South South Reawakening Group has urged President Bola Tinubu to review the 15 per cent contribution from the Federal Government to 25 per cent, arguing that the former had become inadequate. The group asked the President to immediately send an executive bill for amendment of relevant sections of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Establishment Act to effect the change.
  
Speaking during a media chat with journalists in Warri, the convener of the group, Joseph Ambakederimo, said the Niger Delta had lost confidence in NDDC, owing to rising corruption and political interference in the agency.
    
He said the forensic audit of the commission’s operations initiated by the former Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, succeeded in erasing any form of citizen’s confidence in the commission, aside minor gains.
     
Ambakederimo, who surgically appraised the NDDC during his birthday media chat, recommended scrapping of the commission for gross failure. He stressed that political interference has stifled whatever achievement the commission has made, suggesting that it should be curtailed to stem the high turnover of appointment of members of the board of management.
    
Ambakederimo also demanded an increase of three per cent contribution from the oil and gas companies to 10 per cent, as well as the Ecological fund increased to 70 per cent.
   
He demanded an appreciable percentage of gas flare charge to be paid to the NDDC, adding that the agency should be considered to benefit from recent and future windfall of revenue shared to various entities by the Federal government. 
   
He said: “The greatest disservice that has happened to the NDDC is political interference in its affairs. This is responsible for the high turnover of appointment of officials to oversee the workings of the commission. This hasn’t gone down well, as it impacts negatively on performance of persons who may have the will to bring positive change to the region, because they have been removed when they are almost getting set to seat properly to work.  
  
 “Therefore, in this circumstance, how would one hold anyone to account for his stewardship? This must be looked into by Tinubu to ensure that appointed persons serve out their tenure. This has to start with the current management team, headed by Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, so that a clear-cut demonstration of seriousness on the part of the government can be seen by the people.”