-General of Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities (CPGNDEN) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari “to keep his promise and inaugurate a substantive board for NDDC following the submission of the forensic report, and in line with the law establishing the agency,” noting that the Niger Delta was in dire need of development which the absence of the board has so far stalled.

In a communique issued after its meeting in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, on Saturday, November 13, 2021, and which was read by its President, Professor Benjamin Okaba, CPGNDEN also contended that the running of the NDDC by a sole administrator was contrary to the law establishing the commission.

CPGNDEN membership cuts across Isoko Development Union; Urhobo Progressive Union; Oron Nationality; Ndokwa Nation; Itsekiri Nation; Ogoni Nation; and Ijaw National Congress, amongst others.

Recall that, in tandem with the demands of stakeholders across the Niger Delta region, the pan Ijaw group, Ijaw National Congress (INC), in a statement in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, on Saturday, November 6, 2021, entitled “Evil Against The Niger Delta: Enough Is Enough, Mr President” had also warned that the “continued delay of the inauguration of a substantive board for the NDDC is an inexplicable aberration that defies logical reasoning and is infuriating the region.”

In fact the Ijaw National Congress (INC) had earlier cautioned in a statement issued on September 10, 2021 that “any further delay in the inauguration of the NDDC board is a clear betrayal of trust and display of State insensitivity on ljaw nation and Niger Delta region.”

This followed President Buhari’s promise to the nation on the 24th day of June 2021, while receiving the Ijaw National Congress (INC) at the State House in Abuja that the NDDC Board would be inaugurated as soon as the forensic audit report is submitted and accepted.

The President said: ‘‘Based on the mismanagement that had previously bedeviled the NDDC, a forensic audit was set up and the result is expected by the end of July, 2021. I want to assure you that as soon as the forensic audit report is submitted and accepted, the NDDC Board will be inaugurated.”

According to The Conference of Presidents-General of Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities (CPGNDEN), the timely intervention of President Muhammadu Buhari would douse the growing tension in the region.

CPGNDEN also kicked against moves to include Bauchi, Ogun and Lagos as new oil-producing states in the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).

A bill seeking an amendment to the NDDC Act for the inclusion of the three states and future oil-producing states in the commission, sponsored by Senator Solomon Adeola of Lagos West, passed second reading at the Senate last week Wednesday.

The group described the bill as a calculated attempt to smuggle the affected states into the commission. The President of CPGNDEN, Professor Benjamin Okaba, said the entire exercise was aimed at distorting the Niger Delta as a geographical area.

Okaba said, “Our attention has also been drawn at the deliberate attempt to smuggle into the NDDC Act some non-contiguous states that defy the geographical definition of the Niger Delta as a geographical zone. This is totally condemnable and we state categorically that such states should be described as oil-producing and made to enjoy just 13 per cent derivation.”

According to CPGNDEN “The NDDC is meant to serve the development expectations of the people of the Niger Delta as an interventionist agency based on the age-long deprivation and environmental degradation, which is part of the recommendations of the Willinks Commission Report (of 1958).”

Present at the meeting were Professor Chris Akpotu (Isoko Development Union), A. A. Onoharigho (Urhobo Progressive Union), Ante Ita (Oron Nationality), Brig. Gen. Mike Ndubisi (rtd) (Ndokwa Nation), Edward Ekpoko (Itsekiri Nation) and Young Kigbara (Ogoni Representative), among others.

(VANGUARD)

Related Topics:General of Niger Delta Ethnic Nationalities (NDDC

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PHOTOS: Sandhurst Trained: UK High Commissioner Hosts First Nigerian Female To Graduate From Premier British Military Institution

Published

2 hours ago

May 3, 2024

Editor

The British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery, has congratulated Princess Owowoh on making history at the United Kingdom’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst (RMAS).

Taking to X.com on Thursday, Montgomery expressed his pleasure in meeting Owowoh, who was accompanied by an officer from the Nigerian Defence Academy.

Sharing photos, he wrote, “I was pleased to meet 2nd Lt. Princess Owowoh, the first Nigerian female officer cadet to graduate from the UK’s

#RMASandhurst, accompanied by Lt. Col Nyiam from the #NDefenceAcademy to congratulate her on making history, hear about her experience, and reflect on our Nigeria-British relationship.”

Owowoh graduated from the RMAS as the first-ever Nigerian female officer on April 12.

She joined the NDA in Kaduna in 2018, where she was appointed as a cadet lance corporal in her second year.

She rose to a cadet sergeant in her fourth year and was appointed company senior under Officer Charlie (CSUO C) in her fifth year.

Owowoh held the appointment with two other female counterparts and made history by becoming the first female to hold the position of CSUO at the academy.

During her fourth year, she completed the academic component of the commissioning course, achieving first-class honours in biological sciences.

See the photos below:

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PICTORIAL: C&S Church Ayo Ni O Installs New Leader

Published

21 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Editor

The Cherubim and Seraphim (S&S) Movement Church Worldwide, on Wednesday, formally installed Prophet Emmanuel Alogbo as the 6th Baba Aladura and spiritual head of the church.

Alogbo was appointed the acting spiritual head in November 2023 following the death of his predecessor, Samuel Abidoye, who died on November 12, at the age of 103.

A statement published on the official website of the church reads, “The ascension of Most Senior Special Prophet Dr. Emmanuel Abiodun Alogbo to the revered position of Spiritual Father and Chairman of the Cherubim and Seraphim Movement Church signifies a pivotal moment in the history of the church, ushering in a new era of leadership and guidance for its global congregation.”

Alogbo’s installation was reported to have been attended by important figures in the church, “including the Olori of Cherubim and Seraphim Unification, His Most Eminence Pro. Dr. S. A. Alao J.Pil., who performed the anointment, which added to the solemnity and grandeur of the occasion.”

Alao was said to have charged the new Baba Aladura to embrace his role with strength and courage.

Congregants were also said to have recognised Alogbo as an embodiment of divine wisdom, compassion, and spiritual insight.

In his pledge to the CSMC Worldwide, the new Baba Adura was quoted assaying, “I solemnly pledge to continue the good work of moving our beloved church forward, which the late Baba Aladura Prophet Samuel Adefila Abidoye started.

“It is my firm commitment to ensure that the C&S Movement Church continues to march on, spreading its message of faith and love to all corners of the globe.”

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Nigerian Man Extradited From Malaysia, Convicted For $6.3m Fraud In US

Published

23 hours ago

May 2, 2024

Editor

A federal jury in New Haven, Connecticut, Wednesday, convicted an extradited Nigerian national, Okechukwu Osuji, for engaging in a business email compromise scheme out of multiple countries, including the United States.

This was revealed in a statement by the US Department of Justice on Thursday, saying that Osuji and his accomplices, John Wamuigah and Tolulope Bodunde defrauded their victims of over $6.3 million.

The jury convicted Osuji of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said, “Osuji led a network of scammers in Malaysia and elsewhere in a sophisticated business email compromise scheme to defraud victims of millions of dollars.”

“Today’s conviction is another example of how the department’s collaboration with international law enforcement partners enables us to bring cybercriminals to justice in the United States.”

US Attorney Vanessa Roberts Avery for the District of Connecticut added, “While it is often difficult to identify and bring to justice cybercriminals operating overseas, today’s verdict demonstrates the expertise of the FBI and Stamford Police in uncovering this criminal network, and the shared commitment of our counterparts in Malaysia to ensure that fraudsters are held accountable in a court of law.

“We will continue to work to root out those who engage in internet fraud schemes, no matter where in the world they operate, and achieve justice for victims of these crimes.”

“The defendant perpetrated a complex international business email compromise scheme and laundered millions in stolen proceeds,” said Executive Assistant Director Timothy R. Langan Jr. of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch.

“This conviction is the result of hard work and close collaboration between the FBI and our local and international partners. Together, we will work aggressively to bring to justice anyone who engages in fraud and theft against Americans, no matter where they are in the world.”

“Today’s verdict provides a bit of closure to some victims of these often financially crippling crimes,” said Special Agent in Charge Robert Fuller of the FBI New Haven Field Office.

“It also displays our international ability to bring criminal actors to justice despite the complexities of their crimes. We want to thank all of our law enforcement partners here and abroad, as well as the U.S. Attorney’s office, for their dedication to serving justice.”

Osuji who was deported by Osuji is slated to be sentenced on July 24 and faces a mandatory minimum of two years on the identity theft count and a maximum penalty of 60 years in prison on the wire fraud and conspiracy counts.

A Federal District Court judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Osuji was arrested in Malaysia and extradited to the US in 2022. His alleged co-conspirator, Wamuigah, remains in Malaysia and is pending extradition proceedings, while another co-conspirator, Bodunde, pleaded guilty on February 16.