Akpabio inserted N500m projects in NDDC budget – Senate committee

The Senate Committee on the Niger Delta Affairs has insisted that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, inserted N500million worth of projects in the 2017 budget of the Niger Delta Development Commission.

The Committee, on Wednesday, released documents to justify its allegations against Akpabio, saying the minister requested the inclusion of about N500million worth of projects in the commission’s 2017 budget.

Chairman of the Senate panel on the NDDC, Peter Nwaoboshi, had last week alleged that Akpabio, who served in the 8th Senate, wrote to seek the leave of the panel to push his constituency projects through the Niger Delta Development Commission.

Nwaoboshi said he granted Akpabio’s request as Chairman of the Senate Committee during the 8th Senate.

But Akpabio in a press statement on Tuesday denied Nwaoboshi’s allegations.

The National Assembly is currently investigating the alleged spending of N40billion by the NDDC Interim Management Committee between January and April 2020.

Although the Senate set up an ad hoc committee to probe the alleged scam, the NDDC panel members have been accused of corruption by the IMC.

The documents indicting Akpabio were released to journalists at the National Assembly on Wednesday.

One of the documents indicated that in August 2017, Akpabio, requested for projects worth N500million from the NDDC and suggested the fixed amount each of them would cost.

In the letter dated August 7, 2017, and addressed to the Chairman, Senate Committee on NDDC, Akpabio, as the then Minority Leader, requested that five projects worth N500million be included for him as part of the NDDC budget.

The projects include fencing the Federal Polytechnic Ukana, Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District (N200million); and fencing of the Federal Government College, Ikot Ekpene (Old site) Akwa North-West Senatorial District (N100million).

Another is entrepreneurship training on the use of modern farming implement for youths in Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District at the cost of N75million, among others.

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