The Senate Committee on Niger Delta Development Commission on Thursday in Abuja frowned upon the non-remittance of funds owed the NDCC by International Oil Companies (IOCs).
Chairman of the committee, Asuquo Ekpenyong (APC-Cross River South Senatorial District), expressed the reservation at an interactive session with the management of the NDDC.
Mr Ekpenyong stated, “It seems as though the NDDC has a revenue issue; revenue issue in terms of the fact that IOCs and the federal government are not remitting what they ought to.
When you have a situation where you have a debt profile of over a trillion naira, you are no longer talking about sustainable development. When you have a debt profile that high, contractors that have the capacity to deliver will run away from your contracts. We have to reverse the trend.”
The senator added, “It is a contravention for any IOC or any federal government parastatal agency to refuse to adhere to the law establishing the commission.”
He added that the act establishing the NDDC stipulated the contribution of the federal government and the IOCs to it to develop the Niger Delta. The legislator said the committee would summon IOCs that refused to make remittances to the NDCC.
Mr Ekpenyong revealed that the committee would nip “the backward and negative trend that had been the story of the commission over the last couple of years.”
He explained that this “is for conceiving, planning and implementation of projects and programmes” for the sustainable development of the Niger Delta region.
“The commission has performed creditably in certain areas but has failed to perform in others. Worthy of note is its performance over the course of the Ninth Assembly. I feel there was a breakdown in the relationship between the commission and the Ninth Assembly.
It is imperative at the beginning of this 10th Assembly that we start on a good footing,” Mr Ekpenyong stressed.
NDDC managing director Samuel Ogbuku said there was a need to offset the over N1 trillion debt owed the commission.
“We are looking at payment of N100 billion of the old debts each year so we can create a balance between payment of old debts and executing new projects,” noted the NDDC boss.
Mr Ogbuku added that the NDDC was ready to partner with the Senate for a better working relationship.
“We want to have the best working relationship because we know the National Assembly is there to complement what we are doing,” he said.
NAN