NDDC hails court for dismissing suit challenging legality of IMC

PORT HARCOURT, Rivers, Nigeria – The Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC has hailed the decision of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja in dismissing the suit challenging the legality of the Interim Management Committee (IMC), led by its Acting Managing Director, Professor Kemebradikumo Pondei.

The litigants,  Lucky Akharame, Adward Brisibe of Youths Arise for Undiluted Leadership and Development Initiative and Riverrun Development Initiative had filed a suit at the Federal High Court  questioning  the legality of the IMC and seeking leave of the court to sack  members of the IMC and restrain the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio from recognizing the interim management.

“We are relieved that Justice Inyang Ekwo upheld the law and dismissed the case, noting that the plaintiffs did not have the locus standi to file the suit challenging the action of government agencies”,  NDDC Director, Corporate Affairs, Mr. Charles Obi Odili said in a statement.

In dismissing the suit, Justice Ekwo said the suit was nothing but an invitation to trample on the sacred principle of separation of power, adding that it was only meant to encourage the court to usurp the executive powers of President Mohammed Buhari to appoint an interim management board.

According to the judge,  “if there is any breach or infraction of the provisions of the NDDC Act, it is the stakeholders specifically mentioned in Section 2(1) that are clothed with the locus standi to take an action in court on any matter concerning or pertaining to the appointment of Managing Director, Executive Directors and members of the Management Board of the NDDC.”

Obi Odili noted that this particular case exemplifies the distractions the NDDC has had to deal with in its efforts to reposition and refocus the NDDC as the foremost interventionist agency in the Niger Delta region.

He said the NDDC remains determined to discharge the responsibility trust upon it by Mr. President to re-invent the Commission and achieve the mandate of ensuring a rapid, even and sustainable development of the Niger Delta region.

He said the decision of the court has further exposed the ploys of the detractors of the Niger Delta region.

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“We had on several occasions called attention to the fact that some mischievous groups were being used to castigate and malign the NDDC. These nefarious acts came to the fore during the National Assembly hearings on the activities of the Commission.

“These critics had taken their fallacious tales to the security agencies and swamped the media space with wicked and malicious lies to discredit the IMC”, he said.