President Muhammadu Buhari has extended the tenure of the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) till December 31, 2020.
Buhari had on Wednesday, February 19 sacked Dr. Joy Nunieh, the acting Managing Director of the Interim Management Committee and replaced with Keme Pondei, a professor.
A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, said the extension was to allow for the conduct of the forensic audit of the Commission, ordered last year by President Buhari.
The President also granted the IMC powers to complement both federal and state governments’ efforts in the fight against the novel Coronavirus pandemic in the region and could expend as much as N6,250,000,000.
“President Muhammadu Buhari has extended the tenure of the Professor Keme Pondei-led Interim Management Committee of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) from May 1 to December 31, 2020.
“The extension is to cover the period of the forensic audit of the NDDC, earlier approved by the Federal Executive Council, under the chairmanship of the President.
“In the same vein, President Buhari equally approved that the NDDC provides intervention support to complement efforts of the Federal and State governments against further spread of COVID-19 in the nine states of the Niger Delta region, in the sum of Six Billion, Two Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N6,250,000,000.00) only.
“The materials and supplies are to be done through Emergency Procurement method as provided in Sections 42(b) (c) and 43 of the Public Procurement Act, 2007,” the statement said.
