At last the NDDC Corporate Headquarters
By Joe Iniodu
One of the beauties of life is being a landlord. And one of the agonising experiences that can assail one is being a tenant to a difficult and shirlock landlord. NDDC has been that for decades.
The jinx of NDDC’s tenancy was broken today by the commissioning of the Corporate Headquarters of the Commission which building was conceived in 1994 in the days of OMPADEC under Chief A. K. Horsefall with the actual construction starting in 1996 and mired in literal abandonment for more than two decades and finally completed for occupation in 2021.
It has been a long journey with growing despair as bureaucracy and corruption combined to stifle every effort at completing the building for occupation.
But the Minister of the Niger Delta ministry, Senator Godswill Akpabio has finally broken the jinx by completing the complex against all odds in less than two years.
From when he was appointed Minister, Akpabio viewed the completion of the Headquarters building as one of the steps towards repositioning NDDC and the Niger Delta. He was also conscious of the odds he was going to confront as many vested interests were going to be ruptured.
For instance, NDDC has for decades been on rent of N 300 million annually. Even the rented facility was not connected to the national grid, exposing the Commission to reckless fleecing through diesel contract deals.
Akpabio who has always stood on the side of the people saw this action as anti- people and against the interest of the Niger Delta people. He therefore took up the gauntlet to save the people’s resources and restore sanity to the bureaucracy. The result is the determined effort that has yielded the the monumental edifice that now serves as the Corporate headquarters of NDDC.
PMB must be commended for his open warmth towards Niger Delta and its people expressed first in his appreciation of the capacity of Senator Akpabio, graciously appointing him minister and extending support to him which has led to the numerous successes recorded in the Niger Delta region in the last few years.
Ongoing also in the region is the resumption of work on East- West road which is moving at very fast pace and would be ready for commissioning soon.
The bridge on the Ikot Abasi end is also progressing at speedy pace and would be commissioned in the next few months according to the Minister. Recently, the headquarters of National Content Development and Monitoring Board was commissioned in Bayelsa adding to the infrastructural facility the administration has built in the region.
Senator Akpabio has brought pride to the Niger Delta through his work zeal and passion for service delivery. He must be commended and supported. The Interim Administrator, Pastor Efiong Akwa has shown devotion, commitment and passion in his strive to change the narrative of NDDC from a helpless tenant to a sure footed landlord.
It is believed that the relocation of NDDC from Aba Road to the Corporate headquarters would optimise service delivery to the Niger Delta and its people.
