The disharmony between Acting President Prof Yemi Osinbajo and the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Mr Nsima Ekere has generated ripples in recent times.
The NDDC boss in flagrant disregard of the current protocol arrangement in the country, deliberately addressed Prof Osinbajo on his recent Thanksgiving service programme Brochure as Vice President instead of Acting President.
Many APC chieftains in Akwa Ibom State had Sunday been thrown into confusion at Ikot Abasi, home of Nsima Ekere, following the snub by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, who neither sent a message nor a representative to the event as earlier publicized by the organizers.
Nsima Ekere’s actions at the event further cemented the belief that there is no love lost between him and the Acting President, and gave further rise to the suspicion that his godfather Mr Rotimi Amaechi has no regard for the Professor of Law.
This much was revealed at the last thanksgiving service organized by Mr Ekere to shore up his support base and continue his subtle governorship campaign.
APC followers who were conned into attending the event in order to see the acting president wore utter disbelief on their faces when the Acting President failed to show up or sent a message to the thanksgiving ceremony.
The last few weeks had witnessed a return of several APC chieftains to the PDP in large events witnessed in Mkpat Enin, Eket, Uruan, Oruk Anam among others.
Although most of the returnees cited the poor democracy benefits and failure to deliver on campaign promises by the APC-led government, it was gathered that the failure of the Ekere-led NDDC to deliver the contracts to them as he promised, months after they joined the broom movement was a major catalyst.
Further findings have shown that the current handicapped position of the intervention agency, which leaves it at the mercy of the Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, as against the initial status as a major agency in the presidency, means that it was no longer a priority to the current federal government.
This is also aggravated by the current poor relationship between Rotimi Amaechi and the Acting President, meaning that his protégé Ekere must follow suit, as seen in his refusal to accord Prof Osinbajo the respect of Acting President under the belief that as soon as the President returns from his sick leave, luck will smile at the agency again.
A constitutional lawyer, Barr Bassey Ndon of the University of Calabar who commented on this on the social media said the current situation in the country has made it difficult for funding of the agency, adding that the only projects executed are the 2015 -2016 projects approved under the previous leadership of Barr Bassey Abia and Mrs Ibim Semanitari respectively.
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