The South-South Emerging Leaders Forum (SELF) has lauded President Muhammadu Buhari for appointing Mr Effiong Akwa as the Sole Administrator of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC).
Its National Coordinator, Mr. Preye Johnson, said in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday that the president acted in line with the Act setting up the Commission.
Johnson also commended the Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs, Godswill Akpabio, for doing the right thing within the purview of the law.
The forum which consists of professionals appealed to those agitating against the appointment to give peace a chance for the development of the region.
Members of the Ijaw Youth Council blocked the East-West Highway on Dec. 23 to protest the appointment and in the process; many travellers were stranded for hours.
The protesters demanded a full management board in place of a sole administrator for the NDDC.
“As a non-partisan group, we have carefully studied the situation and concluded that the decision to appoint a sole administrator is patriotic and in the best interest of the region.
“This is not the first time that a sole administrator is being appointed for the NDDC.
“It will be recalled that in 2015, the Minister of Transport, Mr Rotimi Amaechi, appointed Mrs Ibim Semenitari, an Ijaw woman and his former aide as a Sole Administrator of the NDDC after sacking the Dan Abia-led management of the Commission.
“Our appeal to the entire people of the Niger Delta is to support the new leadership of the NDDC to deliver on its mandate and supervise to completion the on-going forensic audit ordered by the Federal Government,’’ the forum said.
