Developing Story: Wike Turns Against Ogbuķu?

By PHC Telegraph

When President Bola Tinubu and members of his inner circle decide to reconstitute the Board of the NDDC, Dr Sam Ogbuku, current Managing Director of the agency, may not be found on the list of appointees.

His inability to stage a comeback to the office of Managing Director would not be traceable to a poor performance index.

Many agree Ogbuku, a one-time aide to a federal minister and a former Chief of Staff to a governor of Bayelsa State, has equally exhibited character, commitment, deligence and focus in his approach to the job.

Rather, a powerful foe who apparently loves to fight; a formidable adversary who has little or no regard for subordinates; and a man who is surreptitiously opposed to the reappointment of Ogbuku has surfaced.

Insiders say that person is the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory,  Barrister Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, a strong ally of President Bola Tinubu.

Apparently, Wike who won ThisDay’s award as the best performing Minister appears to be uninterested either in the performance of Ogbuku or the contributions of directors that are working closely with him to turn things around.

Although the lifespan of the board of the NDDC is statutorily four years, many boards have been unable to make it to the finish line. They are dissolved midway into their tenure and Caretaker Committees that are not allowed by law are set up.

Ogbuku was named MD/CEO in 2023. This means that his tenure would lapse in 2027 when the President would be vying for re-election.

But if information that is coming from sources within and outside the commission is to be believed, the FCT Minister may have resolved to pitch camp with someone from Delta State.

On paper,  after Bayelsa, it is the turn of Delta State to produce the next Managing Director of the Commission.

But stakeholders as well as other pan Niger Delta groups that are keenly watching the NDDC are rather worried about the future of the organisation.

For how long, they ask, will the NDDC which is expected to help develop the Niger Delta remain unstable, afflicted by political interests?

Stakeholders and other actors insist there ought to be continuity in the policy direction introduced by the Commission under Ogbuku’s watch.

They say that those policies are gradually turning the interventionist agency in the Niger Delta region into a responsible and reputable corporate citizen.

According to them, the outgoing Managing Director who is expected to serve out his tenure may be an asset to the current re-engineering process that is currently going on.

In the meantime, a fierce battle between Wike and Ogbuku is coming to the fore, and insiders say it is getting messier by the day.

Until noticeable differences developed, all was reportedly going well within the agency, at least from the perspective of insiders and other stakeholders.

Ogbuku and other Directors, we have learnt were allegedly collaborating actively with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory.

A prominent Niger Delta activist (name withheld) confirms, “Ogbuku was working closely with Wike. He listened to no-one else as he did Wike’s biddings.”

The NDDC  has always been described as a cash cow. As Governor of Rivers State,  Wike repeatedly accused other Ministers before him of turning the NDDC into a cash cow.

Has Wike turned the Commission into a cash cow? Some who are opposed to his style of doing things suggest he may have.

Others close to Wike and his friends dismiss such claims with a wave of the hand, saying Wike is not interfering in any way with the internal operations of the NDDC.

They reveal Wike has been more of a bridge builder than a bridge wrecker, stressing Ogbuku and his colleagues in the NDDC do have so much to be grateful for.

As differences between the Minister and the Managing Director rear their ugly head, the gladiators are steadily turning attention to the Presidency.

And there are indications that revelations relating to how the NDDC may have run under the Tinubu era might be strewn on the street soon.

The Telegraph will stay on the trail of the developing story.