River Basins: After LEADERSHIP Report, Board Members Get Appointment Letters

The federal government has finally released appointment letters to members of the boards of the 12 River Basin Development Authorities (RBDAs) in the country.

LEADERSHIP Sunday had reported penultimate week the non-issuance of letters of appointment to chairmen and board members of agencies, three months after they were announced by the government.

The chairman of the Lower Niger River Basin Development Authority, Ilorin, Alhaji AbdulLateef Alakawa confirmed to our correspondent that he received his appointment letter on Friday.

LEADERSHIP Sunday had in its March 16, 2025 edition reported that three months after President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved the reconstitution of the executive management of 12 RBDAs under the Federal Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation, the 72 new helmsmen were yet to officially report at their duty posts.

The story was titled: “3 Months After Naming Members, River Basins Still Operate Without Boards”.

It recalled that the reconstitution of the management teams of the agencies was announced by the presidency on December 18, 2024 in a statement released by the special adviser to the president on information and strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga.

The special report added that investigation revealed that none of the new appointees had received his or her appointment letter, expectedly from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of Federation (OSGF).

Some of the appointees who spoke with our correspondents then confirmed that they were yet to receive their letters of engagement from the government.

But on Friday, the chairman of the Lower Niger River Basin Development Authority, Ilorin, Alhaji AbdulLateef Alakawa, confirmed the receipt of his letter of appointment and those of other members to LEADERSHIP Sunday.

He added that the remaining 11 chairmen of River Basins across the country had also been issued their letters of appointment.

He said the release of his letter followed the confirmation of his appointment by President Bola Tinubu.

Alakawa thanked Tinubu for finding him worthy of the appointment and promised to work assiduously to uplift the lives of the people in accordance with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the president.

He also thanked Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq for making his appointment possible.

Alakawa also hailed LEADERSHIP on its last report on the non-release of the letters of appointment to the board members of River Basins.

“I have told other chairmen of the River Basins on our platform that we owe LEADERSHIP a lot of gratitude,” Alakawa said.