The leadership of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) has called for the screening of North East Development Commission (NEDC) board nominees whose names were forwarded to the Red Chamber by President Muhammadu Buhari earlier this month.
Vice president, NYCN, Amb. Akoshile Mukhtar made the request during a press conference in Abuja yesterday.
The nominees include: Bashir Baale, chairman, (North East, Yobe); Suwaiba Baba, executive director, Humanitarian Affairs, (North East, Taraba); Musa Yashi, executive director, Administration and Finance, (North East, Bauchi); Ismaila Maksha, executive director, Operations (North East, Adamawa) and Umar Hashidu, MD/CEO, (North East, Gombe).
Others are Grema Ali, member, (North East, Borno); Onyeka Gospel-Tony, member, (South East); Hailmary Aipoh, member, (South-South); Babatunde Akanbi, member, (South West); Mustapha Ibrahim, member, (North West); Hadiza Maina, member, (North Central) and a representative from the Federal Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning.
The Council, however, said Nigerians are not unaware of the behind the scene scheming by certain interests to halt the process, adding that governance is a continuous process governed by law.
He said the leadership of the NYCN has followed the process since the names of the nominees were forwarded to the Senate and have carried out due diligence on the nominees.
“The board nominees were comprised of Nigerians with solid track records and a balanced representation of the youth demography, including the nominee for managing director of the NEDC.
“The diversity of the board in terms of demography, geography, and ethnicity is not in doubt and it is the strong opinion of the NYCN that they should be considered by the Senate in their merit for appointment by the President as soon as possible.
“Governance never ends and doesn’t wait, just as the severe humanitarian need and exigencies that necessitated the creation of the NEDC and the activities isn’t going to pause and wait for the interests of some individuals to be satisfied before continuing to bite the people of the North East,” he said.
He said while the NYSC had written to the Senate to drive home their demands, they are equally calling on all well meaning Nigerians to make the same demand from the Senate.
“All Nigerians will not have the required development if some Nigerians are left in crisis and not given the solid footing required to be reintegrated into their normal lives as it is the case in the north east geopolitical zone,” he added.
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