Former governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike, has described the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC as a cash cow organisation that needs to be reviewed.
Wike stated this while speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony of Governor Siminialayi Fubara’s N195.3Bn Port Harcourt Ring Road, a 50.1km project in Port Harcort on Monday.
The dual carriage road project to be executed by Julius Berger spans six Local Government Areas with six flyovers and one river crossing bridge to be completed within 36 months.
He said, “Ordinarily, this project you’re doing is meant to be done by NDDC if it was a development commission. Unfortunately, what we have is Niger Delta Cash Cow. Unfortunately!
“It is a cash cow, it is not a developmental commission. Please change that phrase to Niger Delta Cash Cow, all they do is that they go to a primary school stating that they are doing a six-classroom block which nobody asked them to do.
“Everyone wants to be a chairman of NDDC, Minister of NDDC, all because of cash cow. I believe our president would change what we use to have as cash cow to bring development to Niger Delta. I’ve never seen a region that hates itself like our region, I’ve never seen that.”
Addressing Fubara, Wike said, “Let me advise you, this good thing you are today attracts envy, attracts gang up against you, you will see a lot of gang-up against you amongst your peers particularly in your region.”
“Instead of them to appreciate, they will be asking, what is he trying or show? Just like his predecessor did, don’t bother about those things, what you must bother about is what good you’ll do for your people.”
The former governor bragged that no sitting governor could match Fubara in landmark projects delivery under current leadership dispensation in Nigeria.
Wike said, “In 2007, 2008, one man was governor at a time in a month we got N100billion. I was Chief of Staff. We put N100Billion in First Bank that we were going to do this road. Up till today there is no Ring Road.
“But today, a man one month in office has awarded a project of N195Bn and has paid N150Bn. I challenge any state, any governor today that will say he has the chest, the capacity to engage a reputable company like JB to award N195Bn single contract and pay N150Bn. When he (Fubara) will show you 100 days, Nigerians will be shocked.”