The Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), has said it will soon organise the “Niger Delta Stakeholders Summit” where the future of the region would be discussed.
NDDC managing director, Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, disclosed this yesterday in Port Harcourt, when he hosted women leaders of apex groups of ethnic nationalities, community-based organisations, faith-based organisations, civil society organisations and market associations in the Niger Delta region.
Ogbuku stated that the summit will afford the people of Niger Delta the opportunity to sit together under one roof to discuss and an agenda in the face of the new administration in the country.
He said: “We have met with the youths before and now, we are planning to meet with the women and also planning towards having a Niger Delta stakeholders summit. The Niger Delta stakeholders summit will be coming up any time from now.
“Apart from the issues we have to discuss partaining the NDDC, the people of Niger Delta will come together under one roof and also have an agenda in the face of this new administration.
“Because we believe, not until we give both our political leaders, traditional leaders, women leaders, youth leaders and other leaders in the Niger Delta that platform and an opportunity to have a discussion, on what our future should be, we might not also have a proper direction of what our people want us to do.
“So, because we also want to have that direction, we are planning for the summit, so that it will afford the opportunity to pick your brains. Let us know what you have in mind because whatever we want to do here in the Niger Delta, it needs to be tailor-made.
We cannot plan for you without knowing what you want.”
Earlier in her address, leader of the delegation and convener, Niger Delta Self-Determination Movement (NDSM), Ann-Kio Briggs, decried the non-availability of the report of the forensic audit carried out on the NDDC by the last administration.
Briggs, who is also the founder of Agape Birthright Foundation, called on President Bola Tinubu to constitute a new board of the NDDC with the current management team as led by Ogbuku.
