A nonpartisan group, the Global Forum for Accountability and Transparency Nigeria, has called for the immediate replacement of the ongoing forensic audit of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) with the Justice Ayo Salami-kind of probe Panel investigating the suspended Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Ibrahim Magu.

It argued that it is only a probe Panel manned by conscientious Nigerians with track record of integrity that can unearth the malfeasance in the NDDC and not a forensic audit supervised by the same set of people who are being probed.

The call according to the group became imperative after “scandalous revelations” about the misappropriation of funds during the probe of the Commission by the National Assembly.

In a statement signed by its Founder/Lead Executive Director, Joseph Ambakederimo, the group noted that;

“From the revelations, it has become abundantly clear that the Interim Management Committee and the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio who are charged with the responsibility of superintending the forensic audit have their hands in the till.”

According to the statement:

“With the scandalous revelations coming out of the NASS probe of the NDDC, it becomes deeply troubling the way and manner the NDDC expends monies without recourse to prioritization of projects that will impact on the people of the region. The revelations must fully be investigated and decisive and far-reaching action taken to reposition the NDDC to better serve the people of the region.

“It has become abundantly clear that the IMC and the Minister who are charged with the responsibility of superintending the forensic audit have their hands in the till. Therefore we call for the discontinuation of this forensic audit and replace with the Justice Ayo Salami’s kind of Panel.”

It continued that:

“This is the appropriate time for the President to act swiftly on the NDDC as he did with the NSITF, EFCC and others. The NDDC cannot be treated in isolation when so many financial infarctions are been committed on a daily basis. Even when we express our disgust and revulsion on the attitude of the President on issues currently unfolding at the NDDC, we will continue to impress it on the President to do the needful and take the necessary action to stop the hemorrhaging at the NDDC.”

According to the statement:

“If one would ask without trying to preempt the outcome of the forensic audit, will the audit capture the mismanagement of resources that have come out as a result of the NASS probe? Once again we reiterate that if the President may decide not to discontinue the forensic audit, we urge the President to discountenance whatever the report that will emanate from the adult. The reason been the report will not be all encompassing to trigger the desired outcome to achieve the purpose for which it was intended.

“Going further the Minister and the IMC have this habit of trivializing very important issues of allegations of corruption leveled against them. Instead of addressing the issues of financial improprieties, they take pleasure in name calling.

“With all of these disclosures such as claims of giving monies to the Nigeria Police up to the tune of 475 million to buy sanitizers and face mask, and N3.14billion expenditure for Covid-19 pandemic palliatives to selected staffs of the Commission when their salaries subsists, the issue of attending graduation ceremony in the United Kingdom in the months when the entire world is on lockdown. The payment of scholarship grant into personal accounts of top officials of the Commission. These schemes follows a pattern that are ingrained in NDDC which have become institutionalized corruption where the purported beneficiary Agency of Government does not get the items claimed to have been requested for.

“It is just a scheme to take out monies from the coffers of the commission and that is stealing directly from the treasury. We need to hear from the Nigeria Police what they actually got from the NDDC, is it cash or the physical items of sanitizers and face mask. These are proving questions which answers must be provided for.

“Our investigations so far on this claim by the Acting MD on the Police expenditure has not been corroborated by the Police authorities. The tales of woes are beginning to crystallize on the real motive of Akpabio’s takeover of the NDDC and obsession has never been altruistic, we have to reiterate this and it is a shame that our own people are the ones working against the development of the region. Going further, there is nowhere in the NDDC act that says the Minister must approve before payment are made to contractors or whom to be awarded contracts, the Minister flagrantly arrogated to himself the powers he does not have all in a bid to ride roughshod on the finances of the commission.

“Akpabio failed definitively with his handling of affairs in the NDDC. The NDDC is in the midst of one of the worst governing failures in its history. The intervention has become terrible; also his lawlessness cannot be left unnoticed for too long. He has brought too many embarrassment to the President, therefore Akpabio should quit.”