Senate Faults NDDC’s N3.14bn Relief Funds for Staff, Police

The Senate has faulted the expenses of N3.14 billion made by the management of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to provide COVID-19 palliatives to its staff that numbered more than 4,000 workers and the police commands in the nine oil producing states.

This is just as the Interim Management Committee (IMC) of the NDDC accused the leadership of the National Assembly Joint committee on Niger Delta Affairs of meddling in the financial affairs of the commission.

The commission also declared that no single kobo was missing in its account since inception of the current IMC on February 19, 2020.

The Senator Olubunmi Adetunbi-led Ad-hoc committee probing the alleged financial recklessness in the NDDC queried why huge amount of money was given to workers of the commission as relief for COVID-19 pandemic.

Adetunbi raised the issue during a public hearing and wondered why N10 million was given to a single staff as COVID-19 relief fund without the person testing positive to the virus.

He said: “From the financial statements and documents forwarded to this committee from your office as regards expenditure carried out between October 29, 2019 and May 31, 2020, monies expended on COVID-19 pandemic relief are mind boggling.

“N3.14 billion was spent on COVID-19 pandemic as relief funds out of the total expenditure of N81.495 billion spent by both the IMC that was led by Mrs. Gbene Nunieh as Managing Director between October 29, 2019 and February 18, 2020 and the current IMC that is led by Professor Pondei between February 19, 2020 and May 31, 2020.

“Highly disturbing is the fact that based on the records of payment of such funds, a whopping N10 million was given to a single staff while two other staffers collected N7 million each.

“Other payments as reliefs against the pandemic are N3 million given to each of 148 other staffers; N1.5 million each to 157 other category of staffers; N1 million each to 497 others and N600,000.00 each to the last category of 464 other staffers.

“Also included in the COVID-19 pandemic relief, as clearly stated in your submitted financial documents, is N475 million given to the police high command for purchase of face masks and hand sanitisers for men and officers across the nine states in the Niger Delta Region.”