The 2020 budget defence of the Niger Delta Development Commission ended abruptly at the Senate on Tuesday as its Interim Management Committee failed to account for a shortfall of N143bn in its 2019 budget.

Kemebradikumo Pondei, Acting Managing Director of the NDDC, had led other members of the IMC to appear before a joint panel of the National Assembly.

Pondei during the hearing failed to reconcile some differences in the 2019 budget performance of the commission.

The 2019 budget expired in May.

The Managing Director, who said the commission spent N122bn but later revised N264bn, could not respond to a question on what the NDDC had left.

“In compliance with the provision of the 2019 Appropriation Act, we implemented the 2019 capital budget till May 31, 2020.

“On the expenditure side, 2019 budget implementation was hindered by the delay in its approval and release coupled with the COVID-19 global pandemic.

“Only the recurrent expenditure which runs from January 1st to December 31st, 2019 was implemented substantially,” Pondei said.

In response, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, House Chairman on NDDC, said, “What you have here, spent is N122bn from what you said from the actual money you received, you received N305,570,683,529.87.

“If you received N305bn and you spent N122bn, what you are telling us now is that the available fund as we speak now will be N183,315,748,214.58.

“Would that be a available to be brought forward? What I’m saying is just a simple basic accounting question. You said you generated N305 billion. It is just a yes or no question.”

Pondei responded, saying, “The expenditure is actually N264bn.”

Tunji-Ojo then asked, “So what you are saying on your summary page is wrong?”

Pondei reacted and said, “The real breakdown is in the appendix.”

Other members of the committee pointed out discrepancies in the budget in terms of what was the balance of funds after subtracting the N122bn expenditure.

A back-and-forth aruguement ensued between members of the panel and Pondei, who insisted he was standing by the document while members of the committee said the presentation cannot stand in any Parliament in the world.

The committee further asked the MD if he was ready to sign each page of the document submitted for the purpose of authentication.

The MD first accepted to sign the pages of the document but later declined, requesting for withdrawal of 2019 budget details to enable the commission address the N143bn discrepancy raised by Tunji-Ojo.

Members of the joint panel however, expressed anger over the request for withdrawal of the 2019 budget details already submitted to the Committee made by the MD.

omenka:
They system is rotten not just to the core, but to the atomic level!!

Buhari, you have lost the anticorruption war, the premise upon which some of us became staunch supporters of you!

All you needed to do from day one was show a few examples, making every subject under you understand there'd be no sacred cows. But you let them nibble without creating, and seeing your aloofness as they nibbled, they turned their nibble to a mouthful bite, leading us where we are today.

To say I am disappointed is an understatement!

Maxymilliano:
The present administration is now chop i chop. And more likely to go down as the most corrupt in the history of the country.

The Dasuki gate will be a child's play by the time the root of the matter is unearthed..

Chris6music:
Looting every whr

omenka:
They system is rotten not just to the core, but to the atomic level!!

Buhari, you have lost the anticorruption war, the premise upon which some of us became staunch supporters of you!

All you needed to do from day one was show a few examples, making every subject under you understand there'd be no sacred cows. In the beginning, everyone was terrified to touch what wasnt theirs, but to their greatest surprise, you let them nibble without reacting. Seeing your aloofness as they nibbled, they turned their nibble to a mouthful bite, leading us where we are today.

To say I am disappointed is an understatement!

tesppidd:
I just knew that somehow you would tie this to Buhari.
But don't get me wrong, Buhari has got the responsibility to check the NNDC.

But is this probe not part of the checks and balances of the Buhari administration?

Or are you now going to divorce the Senate from Buhari?

The anti corruption war is not for Buhari alone.
It will take more than a man to fight corruption in Nigeria.
Buhari alone cannot fight the corruption in one state out of 36. Talkless of the entire country.

The anti corruption war is for the Senate, the Reps, the Judiciary, the presidency, you and me.


I had expected you to begin your rant from point A where you should begin but you jumped to point D.

Point A is the NDDC mangement and the Niger Delta leaders. Since we are talking abiut the NDDC specifically here.

The people of the Niger Delta have had all the wealth in the country but with very little developments.
And so the NDDC is created.

The leaders of the Niger delta which make up less than 1 percent of the population embezzle 90 percent of the funds.

A drive into Port Harcourt city and the GRA areas where these NDDC big shots live would prove it to you.
What you find are mansions, expensive cars, big generators, and all manner of affluence.

And when the Niger Delta people want to complain, first thing they say is Buhari Buhari.

I believe a fresh orientation is required. The primary injustice they face lives right with them.

Their own leaders are the major ones causing their poverty.
They say charity begins at home.

The Niger Delta must hold the NDDC and their Niger Delta leaders accountable first before holding the FG.
This cannot be allowed to continue. This is nothing but betrayal amongst siblings.

tesppidd:
I just knew that somehow you would tie this to Buhari.
But don't get me wrong, Buhari has got the responsibility to check the NNDC.

But is this probe not part of the checks and balances of the Buhari administration?

Or are you now going to divorce the Senate from Buhari?

The anti corruption war is not for Buhari alone.
It will take more than a man to fight corruption in Nigeria.
Buhari alone cannot fight the corruption in one state out of 36. Talkless of the entire country.

The anti corruption war is for the Senate, the Reps, the Judiciary, the presidency, you and me.


I had expected you to begin your rant from point A where you should begin but you jumped to point D.

Point A is the NDDC mangement and the Niger Delta leaders. Since we are talking abiut the NDDC specifically here.

The people of the Niger Delta have had all the wealth in the country but with very little developments.
And so the NDDC is created.

The leaders of the Niger delta which make up less than 1 percent of the population embezzle 90 percent of the funds.

A drive into Port Harcourt city and the GRA areas where these NDDC big shots live would prove it to you.
What you find are mansions, expensive cars, big generators, and all manner of affluence.

And when the Niger Delta people want to complain, first thing they say is Buhari Buhari.

I believe a fresh orientation is required. The primary injustice they face lives right with them.

Their own leaders are the major ones causing their poverty.
They say charity begins at home.

The Niger Delta must hold the NDDC and their Niger Delta leaders accountable first before holding the FG.
This cannot be allowed to continue. This is nothing but betrayal amongst siblings.

omenka:
You don't get it bro. If Buhari had, from the word go, out his feet on the ground dealing decisively with errant appointees, going forward, others would have been discouraged from putting their filthy hands in the cookie jar. He failed to do that!

That flop somehow emboldened would-be crooks to do what they've been found doing.

Anticorruption fight shouldn't be about taking actions after the deeds have been done (even on this, very minuscule progress has been made), is should ESPECIALLY be about PREVENTING those acts of corruption.

It is just like the bible admonished: spare the rod and spoil the child. Buhari spared the rod, and the child unavoidable became spoilt.

This is just the truth.

Jack005:
Bro,i understand your point but the president should not have appointed such a corrupt man as Akpabio to head such an Agency, a man who has so many corrupt cases hanging on his head. Buhari keeps appointing corrupt people into agencies due to party affiliation and tribe.

tesppidd:
You guys simply do not get the hard facts and hard truth of our democracy.

Lemme tell you!

Without 80 percent of these corrupt elements Buhari will never be president

And without 80 percent of these corrupt elements Buhari will be removed from office.

We have a corrupt cabal who are kingmakers in Nigeria. This cabal will be around for another 20 years.

Only a millitary dictatorship like the Ghana experience can flush these people out.

For now even with Buhari, these people are untouchable. Because Buhari is a democratic President now.

I expect a lot of bashing for these because I know that only a few will understand and accept this bitter truth.

And those who think I am only trying to exhornorate Buhari could never accept this submission.

tesppidd:
Take it from me;

In our current Democratic structure and dispensation, it is practically impossible for any Nigerian President to go against their appointees and croonies.

Lol..

Imagine Buhari using the EFCC to go against Tinubu, Amaechi, El Rufai, Malami, Magu, Akpabio, Sylva, Wike, and hundreds of others.

And perhaps half of the Senate.. .

And half of the judiciary.....

(We all know how much corrupt elements we have in these places)

Now tell me sincerely; Will Buhari survive another 6 months on seat?
(It's a goddammn democracy not an autocracy)

What you guys ask of Buhari is practically IMPOSSIBLE.

90 percent of the politicians will electoral value have been involved in one act of corruption or another.
The few Nigerians who could be "clean" have got little or no electoral value and they cannot win an election for Me President.


Bro this is the sad fact in our country.

If Buhari has to go against his appointees and croonies he'd have to go against 90 percent of them.
And they shall fight back! He will not be President.

The only way that Buhari or any President can fight this fight the way you guys want is by becoming a military head of state all over again.

No President can emerge in the Nigeria of today without 70 percent of these corrupt elements on your side.

omenka:
Take it from me, if I were in Buhari's shoes, I could do it! What is he afraid of? Death, at his age?

Come on, the case of Nigeria isn't entirely unique as you would like to believe. Our style of democracy is modeled after those of Western countries. Their presidents have friends, families, appointees, loyalists, etc, yet they don't have people recklessly plundering their national purse. Why must our case be different??

Buhari has only three years left under his belt, would you, in all honesty, say he has done well as per war on corruption if things continue along this trajectory?

I doubt anyone out there liked the man as much as I did (perhaps still do), but at some point, one's gotta tell themselves the truth.

As it stands, Baba has been disappointing me.