ICT Stakeholders Faults NITDA Board Appointment

The recent announcement by the federal government on the appointment of new members into the governing board of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), has come under heavy criticism by industry stakeholders.

The critics, who expressed their displeasure over what they described as faulty appointment, said it lacked professionalism.

They are worried that the federal government could still appoint a non-technocrat as chairman of the governing board of NITDA that is supposed to oversee the implementation of the country’s Information Technology (IT) policy.

The federal government recently announced the appointment of board members for all the federal agencies in Nigeria, and made a Professor of Political Science, Adeolu Akande, as the Chairman, NITDA Governing Board. Other members of the board include: Hon Kazeem Salako; Dr. Lawal Bello Moriki; Hajia Binta Mohammed; Mr. Uche Onwude; Rt. Hon Abdullai Bello and Sen. J.J. Akpanunudoedehe.

Disturbed by the list of members for NITDA Governing Board, especially its chairman who is a Professor of Political Science, with no experience in technology, the Chairman, Education and Manpower Committee of the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS), Mr. Rogba Adeoye, said the appointment of Akande negates the ethics of IT professionalism and the Act setting up the Computer Profes- sionals Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN), which has the mandate to accredit all IT professionals in the country.

According to Adeoye, Vice President Yemi Osinbanjo had in the past, assured IT professionals in the country that appointment into any government parastatals that is driven by IT, would be based on professionalism, but the recent appointment into the NITDA Governing Board, is a complete derailment from the promises of the Vice President.

“We have qualified IT personnel in the country that are registered with either CPN or NCS or both, yet the government still went ahead to appoint someone with no knowledge of IT to man a sensitive agency of government like NITDA that is saddled with the responsibility of implementing the nation’s IT policy.

“Economies are thriving through IT development and Nigeria must take a clue from other economies to properly drive IT development in the country,” Adeoye said.

The Chief Executive Officer, Pinnet Informatics, Mr. Lanre Ajayi, who also expressed his displeasure over the appointment, however, said technocrats must loosen up a little and also attach themselves to politics, since political appointments are meant for politicians.

Speaking on the economic implication of not appointing a technocrat to chair IT-driven agencies like NITDA, Ajayi said the non-technocrat would use the first two years of his tenure to learn and understand the technology terrain, before coming up with better policies that will enhance development. He is of the view that appointment of technocrats into the NITDA would fast-track development, since the technocrat has the pedagogy needed to drive development in the IT sector.