 Let's see the breakfast and plus TV Africa right here. We're looking at the second, we're looking at our conversation this morning. Labor Union has asked Buhari to constitute a board immediately for the NN, the NDDC. And we'll have a guest joining the conversation of Abumere Osara. He's a legal practitioner and a notary public. It's good to have you join us this morning. Good morning. It's my pleasure to be here this morning. Well, a bit of a background to our conversation this morning. Now, the Senate had in November 2019 confirmed 15 nominees sent by the president as NDDC board members. The president has sent the names of the nominees led by payas Udubu to the Senate in October. However, President Mohammed Buhari refused to inaugurate the nominees following the clearance by the Senate during the confirmation process. The president also ordered a forensic audit of the operation of the organization. That's the NDDC from 2001 to 2019, also before the nominees were cleared by the Senate. The minister of Niger Delta, Goswilak Pabio, named an interim management committee for the NDDC. And in recent times, the Almagamated Union of Public Cooperation, civil service technical and recreational services employees, that's called for the inauguration of a board of the Niger Delta Development Commission. That's the NDDC. The group is an affiliate of the Niger Labor Congress and said it is imperative to save the commission from destruction. The union appealed to President Mohammed Buhari, National Assembly, Senate President Ahmed Lawan, House of Representatives Speaker Femig Bajabiamila and Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Omana Omana, to take steps to ensure that the NDDC delivers on its mandate. According to the union in January 2019, the NDDC Managing Director, that's in Simaikere and the Chairman, Senator Victor Doma Egbar, resigned the appointment to contest election in the estate. The position should have been filed in accordance with section five paragraph three of the established arts of the commission. Like I mentioned earlier on, we have a boomer, Osara, who is a legal practitioner. He joins the conversation this morning. Osara, it's good to have you join us. Thank you for having me. Quickly, what are your thoughts on this now? I mean, you know, for a long time, the NDDC seemed to be, you know, operating without a bot, some sort of direction, leadership right here. What are your thoughts? Well, it's a rather unfortunate situation that we find ourselves. And if you follow the trajectory of the head of state, you would not really be surprised that we are this sorry pass. What is going on with the NDDC is typical of what is wrong with Nigeria, particularly since 2015 when General Buhari came on board. He's sad. One would have thought that having been a military governor, having been a petroleum minister, and the military head of states, and the chairman of petroleum trust fund, and then having contested to the highest peace in Nigeria, about three or four different to kitchen, and then he announced, not democratically, that the president would have been broad-minded enough and be in the capacity and mindset to do what it says that quite contrary to the clear and strong provisions of the NDDC act, the president decided to act more in breach of the law by refusing to act in compliance with the clear provisions of the act. I'm not surprised because it seems that the president would recall when he was newly spawning, it doesn't have one of his official visits of the country to the United States made that allegory of 97% and 5%. And I believe that is what the president made comes to the question of the United Nations in the zone. You and I would recall the issues and the situation that Nigeria faced leading up to setting up of the current during the awesome job rate. I mean, that the nationalists also need to address the NDDC question. For the first time, that the National Assembly override the veto power of the president. That is why you'll find out that since 1999, the NDDC act is the only law enacted by the National Assembly of Nigeria that was not signed, that has not been signed by successive presidents. The National Assembly had to start to have very knowledge and patriotic in their endeavor when the four presidents General Lucio Gumbel-Bachsanjo declined to sign the act as passed. The National Assembly came together, united as one, and passed the law into effect. In 2015, after he was sworn in, the first acts of the president in respect to the NDDC was to appoint a sole administrator and it was declared to that by the act, the act does not cognize the composition of administration of the commission by means of a sole administrative. And the president went ahead to appoint his excellency, Mr. Mike Ray as the MD and Senator Udo Mayaba as chairman. One would have thought that thereafter, the president would have be sufficiently equipped to realize the framers of the NDDC Commission of the Surveillance Act were very careful when Sentinel commuted, when they made copy of provisions adding the manner of appointment of the chairman and the managing director. Section four of the NDDC is very clear. As you find that the manner of the commission shall be appointed term of force and alphabetical for the anoints that comprises membership of the commission and arranging an alphabetical or the study from Abba to the last. At all the first chairman, Chief Shreya Konyema and then with respect to the appointment of the managing director of the commission is also very clear, very quite explicit that the MD director shall be appointed as the quarter of oil produced generated from the state from the producer to the rest. So clearly, the law has given to the president the mode has simplified the order of session. The law don't admit of appointment of an interim management or the president has decided for the best to him to put it in order how let's clear provisions of the act. So the call by the is a right call and it seems to sink with all calls that has been made by all women in Nigeria since 2019. Appealing, pleading with the president to constitute the board and have the substantive managing director in line with the provisions of national assembly has passed the solution of past imploring the president to constitute the board and have the manager in line with the position of the act. So the the purpose for which the commission was set could be realized but the president chose on his own not to hacking to their call. And now I say to myself you have to remember that it is winding down. We have just about several months even though it's a right call but I wonder whether it's the right call and also wonder have they got to the way the president has treated all appeals from leaders of thoughts originally called Niger data leaders but Barista Barista please start to interrupt you you rightly said that you talked about the NDDC act and you said that this trend of having the administrative interim management committee for the commission is not in following in step with the NDDC act you also talked about the entreaties to the president from different stakeholders but when the NDDC you know when the NDDC interim management committee was set in place Mr. Effing Aqwa being the minister in 2020 we had different groups coming up foreign against one of those who came up to support the move by Mr. President is a south south emerging leaders forum who in 2020 the same December 2020 when the appointment of Effing Aqwa was announced President Bahá'u'lláh for appointing Effing Aqwa as the NDDC administrative and they said that the president acted in line with the act setting up the commission that's what they're saying that he acted in line with the act setting up the commission and the forum appealed to those agitating against the appointment of this man to give peace of chance for the development of region so what do you say to that some group are saying this is in line with the with the commission in fact what the group this is Naja Delta sorry south south emerging leaders which is a group comprising of professionals from the south south what they said is quote this is not the first time that a sole administrator is being appointed for the NDDC they are still going to quote this was in 2020 December 2020 it will be called that in 2015 the minister of transportation appointed Mrs. Bheem Semenetari and a Joe woman and his former aide as sole administrator as sole administrator of the NDDC after sacking the Dan Abia led management of the commission this is I'm quoting what they wrote so it's saying it's not the first time and they said quote our appeal to the entire people of the Naja Delta the new leadership of the NDDC to deliver its mandate and supervise the completion of the ongoing forensic audit ordered by the federal government well my immediate reaction is that perhaps that group they were speaking in error not properly advised they did not have the benefit of drew the clear provisions of the establishment act section 12 of the NDDC act it's very clear and with your commission I'll just read out section 12 of the act revised as follows there shall be for the commission the managing director and two electors who shall be indigenous of oil producing areas starting with the member states of the commission with the highest production of oil and shall rotate amongst the states in order of production now if you go the entire section provision the new flow provision is made for the appointment of a sole administration is immuitably the current regime has successfully launched onslaught on the rule of law and taken to track on it what we have is the we have the rule of law of me and that's why the trample all clear provisions they do I'm not surprised perhaps because my sex of the president has it in or two against the south side the goose that lays the golden bed and it's rather unfortunate that since 2015 the cry of marginalization of the Niger data the cry of oppression of the minorities and the Niger data by this regime is a very worrisome development but alas we are confronted by the fact that in less than several months time this regime will run its course hopefully we will have a new leader who will be broad minded enough who will not be betrayed by primordial scientists the sex sentiment and who will take care of some old constituency who will incorporate who will not be 7% and 5% and who is for this regime in 2004 and 2019 and because this is really they do not believe in philosophy of the composition and establishment of the NDC acts that is why they have systematically put in place escape the real dreams of the acts and the inspiration of the Niger data and of the allies of the Niger for sex besides also the dream of the Niger data people it will trust you that that at the same time the president was forwarded the names of Bartol the they are also friends of the main commission so they sent it but that has seen constituted and they are up and running sorry we are having a bit of a network problem with you that is interfering with the quality of the audio coming from your end but I was going to ask you is there nothing in the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria that allows the president to get away with this because we see that from recent history that the president really acts without seeing something in the constitution that gives him overriding powers of sorts and it's not that sometimes the constitution or the laws will give powers to certain organizations or provisions that allow things to be done in certain ways but those provisions will be taken away by the constitution which will give just one line to say the president can still do this in spite of that and I have been studying section 5 of the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria just to see if there is anything in there that we can hold on to and we really haven't seen anything but of course section 5 of the constitution says subject to the provisions of this constitution the executive powers of the federation shall be vested in the president and maybe subject as Afo said and to the provisions of any law by the national so do we show the president is not doing this based on the powers vested in him as the president of Nigeria in the constitution that may give him for some sort of loophole for him to get away with this yeah Barista did you hear me please okay hello okay yes please go president of Nigeria swore on oath to uphold not only the constitution but also of all other laws in Nigeria now we've got to some hand the Niger data there is a law passed by the national assembly which has established a regulation of how that particular commission to be a government and the president of Nigeria have swore on oath to to ban our animals including the the and obliged to observe of the provisions in the D.C. acts the executive power of president conferred by section five of the constitution does not detract from the proof of the D.C. there is no problem in the constitution that gives power to the president to act contrary to the clear provisions of an enabling statute rather than what the president do by his own office is to enforce and act in accordance with that act with that particular law so these are our forces but the president and you will arrive from 2019 2015 starting with the appointment of the sole administrator of the cemetery all that clears the problems of the D.C. acts even the setting up of a forensic audit is also against the clear provisions of the D.C. acts because the D.C. acts has made for monitoring we have to let you go now we sincerely apologize the network from the end is not too good and also we are out of time but we would like to thank you very much for your time interesting thoughts there the lawyer has given us a lot to show on messy today some have said you know what yes the law is there but they also look at morality look at the the protection of the rights of the people protection of the finances of the nation stepping in to do what is right and people have talked about okay look at about 6 trillion Naira being spent on the entities in how many years what is this issue for it we need to find out where the money went initially there was support for this forensic audit there was some support and even the gentleman went around visiting the likes of thank you Briggs and other people and they received him warmly sort of a good will talk but it seems that people have gone impatient because they want to see some action some people are saying that I mean unfortunately we are out of time it is taking too long when you say yes taking too long because it would slow down the entire process where you have some certain critical decisions that need to be taken projects have been embarked on who now on approves and all of that it becomes quite worrisome but that is why we would take a break this morning on that discussion we hope that we will have some other time to talk about this thank you so much for being part of the breakfast we appreciate you if you missed out on any part of it it will be beautiful to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and do you subscribe to our YouTube channel we are at Plus TV Africa and Plus TV Africa lifestyle my name is Messi Bopu have a fantastic day and my name is Goofy Bartels we will return tomorrow good morning